The New England Patriots came out on the wrong side of a 35-6 blowout against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, falling to 1-2 on the year.
Here is who caught our eye for better or worse upon live-viewing the Patriots’ Week 3 contest.
WR Mack Hollins: The veteran did have a poor and unnecessary taunting penalty, but it was apparent again that Drake Maye has the most trust and confidence in throwing to him. Hollins led the team in catches (6), targets (9), and receiving yards (87) as he was their only consistent source of offense in Jacksonville.
CB Christian Gonzalez: New England ditched their man-to-man coverage usage on Sunday leaning into a near 70% zone coverage rate. Trevor Lawrence shredded the Patriots zone looks throughout the day, but star cornerback Christian Gonzalez was his usual self along the outside. Gonzalez allowed just one catch on three targets in his direction with a pass breakup.
QB Drake Maye: It was another unacceptable performance from Drake Maye, as the quarterback acknowledged himself postgame. Maye threw a pair of interceptions and lost a fumble while completing just 14 of 25 passes for 199 yards. While the turnovers remain a major problem, Maye also continues to look indecisive with his decision-making and hesitant to rip throws into his receivers. Those mental issues appear to be the biggest concern from this point of view. Now, it’s up to the 24-year-old and the Patriots’ coaching staff to snap him out of it.
RT Morgan Moses: The Patriots entire offensive line largely struggled on Sunday as Maye was pressure on 48.8% of his drop backs while the run game generated little movement. Starting right tackle Morgan Moses allowed three pressures while a holding call negated a 21-yard touchdown run by Maye.
Elsewhere up front, the Patriots are down to their third string right guard after Greg Van Roten left the game early. He was replaced by Walter Rouse, who allowed a team-high four pressures.
Red zone defense: The Jaguars offense won the situational football battle against the Patriots’ defense, specifically in the red zone where they scored on all five of their trips. Much of that success came from Trevor Lawrence attacking New England’s split-safety zones over the middle of the field for all three of his touchdown passes — while wide receiver Parker Washington also had an acrobatic catch with Marcus Jones tight in coverage.
Jacksonville also finished the day 8-for-12 on third down.
Mike Vrabel: Beyond the turnovers and red-zone woes, the self-inflicted wounds piled up for the Patriots. They were flagged nine times in total, including another delay-of-game penalty on Drake Maye and back-to-back penalties on Morgan Moses and Romeo Doubs following Marcus Jones’ interception.
Mike Vrabel’s team lacked discipline Sunday, while the Patriots also continue to struggle in end-of-half situations to start the season. On their final possession of the first half, the Patriots ran the ball twice inside the five-yard line, appearing more focused on forcing the Jaguars to burn their timeouts than attacking the end zone.
- It continues to be a slow start for Romeo Doubs, who had just one catch for eight yards until garbage time. DeMario Douglas was open downfield several times and Maye sailed a potential touchdown pass over his head on one instance.
- Kyle Williams showed his speed on a 34-yard catch-and-run but stepped out of bounds en route to the end zone. He also fielded a kickoff that appeared to be heading out of bounds at the 9-yard line.
- Another strong game from Alijah Vera-Tucker with zero pressures allowed across 39 pass blocking snaps.
- Milton Williams was held without a pressure on Sunday as his quiet start to the season continues. Teams have been sending extra attention in Williams’ direction early on, but it was disappointing he could not make more of an impact against a weak Jaguars’ interior.
- New England’s entire defensive front lost the line of scrimmage as Bhaysul Tuten averaged 4.9 yards per carry as their rushing attack as a whole generated a 53% success rate.
- Elijah Ponder (4) and Gabe Jacas (3) led the team in pressures and also combined for a sack.
- Carlton Davis blew up a pair of perimeter screens. Marcus Jones had an interception on a deflected pass and nearly had another one later in the game.
- Another missed field goal from Andy Borregales, this one coming from just 38 yards out. The second-year kicker is now 4-for-6 on the year.
How concerned are you about Drake Maye?
The Patriots’ quarterback continued to struggle against the Jaguars.
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