Patriots Have a Problem That Could Threaten Their Playoff Hopes
Struggling to score after halftime, the Patriots face a crucial test to sustain their playoff momentum
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The Patriots have had such a focus on getting off to fast starts this season that it feels like they might have forgotten about one other important detail.
Scoring in the second half.
Heading into Sunday night’s showdown in Baltimore, New England currently leads the NFL in first-half scoring, having scored 234 points, including the 24 they just put up against the Bills this past Sunday.
However, the second half has been a completely different story. They’re currently 22nd in the league in second-half scoring, scoring just 148 points this season. Some may argue that part of that has been the fact that they had been playing with a lead for the majority of their 10 game win streak, which would certainly explain why they’re currently 30th in the NFL in 4th quarter scoring.
But the thing that’s probably the most concerning is the fact they’re not putting up points coming out of the locker room in the second half. In the third quarter over the last four games, New England has managed a total of just 10 points. They haven’t scored a touchdown in the third quarter since Week 11.
Over that span, it’s been a tale of two halves for New England Patriots quarterback, Drake Maye. Looking at the numbers, he certainly hasn’t been as effective early on in the second half compared to how he started.
That was certainly the case this past Sunday. Maye started out 9/11 (81.8%) for 108 yards while rushing for two touchdowns as New England scored 24 points and took a 24-7 lead into the locker room at halftime.
In the second half, it was a different story. Maye went 4-of-8 (50%) for 42yds and an interception in the third quarter, and then finished the 4th quarter just 1-of-4 for 5yds as the Bills eventually came roaring back and won 35-31.
Overall, he finished the second half just 5-of-12 (41.7%) for 47 yards with 0 TDs, and 1 INT.
First Half:
Total: 49/63 (77.8%) 575yds 3 TDs, 1 INT (114.0 RTG)
Patriots 3rd Down Totals: 13/22 (59%)
Patriots 4th Down Totals: 1/1 (100%)
Second Half:
Total: 36/60 (60%) 437yds 1 TD, 1 INT (81.0 RTG)
Patriots 3rd Down Totals: 9/26 ( 34.6%)
Patriots 4th Down Totals: 1/3 (33.3%)
For whatever reason, they haven’t been able to keep the momentum when they’ve taken the field after halftime, and the fact that they’ve struggled is definitely a concern. The fact that Buffalo leads the league in 3rd quarter scoring is certainly notable, especially given how Sunday’s game finished.
Buffalo also leads the league in 4th Quarter scoring, with the Bills sitting with the best second-half scoring total in the NFL, having scored 242 points. The next-closest team is Green Bay, who has scored 199.
On Sunday, that discrepancy was difficult to ignore.
The Patriots were blanked in the third quarter for the second straight game and have managed just a single field goal across their last three third quarters. Meanwhile, Buffalo scored 14 points, opening the second half with a six-play, 44-yard touchdown drive.
The weather was certainly a challenge on Sunday, although it didn’t seem to affect Josh Allen. The Bills quarterback ended up completing 19-of-28 (67.9%) for 193yds and 3 touchdowns. He also finished the second half 13-of-20 (65%) for 158yds and 2 touchdowns. Head coach Mike Vrabel was asked on Monday if he felt the weather played a factor in Maye’s issues, and Vrabel admitted that it instead came down to some problems Buffalo gave them defensively, which contributed to their offensive struggles.
“No, I just think that these are decisions,” said Vrabel. “You have to understand that there’s going to be disguise and it’s going to look differently post-snap, and being able to come off things and progress. He’ll, I’m sure, tell you all those things. We’ll be back, we’ll coach it up and we’ll get back to work.”
Overall, hopefully, these second-half issues are an area of focus for his football team. It certainly cost them Sunday, and with three games left, it’s a problem that they’re definitely going to need to figure out.
Because as we saw on Sunday, putting up points in the first half is great, but against good teams, it’s not going to be enough if they hope to make a deep playoff run.
The challenge doesn’t get any easier this week. Oddly enough, the Ravens are second in the NFL in 3rd quarter scoring behind the Bills, having scored 109 points over that span this season. They’re also third in the NFL in second-half scoring.
If the Patriots hope to make a deep playoff run, they’re going to have to start finally putting a full sixty minutes of football together. As we’ve seen, the teams that are playing their best football late in the season are the ones that tend to have the most success in January. That’s something New England hasn’t quite been able to do to this point, despite some good performances over their win streak.
But Sunday was a reminder that this remains a problem that definitely needs to be solved. And if they hope to avoid an early postseason exit, that turnaround will need to start Sunday night in Baltimore.
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