In the middle of a pandemic, without Tom Brady for the first time in 19 years not to mention a bunch of other key players that chose to opt out, our expectations for the Patriots (2-4) were not all that high to begin with. Through the first three games (2-1), New England looked like they would at least be a playoff team albeit not much of a Super Bowl threat. That all has taken a drastic turn for the worst in the last month as they have dropped three straight games (for the 1st time since 2002) capped off by tonight's truly disgraceful 33-6 loss at Gillette Stadium to Jimmy Garoppolo (20-of-25 for 277 yards, 2 INTs) and San Francisco (4-3). Of course the Pats have suffered their share of heartbreaking losses over the years-these things happen when you are in the playoffs so often-but I have to say that this one hit differently as they say. Coming off last week's awful 18-12 loss to Denver (2-4), you figured that they would at least show some sort of pride and be competitive. NOPE.
Where do we begin on this disaster that was the second-worst loss ever under head coach Bill Belichick and the worst at home since he took over in 2000? This also marked the first time that the Pats have dropped back-to-back home games since 2002. The fact that this came on the same day that the Bucs (5-2) destroyed the Raiders (3-3) in Vegas 45-20 and Tom Brady (33-of-45 for 369 yards and 4 TDs; 1 rushing TD) had a monster performance made everything that much more depressing. It's too easy to dump all the blame on Cam Newton (9-of-15 for 98 yards, 3 INTs; 19 yards rushing) since honestly, what does he have around him? A washed up Julian Edelman (1 catch for 13 yards on 3 targets), N'Keal Harry (1 catch for 6 yards on 2 targets) who left in the first half with a possible concussion and no legitimate tight ends? However, Cam's dreadful numbers the last few weeks don't lie as he's thrown five interceptions combined against the Broncos and Niners. Things got so bad today that backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham (6-of-10 for 64 yards, INT) came in for him at the start of the fourth quarter but that did nothing to change things as Stidham hasn't shown any real potential in his two outings this season besides that sweet TD pass to Harry in Kansas City.
This was never even close: the Niners were up 7-0 after the first quarter, 23-3 at halftime and 30-6 after the third quarter. San Francisco battled through a Super Bowl hangover earlier this season and a crazy amount of injuries to quality players (Richard Sherman, Raheem Mostert, Nick Bosa, etc) but they are rounding into form now thanks to contributions from tons of random guys like third-string running back Jeff Wilson Jr. (17 catches, 112 yards, 3 TDs) who dominated until shredding his ankle on his last touchdown run in the third quarter. Rookie wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk (game-high 6 catches, game-high 115 yards) looks like a good one, Deebo Samuel (5 catches, 65 yards) is a playmaker and George Kittle (5 catches, 55 yards) is the best all-around tight end in the NFL and it's not really up for debate.
A pair of field goals by Nick Folk were the only thing separating the Patriots from the indignity of getting shut out on their home turf. Other than Damien Harris (10 carries, 58 yards; 12-yard catch) and Jakobi Meyers (4 catches, 60 yards), I couldn't tell you any other Patriots that had decent games offensively. Devin McCourty and J.C. Jackson notched the interceptions of Garoppolo-San Francisco's only real mistakes all day. The whole entire game was basically an extended kick to the nuts with Robbie Gould hitting two field goals and Harvard alum Kyle Juszczyk (the best fullback in the league) running for a four-yard touchdown to fill out the Niners' box score.
We all believed that this was basically a must-win for New England but I can now say with certainty that next Sunday (1, CBS) in Buffalo (5-2) is no doubt a must-win for the Pats. The usual AFC East title already looks well out of their grasp and while the Bills have struggled lately-gutting out a gross 18-10 win today vs. the winless Jets-they are the unquestionably the team to beat in the division. Hell, the Dolphins (3-3) were off this week but they are trending up since the Patriots beat them in Week 1 which feels like a lifetime ago. Belichick already dubbed Newton his starter for the first meeting with the Bills in 2020 and I don't blame him for that. However, the timing of the matchup is quite relevant because the NFL trade deadline is two days later-November 3rd (aka Election Day). If Buffalo beats New England, Belichick will have no choice but to look ahead to next season and unload anyone on the roster (Joe Thuney and Stephon Gilmore!) that could bring back some talent or decent draft picks in return. Winter is just around the corner and it promises to be extra miserable if the Patriots officially become just another anonymous doormat in the AFC.
UPDATE 10/26/20: This isn't headline news but Patriots linebacker/special teamer Brandon Copeland tore a pectoral muscle in yesterday's game and now he's out for the season.
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