Well, that felt like any number of close losses from 2023. Sunday's contest with Seattle marked a very winnable game for the Patriots, who once again dominated the line of scrimmage in the run game on both sides of the ball. However, a ton of key mistakes allowed Seattle not only to stay in this game but ultimately win things in overtime, resulting in New England's third consecutive loss to the Seahawks post-Super Bowl 49.
The pass protection woes (short of a sack) from a week ago are still present, and this Patriots offensive line didn't help Jacoby Brissett much after the Ja'Lynn Polk touchdown drive. Outside of Hunter Henry getting obscenely wide open in the first half, there was next to no passing offense to speak of in this one. Pop Douglas is still a non-factor in two games, and the entire receiver core got three catches on five targets for the whole game. You can put any amount of blame between pass protection, Brissett not being able to find guys or even the game plan/inability to scheme guys open, but you cannot win NFL Football games with 35 passing yards in the second half and a drive of OT.
Never mind the fact that we haven't even touched the passing defense yet—don't worry, we'll get there. There's plenty of blame to go around for this loss; let's dive in and delve into it.
A Failure to Communicate and Poor Coverage
Let's kick this off with the defensive audible miscue that led to DK Metcalf's 50-plus-yard score. We know now, after the fact, that Kyle Dugger checked the Patriots into what looks like an inverted Tampa-2 look, and oh boy, was that a mistake.
Assuming this is some sort of Tampa-2 look, Gonzalez ultimately plays this right by settling in the shallow zone near the line, and the deep near side is Dugger's responsibility. When asked in the locker room yesterday, Dugger said he got a bad read on Geno and that he never accounted for Metcalf going vertical (a massive mistake). While I can appreciate the accountability (and that this also allows someone like me to continue the "Gonzalez is locking up WR1's weekly" narrative), that kind of breakdown cannot happen, especially right after a scoring drive where the Patriots could've applied some pressure with a stop. Granted, Dugger was pretty good otherwise, and Jerod Mayo gave him credit for taking over green dot duty once Ja'Whaun Bentley went down, which this TD was his final snap, with his shoulder injury coming the snap before.
Elsewhere, the Patriots coverage as a whole was a trainwreck, even with Geno Smith having some dirty pockets to work in. Jaxon Smith-Njigba has been stated to catch 12 passes on 16 targets for `116 yards, which honestly feels woefully understated. He had a few bad drops but was a walking bucket all day. He had a few designed looks on RPOs and some pick plays, but the majority of his damage came against zone looks. While his route running was a calling card coming out of Ohio State, he was able to shred soft spots all day long, and the Patriots never adjusted well enough to slow him down. Jonathan Jones and Marcus Jones certainly have had better games, but sometimes the other guy makes a better play.
Red Flag Game for Big Mike
Pass protection was not exactly a strength coming into the year, but Mike Onwenu has earned himself the reputation of being an above-average starter and is now paid like one. Unfortunately, he played like he did in 2021 on Sunday and had no shortage of timely bad reps that did Jacoby Brissett in. He allowed a few more pressure on top of this, but everything you're about to see is third down plays in the second half where I'd credit Onwenu with an allowed pressure.
This is simply inadequate play for a guy who's now the highest-paid member of the New England Patriots. We're about to get to some of the passing game woes that are directly on Brissett, but this team has to be better at pass blocking moving forward, starting with Onwenu.
Forcing Things Downfield
Jacoby Brissett deserves credit for a lot of the excellent footwork and pocket mobility he displayed yesterday (also, his toughness is undeniable if it wasn't already), but this passing offense was anemic in the second half, and this Patriots team needs to open up the passing attack with these wideouts and, hopefully, force things downfield with better protection. We did manage to get a Polk touchdown, but Pop Douglas was once again nowhere to be seen (and is now publically frustrated), and despite being active, Javon Baker was a complete non-factor.
It's not that things will improve overnight, especially with the Jets up next, but this was another week in which this crop of receivers got open and had next to nothing to show for it as a group. AVP deserves criticism for not finding ways to get these guys involved naturally, and Brissett deserves some criticism for not finding guys when the opportunities present themselves.
What Went Wrong on the Blocked Field Goal?
Obviously, this one doesn't need much explanation, but typically, bad things happen when it's essentially 6v4 on the left side of the line. Austin Hooper, the end man here, probably should've protected his inside gap more, but in real time, that's a tough call to make because 'Riq Woolen potentially could've gotten the block as well with a shorter path to the ball. In any case, this isn't the first time the Patriots have had leaky field goal protection this year. Shoutout to Matt St. Jean for pointing this out, but the Patriots almost had another field goal blocked in Cincinnati last week, with the Bengals overloaded the right side of the line and instantly bursting through the C Gap. I'd certainly hope by now the team knows this is an issue and they get it corrected quickly with a Thursday Night Game coming up.
Final Score: Seattle Seahawks 23, New England Patriots 20 (OT)
Gaffney's Three Stars from Patriots-Seahawks
3rd Star - Rhamondre Stevenson (21 Carries for 81 Yards, TD, 2 Receptions for 9 Yards)
2nd Star - Hunter Henry (8 Receptions for 109 Yards)
1st Star - Keion White (2.5 Sacks, 5 Pressures, 7 Tackles)
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