Patriots Show Signs of Growth in 24-21 Loss to Bills

The Patriots extended their losing streak to five games after a valiant, disappointing defeat in Buffalo. It was an undeniable improvement from last week’s collapse, even if the Bills did plenty of self-inflicted damage.

Despite facing tall odds, facing potential MVP Josh Allen in one of the league’s toughest road environments, New England kept things competitive and held a 14-7 lead at halftime.

“The guys were ready; in the locker room, I felt like the guys were ready to go,” head coach Jerod Mayo said after the game. “They went out there and started fast… I’m very, very proud of these men. They came out here, they played hard, and unfortunately didn’t walk away with a win.”

Most stats would lead one to believe the Patriots came out on top. They held Allen to a 67.3 passer rating, won the 3rd down battle (7-12 to 4-11), converted both 4th down attempts, and went 2-3 in the Red Zone for a second week. The Bills even had 13 accepted penalties compared to five for New England.

This game was ultimately decided by turnovers, a battle the Patriots lost 3-1 with three straight 2nd half giveaways.

There were also some questionable calls, headlined by a 4th quarter punt while down 10 points that Mayo described as “a field position thing.”

“For me, it’s all about – our timeouts, especially at that point in time, were definitely important,” he explained. “When you have three timeouts at the end of the game, you have a chance to get the ball back, and we didn’t do it.

It was a shaky decision, both mathematically and because the defense couldn’t stop anything on the ground. Still, no metric translates to wins more than points and turnovers, and New England coughed it up too many times.

While the Patriots’ quest for a win continues, players can practice this week knowing they took a step forward collectively. They largely moved the ball at will offensively, kept a lid on Allen, and made big plays on special teams.

Even if doubters remain externally, players remain firmly behind their head coach, with quarterback Drake Maye passionately defending Mayo postgame.

“I think it’s some BS, to be quite honest,” Maye said of recent coaching criticism. “Coach Mayo, those guys, like I said, we’ve got his back, and he’s coached us hard. He wants to win. We all want to win. We’re all frustrated. AVP’s [Alex Van Pelt] been – I feel like – calling great the past weeks. We’re just plays away, and it’s basically me turning the ball over. I think it’s just a testament to these guys that keep fighting. We keep fighting.”

Here are my quick thoughts on tonight’s oddly encouraging 24-21 defeat.

TURNOVERS COOL HOT OFFENSIVE START

Tonight was one of Maye’s streakier performances in what’s been an impressive stretch. The rookie was critical of his performance postgame, saying he scrambled too much early and taking responsibility for his interception.

Maye also had a dropped snap and some errant throws in the frigid conditions, with the quarterback being visibly upset with himself for leading Austin Hooper into a big hit downfield.

There will be plenty to learn from on tape, but Maye was also the primary reason the Patriots were in this game.

He was mostly excellent in the 1st half, mitigating pressure with his poise, mobility, timely release, and arm talent. And while he continued taking what the defense gave him, Maye was also more aggressive with two downfield throws on the opening drive. 

His efficiency dipped in the 2nd half, but he did have an excellent cross-body completion to Kayshon Boutte while under pressure, converted a 4th down on a zone read keeper, and found Hunter Henry on a drawn-out Red Zone drive.

The run game was mostly quiet early on, but Rhamondre Stevenson did rip off two explosive gains, including a bulldozing 14-yard touchdown run.

Things fell off a cliff in the 3rd quarter following a drive touchdown from Buffalo.

Rhamondre Stevenson fumbled for the second time in three games, losing possession for the first time since Week 4. Maye’s pick came on the next drive, followed by Stevenson dropping a lateral screen pass that was recovered in the end zone.

Demontrey Jacobs missed a key block that would’ve gotten the back crushed, and Maye could’ve potentially thrown it in the dirt, but the pass should’ve been caught.

Miscommunications and poor play from depth linemen are somewhat excusable. Two turnovers from your second-best offensive player are not. It might be time for Stevenson to ride the bench for a week while younger players like Terrell Jennings and potentially Kevin Harris get more opportunities.

COVERAGE CLAMPS BILLS PASSING GAME

The Patriots’ coverage unit deserves a ton of credit for containing Josh Allen and the Bills’ offense. Poor tackling contributed to some bending, and poor eye discipline from Brenden Schooler seemingly led to James Cook’s 3rd quarter touchdown.

Still, even with Allen’s late hand injury in consideration, it was a standout showing from New England’s much-maligned defense. They allowed just 55.2% of attempts to be completed, and despite Allen getting outside the pocket a few times, prevented any big plays downfield. The quarterback also ran for just 30 yards on six carries.

Marte Mapu had a bit of a coming-out party after two weeks of being a healthy scratch. He recorded an interception, nearly caught another, broke up a pass, forced a fumble (not recovered), and came free on a blitz that led to the defense’s only sack. He did make an egregious error early by taking his pick out of the end zone, forcing the offense to start at their own one-yard line, but his efforts down the stretch overshadowed the mistake.

Jonathan Jones also shined tonight, breaking up a heave to the end zone and forcing a fumble that wasn’t recovered. Christian Elliss and Alex Austin were other defenders with passes defended, and Jeremiah Pharms brought the heat as New England’s only consistent pass rusher.

Buffalo’s receiving corps isn’t exactly daunting, but the Patriots’ rush and coverage may have put together their best performance this season against an elite passer.

RUN DEFENSE MAY BE BEYOND SAVING

Tonight, the Patriots were down Ja’Whaun Bentley, Christian Barmore, and Jaquelin Roy. Jabrill Peppers was also out, and Kyle Dugger, who missed a tackle on the Bills’ long touchdown run, is also clearly hobbled by his ankle injury.

Considering all those factors, it’s hard to expect much more from the run defense than we’ve seen in recent weeks. The group rarely allows big runs, but they’ve done little to mitigate body blows that keep drives alive.

Even without his 46-yard score, Cook averaged over five yards per carry on 11 totes. Ty Johnson averaged five on six rushes. The only thing that stopped Buffalo’s run game was coordinator Joe Brady, who never fully committed to the ground game despite regular success.

New England won’t be so lucky against the run-heavy Chargers, so it may take an early lead next week to protect the run defense.