From costly mistakes to underwhelming quarterback-play, NFL experts think the Patriots had a ‘missed opportunity’ against the Chiefs
"The Pats needed to play a perfect game, or close to perfect under the circumstances, but didn’t come close."
How do experts feel about the Patriots 26-10 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs?
After the game, experts such as ESPN’s Mike Reiss called the loss a “missed opportunity,” while Karen Guregian of the Boston Herald wrote that their performance was very “un-Patriots like.”
Costly mistakes by the Patriots contributed to the loss, argued CBS Boston’s Michael Hurley, specifically “brainless mistakes” from quarterback Brian Hoyer — who was named the starter after Cam Newton tested positive for COVID-19.
The Boston Globes’ Ben Volin said he isn’t buying into the Jarett Stidham hype, and the consensus — it seems — is that the Patriots need Newton to come to their rescue offensively.
The upside? The Patriots’ defense came out strong against an electric Chiefs’ offense, specifically Chase Winovich — who sacked Patrick Mahomes in the second quarter.
“Chase Winovich, who’s becoming a star himself, is the one who wreaked havoc and caused the fumble,” wrote Isaiah Houde of USA Today’s Patriots Wire. “The secondary was locking Patrick Mahomes down most of the game, leaving him with 236 yards and two touchdowns. Kansas City was held to 94 yards on the ground and a majority of the offense came in the fourth quarter.”
“This defense is serious and will be much more effective when they have an offense that can put points on the board,” Houde added.
Here’s what the experts had to say about the Patriots’ performance against the Chiefs.
How Stidham and Hoyer performed:
“What a missed opportunity. The Patriots’ defense played inspired football against the explosive Patrick Mahomes-led Chiefs offense, but shaky quarterback play from Brian Hoyer ultimately didn’t provide the complement necessary to that performance. A switch to Jarrett Stidham provided a brief spark late in the third quarter, and perhaps if it happened earlier, the result might have been different. The Bills (4-0) now have a two-game lead over the Patriots (2-2) in the AFC East at the quarter mark of the season.”
Tom E. Curran, NBC Sports Boston: “The two mistakes cost the Patriots a minimum of six points. And both were the result of mistakes that the team was no doubt concerned Stidham might make. What were they so afraid of when it came to Stidham? He’s got a better arm than Hoyer. He’s faster and throws better on the move. If Hoyer’s strong suit was the ability to avoid bad plays – which he immediately went out and did – how bad did they think Stidham was going to be?
The upshot of it all? The Patriots are damn lucky no team with cap space and quarterback uncertainty got to Cam Newton before the Patriots did on June 28. Because without him, the Patriots are not currently in a real good spot at the most important position on the field.”
Isaiah Houde, Patriots Wire USA Today: “The idea that Jarrett Stidham or Brian Hoyer could successfully run this team was thrown around in the offseason. Stidham, who’s in his second NFL season, was the assumed starter before Newton was signed. Both backup quarterbacks had their chance against the Kansas City Chiefs on Monday night, but Stidham looked better in hindsight…
Fortunately for the Patriots — Bill Belichick showed how scary this team can be without a decent quarterback at the helm. Andy Reid received the message and knows the Patriots are far from a losing team. New England, with Newton, has a very solid chance of taking out the reigning champs in the playoffs.”
Anthony Treash, Pro Football Focus: “Those two [Hoyer and Stidham] led the Patriots to produce a combined -0.45 expected points added per pass, the worst of the week and the fourth-worst mark ever in a single game for New England in the PFF era (since 2006). Had Newton been able to go in this one, we might be talking about a different outcome. I’m not saying he is back to MVP form, but Newton is the sole reason why this Patriot offense was a clear top-10 unit entering Week 4 before Hoyer and Stidham came in and tanked their ranks in numerous statistical categories.
This game and the Patriots’ significant dropoff in efficiency without Newton was just another example of why the rest of the teams in the quarterback market this offseason made a huge mistake in not at least kicking the tires on the veteran.”
Dave D’Onofrio, Boston.com: “Without Newton, there just wasn’t enough power in New England’s punch to make their opponents even wobble…
There’s a lot still up in the air, much of it to be determined by incubation periods and stringing together asymptomatic days. But if the Patriots do indeed play the Broncos on Sunday, as scheduled, it should be Jarrett Stidham behind center if Newton isn’t yet activated from the NFL’s Covid list.”
Mark Maske, Washington Post: “During the offseason, after Tom Brady’s March departure from the Patriots and before the team signed Newton in July, the focus was on Stidham and whether he might end up being the successor to Brady, the six-time Super Bowl winner. That changed when the Patriots were able to add Newton, the former league MVP for the Carolina Panthers. Stidham had an injury-plagued training camp and fell behind Hoyer in the competition for the backup job.
The loss of Sony Michel
Curran:
“Did [Damien] Harris do anything Sony Michel wouldn’t have given the same carries against the Chiefs? It’s hard to state that with any certainty. But with Michel on IR with his knee issues for the next two games, Harris will get plenty of chances to prove he should remain the lead back when Michel comes back.”
Houde: “…The primary back going forward will likely be Harris. The addition of Newton in the offense will open up the run game even more, adding to the amount of opportunities the Patriots will get on the ground. The Patriots are doing things correctly this season in the rushing department.”
Too many costly mistakes:
“Forget everything else about Cam Newton being out or any other factor in the game. The Patriots probably win if they just take care of their own mistakes. First, McCourty dropped this gift of a pick on the opening drive of the football game…
Later in the game, J.C. Jackson had an opportunity for an easy pick, but didn’t take it. Brian Hoyer made a few brainless mistakes, most notably taking a sack before halftime to cost the Patriots their field goal opportunity. Taking a strip sack in the red zone in the third quarter moved him to backup-to-the-backup role, where he’ll likely remain for the season…
Julian Edelman dropped a pass that hit him smack dab in both hands, leading to a pick-six the other way that ended the game. Ja’Whaun Bentley didn’t slow down in his sideline pursuit of Mahomes, and though the QB may have embellished the contact a bit to draw the flag, the contact was still there.
All of these things … it wasn’t a Patriot-like performance. Surely, we understand why that might have been. But they were on the field, they were wearing their uniforms, the game was on TV, and it counted in the standings. In the moment, the Patriots committed far too many mistakes to deserve a win in this one.”
Karen Guregian, Boston Herald: “Perhaps more unexpected than the Pats making it a game, was the reason for their undoing — mistakes. There were four turnovers by a team that doesn’t turn the ball over. And, there was poor situational football by a team that specializes in situational football. It was so un-Patriot-like…
But the mistakes, miscues Bill Belichick teams don’t usually make, were crushing. The Chiefs scored 14 points off turnovers alone. The Pats needed to play a perfect game, or close to perfect under the circumstances, but didn’t come close.”
Thoughts on the defensive effort:
Phil A. Perry, NBC Sports Boston:
“If Chase Winovich, Kyle Dugger, Ja’Whaun Bentley and J.C. Jackson come through with big-time performances at Arrowhead Stadium — if they can, for instance, help hold the Chiefs to 23 points the way last year’s defense did — then there is reason to be optimistic about the development of the young defensive core in New England. There will be real, tangible hope for what’s to come on that side of the ball when the question gets asked, ‘What happens when Devin McCourty, Stephon Gilmore, Patrick Chung and Dont’a Hightower move on for good?’…
Make no mistake: This is an all-hands-on-deck situation. The Patriots will need Stephon Gilmore to play like the Defensive Player of the Year. They’ll need both McCourtys, Phillips and Jonathan Jones to keep the ball in front of them. But the developing young defensive core for the Patriots could easily swing the outcome.”
Jim McBride, Boston Globe: “The Patriots defense hounded and dogged Mahomes over the first 30-plus minutes Monday night, keeping him out of the end zone and nearly picking him off several times and having a would-be strip sack touchdown overruled by a poor call…
Belichick’s defense was stout again, however, with Deatrich Wise providing good pocket pressure and the secondary locking down Kansas City’s jackrabbit receivers.”
Bernd Buchmasser, Pats Pulpit: “Facing possibly the most explosive passing attack in all of football, the Patriots turned to the strength of their defense to counter: the team employed a coverage-heavy personnel package at all times, with four defensive backs — Jonathan Jones, Devin McCourty, J.C. Jackson, Stephon Gilmore — not leaving the field even once…
Up front, meanwhile, the Patriots relied on a heavy dose of Ja’Whaun Bentley as their lone off-the-ball linebacker with John Simon, Chase Winovich and Shilique Calhoun seeing plenty of action on the line of scrimmage. The trio, together with the defensive tackles used depending on the package, was able to put regular pressure on Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes — a positive development considering that New England tried to attack with only three or four on most snaps.”
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