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Patriots stock watch: Here’s who stood out and struggled against the Buccaneers
Rookies Kyle Williams, TreVeyon Henderson, and Elijah Ponder gave the Patriots a boost.
With Rhamondre Steveson and Kayshon Boutte out, the Patriots needed rookies TreVeyon Henderson and Kyle Williams to step up on offense.
Both delivered with explosive plays that ended in touchdowns, as the Patriots pulled off a 28-23 triumph over Tampa Bay on the road.
The Patriots’ hype train just keeps on chugging along. New England has won seven straight games.
In a battle of MVP candidates, Baker Mayfield appeared to have the more efficient performance, but Drake Maye was able to get big plays when he needed them, putting New England over the top.
New England had issues containing Emeka Egbuka, but the Patriots once again made enough plays to escape with a close victory.
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Here’s a look at who stood out and who struggled.
Stock Up
TreVeyon Henderson
The rookie running back finally had the breakout performance that Patriot Nation had been waiting for.
He broke free for a pair of electrifying runs, including the decisive touchdown late in the fourth quarter where he had enough space to shoot a look over to the sideline before scampering in for a 69-yard score.
Whether it was picking up a first down on a third-down toss play, or bursting straight up the middle and winning a footrace to the endzone, Henderson’s speed was a factor in this game.
It’s the first multi-touchdown game and first 100-yard performance for the speedy rookie.
Kyle Williams
Patriots coach Mike Vrabel said earlier in the week that Williams would likely be in for a bigger role with Boutte injured.
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Williams was ready when his number was called. His only catch of the day was a big one — raced 72-yards for a touchdown after catching a play-action pass from Maye.
It was Williams’s first catch since the Week 3 loss to Pittsburgh. He turned on the jets, showing the big-play ability that the Patriots saw in him.
Elijah Ponder
The rookie linebacker picked up his first career sack, and the effort he made to get it was noteworthy.
It was 2nd-and-4 in the fourth quarter with the Bucs trailing by 5. Ponder rushes off the edge and nearly gets Mayfield the first time, but winds up whiffing.
He refused to give up on the play while he was on the ground, bear-crawling until he was close enough to wrap Mayfield’s legs up as he tried to escape the pocket.
Jack Gibbens
Gibbens had ten tackles, including a tackle for loss.
He should have had an interception too. Mayfield threw a pass right at him, but it went right through his hands.
The veteran linebacker was all over the field making plays.
K’Lavon Chaisson
Chaisson was the only Patriot to hit Mayfield twice.
He had a sack, and nearly came up with a second one in the fourth quarter but Mayfield was able to pitch it away at the last second.
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The former first-round pick has four sacks over the last four games.
The entire offensive line
The offensive line stabilized itself after a pair of shaky performances against Cleveland and Atlanta.
Maye was sacked just once. Henderson had holes to run through. A much cleaner performance from the big guys up front than they had been delivering in recent weeks.
Stock Flat
Drake Maye
Maye went 16-for-31 passing (51 percent), marking his lowest completion percentage of the season. He also extended his interception streak to three games.
But Maye was able to connect with Williams and Mack Hollins on deep plays in key moments. He got going early by working the ball to Stefon Diggs, who made some tough catches.
Not the prettiest game for Maye, but enough for New England to work with.
Christian Gonzalez
Emeka Egbuka had a relatively prolific game, compared to what other receivers have been able to do against this Patriots secondary. He only caught six of his 13 targets, but he averaged almost 20 yards per catch.
Gonzalez posted nine tackles and had his share of wins, but he wasn’t as dominant as he usually is this week.
Stock Down
The tight ends
The tight ends weren’t much of a factor in this one. Austin Hooper had no catches on one target. Hunter Henry caught one of his four targets for nine yards.
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Both players are usually a much bigger part of the offense. They didn’t get many targets this week, but they weren’t able to capitalize on the ones they did get.
Christian Barmore
Props to Barmore for returning to the game after getting banged up in the third quarter.
However, it was a quiet day for him leading up to that point. He had one tackle, no tackles for loss, and no quarterback hits. The Patriots’ run defense (5.4 yards per carry allowed) wasn’t as sharp as it usually is.
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