The Patriots have some work to do.
The early part of the NFL schedule is always unpredictable, and we’re still trying to get a grasp on the Super Bowl runners-up. The Patriots defense pulled a 180-degree turn from Week 1, allowing 377 passing yards and four touchdowns to Blake Bortles.
The offense, in a massive hole from the beginning, never appeared in sync. If the protection held up, then receivers had a hard time separating. If a receiver was open, there were breakdowns on the offensive line.
Here’s the full damage report from the Patriots’ 31-20 loss to the Jaguars:
QUARTERBACK: B-minus
Tough one to grade. Tom Brady made the right reads and usually took what the Jacksonville defense gave him. That meant plenty of passes to James White and not many to Rob Gronkowski, who was frequently double covered.
Truthfully, the Pats didn’t have the personnel to hang with the Jaguars in this game, especially when they fell behind. The Jags made sure Gronkowski wouldn’t beat them. They happily allowed one-on-one opportunities to everybody else, betting that they’d win matchups against the receivers and backs. It was a good bet on Jacksonville’s part.
RUNNING BACK: C-plus
Sony Michel’s debut was a mixed bag. The rookie ran hard, bulldozing Jacksonville safety Tashaun Gipson for 7 yards after contact on a 15-yard scamper in the third quarter. Michel failed to haul in a pass on an early checkdown. He appeared to stop his route too early.
As Bill Belichick recently noted, the biggest part of Michel’s adjustment will be his timing and precision, not necessarily the physical aspect of the position.
With so many passing situations, James White played extensively. He juked Jags cornerback D.J. Hayden at the line of scrimmage and picked up 27 yards on a screen pass. Rex
Burkhead was the starting running back, but Michel and White got most of the snaps.
After using White and Burkhead together on 10 snaps against Houston, the Patriots didn’t revisit the two-tailback set versus Jacksonville.
WIDE RECEIVER: D
Chris Hogan beat Jacksonville cornerback Jalen Ramsey for a touchdown on a slant route. Phillip Dorsett continued to have success with underneath routes. And that’s about it for the positive.
This group lacks a perimeter threat to complement Gronkowski’s work in the middle of the field. The Pats couldn’t connect on any big plays. They couldn’t generate yards after the catch.
Prior to a fourth-quarter, garbage-time drive, Tom Brady averaged 2.9 yards per attempt when targeting receivers. He completed eight passes to wideouts in that span, and only one went for 10-plus yards.
The group’s shortcomings were highlighted on a third-and-10 deep in Jacksonville’s territory in the late second quarter. Gronkowski was bracketed by safeties Tashaun Gipson and Barry Church. Hogan, Dorsett and Cordarrelle Patterson had one-on-one matchups. No one could shake free of coverage. Brady threw a jump ball to the short corner of the end zone, and Patterson caught it with both feet clearly out of bounds.
TIGHT END: C-plus
Rob Gronkowski finished with two receptions for 15 yards. He saw only four targets, mostly because the Jags prioritized eliminating him.
Gronkowski’s presence freed up opportunities for other players, though. The Pats frequently ran route combinations with Gronkowski clearing out space and James White running underneath his route. The Pats were effective moving the ball this way. Tom
Brady took one deep shot to Gronkowski, but Tashaun Gipson had the All-Pro tight end blanketed. Jacob Hollister was involved early in the game, catching a 23-yard pass out of the backfield. The Pats probably would have benefited from using more of Hollister.
OFFENSIVE LINE: D
The team’s first drive ended when the left side of the line failed to pick up defensive end Yannick Ngakoue, who looped inside untouched. Tom Brady had Cordarrelle Patterson open over the middle, but was forced to throw the ball away as Ngakoue closed in.
On a third-and-1 running play, the left side of the line collapsed. Joe Thuney and Trent Brown ended up on the ground as Jacksonville’s Malik Jackson and Abry Jones met Sony Michel in the backfield. On came the punt team.
Brown failed to block Calais Campbell on Brady’s final pass attempt of the first quarter. The ball sailed out of bounds.
Dante Fowler blew by LaAdrian Waddle for a strip-sack of Brady in the fourth. The play snuffed out any hope of a Pats comeback.
DEFENSIVE LINE: D
The Pats lost Trey Flowers to a concussion on the opening drive.
The rest of the group didn’t pick up the slack. Blake Bortles enjoyed a nice day in the sun, looking comfortable and completely undisturbed from the pocket.
On Jacksonville’s second scoring drive, defensive end Adrian Clayborn ran too far upfield and created a running lane for Bortles, who scrambled past the marker on third-and-6.
The right side of the Patriots’ defensive line got destroyed on consecutive running plays to start the third drive as T.J. Yeldon ripped off carries of 15 and 20 yards.
Although most of the damage came through the air, the Jags averaged 7.1 yards per rushing attempt in the first half.
LINEBACKER: D
Jacksonville took advantage of shifty running back Corey Grant in space early against the Pats linebackers. Kyle Van Noy struggled to stick with Grant on a 15-yard reception. Later, Van Noy failed to tackle Grant short of the sticks on a third-and-7.
Dont’a Hightower made little impact in the game. The Pats opted to use Van Noy and Ja’Whaun Bentley on third downs and in obvious passing situations.
The Pats haven’t used Hightower at all as a pass-rusher. Perhaps that will change soon.
Van Noy made an athletic play on the interception of Blake Bortles, but the offense couldn’t parlay it into any points.
DEFENSIVE BACK: F
Two bright moments for Stephon Gilmore: He forced a D.J. Chark fumble and he smacked Blake Bortles short of the first down marker when the quarterback took off on a third-and-5 in the second half.
The rest was really, really ugly.
For everyone.
The Patriots defensive backs struggled to navigate through pick plays and shallow crossing routes. This was the case on Austin Seferian-Jenkins’ touchdown at the end of the half, although Patrick Chung may have been illegally screened on the play. And before that, Keelan Cole’s crosser was another example.
Dede Westbrook’s 61-yard touchdown was a colossal defensive breakdown. There appeared to be a miscommunication between Jonathan Jones and Devin McCourty. Both players stayed with Seferian-Jenkins, who was crossing to the right side of the field. No one ran with Westbrook, crossing to the opposite side.
And no one gave much of an effort to track him down after he caught the pass.
Gilmore was beaten by Donte Moncrief in a few one-on-one matchups, including the first touchdown. Eric Rowe got benched after two series, came back for one play, and allowed a 22-yard reception to Cole on third down.
SPECIAL TEAMS: D-plus
An Elandon Roberts block in the back on a kickoff pinned the Patriots to their own 10-yard line. Stephen Gostkowski missed a 54-yard field goal on the opening drive.
The Pats allowed a 16-yard punt return in the fourth quarter, giving the Jaguars great field position.
COACHING: D
It’s difficult to criticize Josh McDaniels’ plan. The game script just spiraled out of control for the Pats. With little production coming from wide receivers, perhaps the Pats could have gone with two tight ends more often.
After a masterful performance versus Deshaun Watson, the Pats’ defensive plan bombed against Blake Bortles. Bill
Belichick drew criticism for punting on fourth-and-inches when the Pats were down 24-13 in the fourth quarter. It was probably a 50/50 call. Given everything else that went wrong, it’s difficult to get too riled up about that decision.
HEAD OF THE CLASS
James White: The reliable running back made plays with the ball in his hands.
Stephon Gilmore: Cornerback forced a fumble and came up with a nice third-down stop. That’s about as good as it got for any defensive player.
Trey Flowers: The defensive end was sorely missed on the defensive line. The unit was wholly ineffective once he went out.
BACK OF THE PACK
Cornerbacks not named Gilmore: Eric Rowe got a quick hook, and Jason McCourty wasn’t much of an upgrade. Jonathan Jones appeared culpable on the 61-yard Dede Westbrook touchdown.
LaAdrian Waddle: Offensive tackle gave up a sack (which turned into a fumble) at the absolute worst time.
Dont’a Hightower: It has been a quiet few weeks for one of the team’s best defensive players.
