Now we know: This is really who the Patriots are
Sunday's loss comes after the Patriots' second-half implosion against the Seahawks and a hapless Thursday night performance against the Jets.
Welcome to the Unconventional Review, an instant reaction to standouts, stats, and story lines from the Patriots’ most recent game …
We all suspected it, and now we know for sure.
The near-flawless season-opening victory over the Bengals was the mirage.
What we’ve seen the last few weeks — from a second-half implosion against the Seahawks, to a hapless Thursday night performance against the Jets, to Sunday’s hopeless 30-13 loss to the potent 49ers — is who they are.
It’s probably who they were always going to be, with a replacement-level quarterback in Jacoby Brissett (168 passing yards, an assortment of new bruises) and the gaping holes in the offensive line that won’t be fixed until the early rounds of the 2025 draft.
And with the injuries mounting — center David Andrews was among the newly hobbled Sunday — it’s who they are going to be all season, save for another mirage or two.
To paraphrase Joe Castiglione’s favorite poem, get ready to face the fall alone. It’s going to be a long season, sports fans.
Some further thoughts, upon immediate review …
Three players who were worth watching
Players suggested in the Unconventional Preview: Brandon Aiyuk, Fred Warner, Jahlani Tavai
Jordan Mason: More than anything, this matchup was an exercise in Weapons Envy.
The 49ers have so much diverse talent and execute so well that they can lose arguably the most dangerous offensive player in the NFL, Christian McCaffrey, in preseason and still overwhelm a pretty good Patriots defense with an assortment of options.
Mason, the undrafted third-year back out of Georgia Tech, has produced in McCaffrey’s absence like . . . well, McCaffrey. He ran for 123 yards on 24 carries, including a late 25-yarder to essentially end the game.
After the Patriots scored early in the third quarter to cut the 49ers’ lead to 20-10, Mason punctuated a no-nonsense, four-play, 70-yard drive with a 4-yard touchdown burst behind left tackle/steamroller Trent Williams to give the hosts an extremely secure 17-point lead.
It should be noted that the big play on that particular touchdown drive was a 55-yard strike from Brock Purdy to Deebo Samuel. That was one of many reminders — from Brandon Aiyuk’s early 38-yard catch, to George Kittle’s leaping 12-yard touchdown grab with three Patriots around him to make it 20-0 in the second quarter, to Jauan Jennings’s 45-yard reception early in the fourth quarter — that the 49ers have a modern Air Coryell-caliber assortment of weapons.
It’s too bad Aiyuk didn’t want to come here, because he would be The Guy. But who would ever want to leave that offense?
Fred Warner: The best linebacker in football — and no, that’s not a matter of debate — played less than a half, leaving with an ankle injury just before intermission.
Yet he had the kind of impact that many quality linebackers have never made over a full game. Warner collected seven tackles before departing, tying fellow linebacker De’Vondre Campbell for second (behind safety Ji’Ayir Brown, who had 8) for the Niners’ lead.
Warner also made what was probably the most pivotal play in the game when he picked off Brissett on third-and-5 in the first minute of the second quarter and returned it 45 yards for a touchdown and a 13-0 Niners lead.
At that point, the Patriots had to be feeling OK about themselves after holding the Niners to two short field goals. But the pick-six — Brissett’s first turnover of the season — set the Niners on their way to a suspense-free win.
We should note here, too, while acknowledging the Niners’ defense, that their pass rush was relentless. Brissett was sacked six times, with Kevin Givens burying him for 2½ sacks, Maliek Collins adding 1½, and Nick Bosa finally picking up one late (and forcing a fumble) after honing in on Brissett’s torso for the entire game.
Christian Gonzalez: Maybe Kyle Shanahan and Brock Purdy weren’t actively staying away from the Patriots’ second-year cornerback, but with more performances like this, he is going to have that kind of throw-in-his-direction-at-your-own-risk reputation around the league soon enough. Some would even call that a shut-down corner.
On a day when Purdy had a casual 288 passing yards on just 27 attempts, Gonzalez played a superb game. He gave up a 10-yard reception to Aiyuk, and he may or may not have had some responsibility on his 38-yard grab in the first quarter, and that was it for catches allowed on his watch.
Gonzalez also made a terrific tackle, which isn’t always the domain of pending or established shut-down corners, when he hauled down Samuel for a 2-yard gain on second and goal from the Patriots 5 in the first quarter. The Patriots ended up holding the Niners to a field goal.
Grievance of the game
Hey, give Rhamondre Stevenson some credit. He almost made it through the entire first quarter before power-dribbling the football off the turf for the fourth straight week. Almost.
Stevenson’s weekly fumble, brought to you by The Stevan Ridley Doghouse Experience, occurred on the first play of the Patriots’ second possession, when the Niners’ Sam Okuayinonu beat Sidy Sow and poked the ball loose. Maliek Collins recovered at the Patriots 30.
The Patriots defense held the Niners to a Jake Moody field goal on the possession, and San Francisco’s lead was just 6-0 at that point.
It’s tempting to suggest Mayo should bench Stevenson — after all, Belichick did so when the running back was a rookie in 2021 after he got loose with the football.
But it’s not that easy, because it would ultimately be detrimental to the team’s already slim chances of winning given the dearth of skill-position talent on the Patriots offense.
(Belichick, it must be noted, also occasionally let Stevenson off the hook for a fumble, including last year versus the Bengals.)
Stephenson had just seven fumbles in his career entering this season. It’s on him to protect the ball better than he has. The dubious streak must end next week against Miami. If it doesn’t, after all this, maybe then we can talk about a benching.
Three notes scribbled in the margins
Predicted final score: 49ers 31, Patriots 13
Final score: 49ers 30, Patriots 13
Thought it was kind of unusual for general manager John Lynch to come down to the sideline with a couple of minutes remaining to congratulate and celebrate with his Niners players. It couldn’t have been a subtle revenge game for Lynch, who was cut by the Patriots after training camp in 2008 … How boring and hopeless is the Patriots’ offense? When Brissett, DeMario Douglas, and Stevenson perfectly executed a clever trick play — a double pass with a hint of a hook-and-lateral — in the fourth quarter, only to have it called back because of a Tyquan Thornton block in the back, Fox announcers Joe Davis and Greg Olsen actually sounded sorry for them … Joey Slye, who I am sure you have noticed looks like a mini Dan Koppen (hmm, can he block?), boomed a pair of field goals, including a Patriots-record 63-yarder for the visitors’ first points on the final play of the first half. He also added a 54-yarder early in the fourth quarter.
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