Felger & Mazz: Reaction to the Patriots win over Bengals
Felger, Mazz, and Murray give their thoughts on the New England Patriots week 1 upset of the Cincinnati Bengals.
Mazz: I was shocked given what the preseason looked like. I was worried they weren’t going to be able to line up and that they weren’t going to be able to block. When they committed a penalty on the opening kickoff I thought, “here we go, it’s going to be more of the same” and then to their credit they played what I would call a pretty solid game from beginning to end. And I’m not under any illusion about what they are. I’ve heard people start to say, you know, what does this mean for the season? Like, I’m not going anywhere near that. I’m talking about yesterday. Solid effort. Fine. Good. They look like a functional, real football team. They were prepared, certainly more than the other team. It wasn’t perfect, but all things considered, it was a relatively clean game.
Felger: I had my doubts whether we’d have a single day like today. I was worried we would not have a single actual real Monday football show where we talked about the football game. That was my big worry that the entire year would be a complete wash when it came to that. And boy, it is so much better to have a game to talk about and hopefully A-Team to talk about. That’s to be determined.
Jim Murray: It was a wonderful surprise. Mazz, what did I text you like 5 minutes? It was as fun as s***. Legitimately as fun as s*** watching that. That is the most enjoyable Patriots game for me personally that I’ve watched in six seasons.
Listen to Felger and Mazz from 2-6 every Monday-Friday on 98.5 The Sports Hub, with hosts Mike Felger, Tony “Mazz” Massarotti, and Jim Murray “Big Jim”. You can listen live in the Sports Hub App and subscribe to their podcasts here. Follow @FelgerAndMazz on Twitter to keep up with the show!
Patriots Ups & Downs: Who stood out in an upset win over the Bengals?
UP: LB Ja’Whaun Bentley
Bentley was all over the field in his first game captaining the defense under new coordinator DeMarcus Covington. He logged a team-high 12 tackles, and also generated a half-sack, as he was often shooting gaps to bring the pressure on third downs. The Pats defense was humming for most of the game, and it’s no coincidence that Bentley was heavily involved in that.
Sep 8, 2024; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cincinnati Bengals running back Zack Moss (31) runs with the ball against New England Patriots linebacker Ja’Whaun Bentley (8) and safety Kyle Dugger (23) in the second half at Paycor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Katie Stratman-Imagn Images
DOWN: LT Vederian Lowe
Lowe isn’t as much of a “down” as Okorafor, as he came into the game as essentially an emergency backup. But it turned out that Lowe had to check into the game in the first quarter. He committed a false start during his first series and gave up a fair amount of pressure, but quarterback Jacoby Brissett handled it well. Despite the thrill of victory, left tackle remains a big concern for the Patriots going forward.
Next Patriots Ups & Downs comes after they take on the Seattle Seahawks in their 2024 home opener at Gillette Stadium.
