Patriots-Bills Notebook: Third-Down Woes, No Answer For Josh Allen Lead to 24-10 Loss
FOXBORO — The New England Patriots have yet to be mathematically eliminated from playoff contention.
However, a listless performance against an obviously superior opponent appears to have dealt a potentially devastating blow to the team’s postseason hopes.
New England dropped to 6-6 on the season with a 24-10 loss to the Buffalo Bills on Thursday night at Gillette Stadium.
Just one week removed from his most complete effort to date, Pats quarterback Mac Jones was flustered for most of the night, finishing 22 of 36 for 195 yards and a touchdown.
Conversely, Bills quarterback Josh Allen went 22 of 33 for 223 yards with two touchdown strikes. Allen showed patience in the pocket while exploiting the soft spots in the Patriots’ zone. As such, Buffalo scored on each of its trips to the red zone. New England finished 0-1.
In that vein, here is a deeper dive into the action from the field in Week 13.
Offense Observations:
Rookie cornerback Marcus Jones is a standout return specialist, as well as an adept defensive back. However, New England decided to give the young speedster a look as a receiver out of the slot. It is a pretty safe bet that we have not seen the last of Jones in the role. The ex-Houston Cougar showcased his collegiate receiving skills at the pro level by taking a short screen pass 48-yards to the endzone. Jones’ speed and ability to recognize routes already make him a valuable slot corner. His showing against the Bills may have also given the Pats a potential weapon out of the slot on offense in specialized packages.
Outside of the Marcus Jones 48-yard touchdown, the Patriots play calling strategy continues to be avoiding the loss, as opposed to playing to win. While there is a time and place for conservatism, a Week 13 matchup … against a division rival … fighting to keep your postseason hopes alive … is not it. The Pats showed little urgency in their attempts to put the Bills defense on its heels, while exhibiting uncharacteristically poor clock management. In addition to mismanaging their plays, the Pats overwhelmingly lost the time of possession. The Bills owned the ball for 38:08, as opposed to New England’s 21:52.
New England once again demonstrated futility on third down. The team converted only 3 of 12 on third down; two of which came in the game’s closing moments with Buffalo firmly in control. Even in their most well-intended efforts, several of Jones’ passing attempts hit their intended targets short of the first-down marker.
Defense Observations:
Containing Josh Allen and Buffalo’s versatile offense continues to be a problem for the Pats defense. During the Bills’ first two offensive drives, the Pats attempted to take away Buffalo’s routes with man coverage. Allen found the end zone twice, hitting his two top receivers for scoring strikes. When the Patriots deployed the fire zone blitz, Allen was able to pick them apart. Credit to the Bills quarterback for recognizing the alignment and throwing over the areas in which the Pats sent pressure; both from the second level and over the slot.
New England’s ability to cover alpha receivers was once again on display, as Buffalo’s Stefon Diggs won his battles in man coverage, as well as splitting the double team on more than one occasion. The product was a threat in zone coverage, as well. While the Pats also had difficulty defending Minnesota’s Justin Jefferson in their Thanksgiving night loss to the Vikings, their troubles with Diggs were more about coverage deficiency. Despite having shown speed and patience, cornerback Jonathan Jones was unable to find success against Diggs, who finished the game with seven receptions for 91 yards and one touchdown. The absence of Jalen Mills clearly hurt the Pats on the perimeter, with Jones looking spread too thin on more than one occasion.
The emergence of linebacker Josh Uche continues to be one of the most positive stories for the Patriots in 2022. The Michigan product’s performance was one of the few bright spots for the Pats on Thursday. Uche collected two sacks, along with seven total tackles.
Up Next:
The Patriots will have plenty of time for soul-searching, as their next game will take place on Dec. 12. The Pats will travel to Glendale, AZ for a Monday Night Football matchup with the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium
Follow Mike D’Abate on Twitter @mdabateNFL and Listen/Subscribe to his daily podcast: Locked On Patriots
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