Another game slips through the fingertips: 11 takeaways from the Patriots' loss to the Commanders

• Wide receiver usage

  

  Nov 5, 2023; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots wide receiver Jalen Reagor (83) has the ball go through his hands during the second half against the Washington Commanders at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports

  With DeVante Parker and Kendrick Bourne both out, the Patriots needed a third wide receiver to emerge from the group of Jalen Reagor, Tyquan Thornton, and Kayshon Boutte – three players whose usage has been at most rotational this season.

  Boutte was ruled out of that equation right away. Despite Bill Belichick saying this week that Boutte had his “best week” of practice this week, and Boutte himself sounding on Friday like he expected to play, he was a healthy scratch for the seventh week in a row. It appears as though either his ‘best’ still wasn’t good enough for the Patriots’ coaching staff to put him in a game, or there’s another reason he’s not playing.

  Thornton did play, and had plenty of chances early on. Mac Jones targeted him four times in the first 20 minutes of the game. Those targets all came in key situations too, exclusively on third and fourth downs. After the first such target went for seven yards on a 3rd & 10, the next three all fell incomplete as it appeared his timing with Jones was off. Thornton didn’t play again after that fourth target, finishing the game having played just 12 snaps. Only Pharoah Brown (7) played less among offensive skill position players.

  Meanwhile, Reagor had his highs and lows. He set a downfield block that ultimately sprung Rhamondre Stevenson for his 64-yard touchdown run in the first half. However, in the second half he dropped a perfectly-placed deep ball from Jones on a drive that ended up resulting in a punt. He finished with one catch for 11 yards on six targets.

  https://x.com/TSV__1/status/1721259877367161070?s=20

  Despite that drop and lack of production, Reagor still seemed to be the favorite of the Patriots’ coaching staff out of that initial group of three receivers. He played 47 snaps, with only Demario Douglas (51) out-repping him. At the same time, when the Patriots had their ‘gotta-have-it’ drive in the fourth quarter it was JuJu Smith-Schuster – not Reagor – on the field with Douglas as the Patriots worked heavily in ’12’ personnel. Asked about this after the game, Belichick referred to tight end Mike Gesicki, who ended up playing 52 snaps, as the team’s “fourth receiver.”

  Smith Schuster played 23 snaps including that final drive. It was notable he was in the game in crunch time, but his failure to secure a catchable ball from Jones on the game-deciding interception could have his status back up in the air for next week.

  We broke down the wide receiver usage more here.

• Change at left tackle

  

  Nov 5, 2023; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots Conor McDermott during the first half against the Washington Commanders at Gillette Stadium. Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports

  With Trent Brown out, the Patriots had to change things up after finally using the same offensive line combination for two weeks in a row. That change ended up being Conor McDermott, who was elevated from the practice squad, starting at left tackle.

  McDermott hadn’t worked at left tackle in New England, and played their sparingly in the three years before joining the Patriots. It was fair to question how he’d look in that spot.

  For the most part, McDermott held up well. He was beat badly once on a play that should have been a strip-sack, but was wiped out by a phantom roughing the passer call (more on that in a bit). If Brown is going to miss more time, his growth at that position will be an important thing to watch.

• Mac Jones better, but not good enough

  

  FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS – NOVEMBER 05: Mac Jones #10 of the New England Patriots throws a pass against the Washington Commanders during the second half at Gillette Stadium on November 05, 2023 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

  We’ll start with the good for Mac Jones from this game. After imploding following his interception last week, Jones did a good job having a short memory. After a few stagnant drives he was able to bounce back when given a short field, and deliver a strike to Hunter Henry for his lone passing touchdown. It was one of his best throws of the year.

  However, that was the lone bright spot for Jones. He still looks sped up, and despite having time against a good Washington pass rush was often throwing off of his back foot or otherwise off-platform. This caused him to miss open receivers throughout the game. Most notably, he had Rhamondre Stevenson open on a wheel route in the second half, and likely would have had a touchdown if he led Stevenson up the sideline. Instead, Jones under-threw him and the pass was broken up.

  These issues have been a problem for him for most of the season now, and consistently since the Dallas game. Until that gets fixed, the Patriots’ offense will continue to be limited.

• A mess of an end to the first half

  

  Nov 5, 2023; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots safety Kyle Dugger (23) runs the ball out of the end zone after an interception during the first half against the Washington Commanders at Gillette Stadium. Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports

  It was a rough end of the first half for both teams. Let’s pick things up with 1:46 to go in the second quarter.

  Following a Deatrich Wise sack the Patriots had the Commanders in a 3rd & 23, with a chance to get off the field and set up a double score. Instead, broken tackles from Adrian Phillips, Jalen Mills, and Jack Jones allowed Sam Howell to pick up 24 yards on a scramble, extending the drive.

  Not to be outdone though, the Commanders one-upped the blunder a few plays later. On the text third down, Howell connected with Byron Pringle to get the ball to the five yard line, making it 1st & Goal with 42 seconds to play and the clock running.

  Rather than using one of their three timeouts to set up the goal line sequence, the Commanders let the clock run while taking their time to set up. The ball wasn’t snapped until there were 23 seconds left in the half. Howell rolled right, but nobody was open. Rather than throw the ball away while outside of the tackle box, he fired a dart right to Kyle Dugger in the back of the end zone, killing the scoring chance.

  Neither team ended up with points in the final two minutes of the first half, nor should they have. The entire sequence was a reminder of why these teams are now longshots at best for the playoffs by early November.

• Tackling issues re-emerge

  

  FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS – NOVEMBER 05: Sam Howell #14 of the Washington Commanders is tackled by Jalen Mills #2 and Adrian Phillips #21 of the New England Patriots during the first half at Gillette Stadium on November 05, 2023 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)

  After being one of the best tackling teams in football for the opening part of the season, the Patriots have struggled in that department the last three weeks. The issues that began in the Buffalo game and followed the Patriots to Miami showed up again on Sunday, beyond the Sam Howell third down scramble.

  Bill Belichick cited missed tackles as one of the biggest reasons for the Patriots’ defensive issues after the game. The Patriots haven’t been shy about having live tackling drills in practice – they did so in training camp – and it wouldn’t be surprising if those come back in the coming weeks, especially with the bye week coming up.

• Cornerback usage

  

  Nov 5, 2023; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; Washington Commanders quarterback Sam Howell (14) gets tackled by New England Patriots cornerback Jack Jones (13) during the first half at Gillette Stadium. Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports

  Just like at wide receiver, the Patriots had some surprises with their cornerback usage as well. J.C. Jackson and Jack Jones started the game on the bench with Shaun Wade in the lineup. Jackson didn’t play until the third series when he replaced Wade – who didn’t play another defensive snap in the game. Meanwhile, Jones didn’t appear in the game until the second quarter.

  After the game Bill Belichick declined that it was a benching, despite a report that the two players were sat for performance reasons. Jackson declined to speak to the media after the game, and Jones left the facility before media availability began. We discussed that further here.

  The Patriots will already be without two of their top cornerbacks – Christian Gonzalez and Marcus Jones – for the rest of the season. With those two out, Jackson and Jones are to of the team’s three top options, especially on the boundary. If the coaching staff is losing faith in them long-term, it could mean a major shakeup in the secondary.

• Washington spreads the ball around

  

  FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS – NOVEMBER 05: Sam Howell #14 of the Washington Commanders scrambles during the first half in the game against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium on November 05, 2023 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

  Leading into the game, we highlighted Sam Howell’s willingness to spread the ball around as something the Patriots would need to adjust to. Instead, Washington took advantage of a thinned-out Patriots secondary.

  While Howell threw for 325 yards, it’s hard to nail down one specific pass-catcher that really burned the Patriots. Terry McLaurin led the team with five catches for 73 yards, but most of that came on one drive and his performance hardly felt overpowering. Instead, Howell picked his matchups and took what the Patriots gave him.

  Seven Washington players caught multiple passes in this game, with six catching at least three. Nine players saw multiple targets, as Howell used the entire field to pick the Patriots’ defense apart.

• Defensive tackles came to play

  

  FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS – NOVEMBER 05: Davon Godchaux #92 of the New England Patriots reacts after a fumble recovery with Jabrill Peppers #5 during the first half gawc at Gillette Stadium on November 05, 2023 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)

  If there was one bright spot for the Patriots’ defense on Sunday, it was the play of the starting defensive tackles. Davon Godchaux and Christian Barmore may have been the two best defensive players on the field for the Patriots in this one.

  Godchaux was a key player on a second quarter forced fumble, which he recovered himself. He also had one of his better games as a pass rusher, helping flush Howell out of the pocket (although the edge rushers often failed to pick him up).

  Barmore recorded yet another impact play with his fourth pass breakup of the year. He also had a few pressures of his own.

  Those performances alone weren’t enough to make a real difference in a game where the Patriots allowed 432 yards of total offense and 5.6 yards per play. Still, credit where credit is due, they played well in the chances they had, and both have now strung together some good games.

• Special teams woes continue

  

  FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS – NOVEMBER 05: Brenden Schooler #41 of the New England Patriots reacts during the second half in the game against the Washington Commanders at Gillette Stadium on November 05, 2023 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

  It was another rough game for the Patriots’ special teams unit. It started right from the beginning, when they allowed a 37-yard return on the opening kickoff.

  After that, most of their issues came in the punt game. That included a return by Demario Douglas early in the fourth quarter, when he fielded a ball at the Washington 7-yard line and started running laterally instead of attacking up the field. Douglas ended up being tackles for a loss of two yards, forcing the Patriots’ offense to work with a very long field ahead. Douglas has said he’s still finding his way as an NFL punt returner, and this was a clear example of that.

  The real rough miscues came in crunch time. After the Patriots forced a punt with 2:29 to go, Mack Wilson lined up offsides on a 4th & 2. That meant instead of the punt, Washington got a first down with a chance to run more clock. It was an easily-avoidable penalty in a key situation in the game – just a penalty that can’t happen.

  Credit to the Patriots’ defense, they got right back on the field and got another stop – although another 20 seconds came off the clock as the Patriots ran through all their timeouts. On the ensuing punt Brenden Schooler was called for a hold, which didn’t give Washington a first down but once again forced the Patriots’ offense into a short field with 2:07 to go and no timeouts, trailing by three.

  These penalties significantly impacted the Patriots’ chances to win the game. Given Bill Belichick’s focus on special teams, they stood out as avoidable mishaps, making them all the more frustrating.

• A unique situation

  

  FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS – NOVEMBER 05: Head coach Ron Rivera of the Washington Commanders reacts in the game against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium on November 05, 2023 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)

  There was a unique situation late in this game that the league might want to look at. With 9:32 to go on a 2nd & 6, Mac Jones appeared to connect with Demario Douglas for a 22-yard gain. Douglas made a diving catch on the play and the Patriots started to hurry to the line of scrimmage to snap the ball before Washington could challenge.

  However, Commanders defensive end James Smith-Williams was hurt behind the play, stopping the game. That gave Washington more time to look at the replay, and they ended up successfully challenging the call.

  What’s the answer there? Teams can’t challenge when a player gets hurt? Coaches have ‘x’ amount of seconds during an injury timeout to challenge? There may not be a perfect answer, but this rare situation certainly exposed an oddity in the NFL’s replay review process.

• What was that call?

  

  FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS – NOVEMBER 05: KJ Henry #55 of the Washington Commanders sacks Mac Jones #10 of the New England Patriots during the second half at Gillette Stadium on November 05, 2023 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

  As mentioned above, the Patriots were the beneficiaries of a very soft roughing the passer call on rookie Commanders linebacker K.J. Henry in the third quarter. Not only did the play take a sack off the board, but also erased a forced fumble that Washington recovered.

  Wonder what happened there? Here’s the pool report from Commanders reporter Nicki Jhabvala’s conversation with head referee Adrian Hill…

  Question: Can you walk us through that play when KJ Henry is called for roughing the passer? What did you see? Was the call appropriate from what you saw?

  Hill: “I was the calling official and the call was roughing the passer due to full body weight. The ruling on the field was that the defender came down with forceable contact, chest-to-chest. He didn’t perform one of those acts to remove most of that body weight – a gator roll or a clear to the side when he was coming in. He came down directly with that force on the player, so the category was full body weight.”

  Question: In those situations where the defender is coming from that weak side and the quarterback has sort of his back turned to him, what is the defender supposed to do to avoid putting his full body weight on him?

  Hill: “There are two common techniques. One we call the ‘gator roll’ where if he takes that player and rolls to the side so they both land on their side, that 90-degree rotation as he comes around. Or he comes down and breaks the fall first with hands and knees almost like in a crab-like fashion on top of the quarterback.”

• Alex Barth is a writer and digital producer for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Thoughts? Comments? Questions? Looking for a podcast guest? Let him know on Twitter @RealAlexBarth or via email at [email protected].