5 takeaways as the Patriots regress again against the Chargers

How big will the fallout be from the New England Patriots loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Saturday, and other game takeaways.

One step forward, three, four, five or more steps back. That’s been the case for the New England Patriots so many times this year on both a micro and macro level, and it was the case again for the team on Saturday.

Coming off last week’s game against the Buffalo Bills it felt like there might be some momentum. A strong showing on the road against a championship contender and division rival, heading into a standalone Saturday afternoon window against another playoff team. It felt like a chance for this team – and the coaching staff in particular – to build some much needed late-season momentum to set the stage for 2025. 

That was the thought when the day began. However, it devolved to the point where there were brief albeit audible chants of “Fire Mayo” heard from the 200’s section below the press box by early in the fourth quarter in what ended up being a 40-7 loss. 

Just about anything that could be pointed to as a sign of growth from last week wasn’t present in this one. The Patriots started slow, struggled to sustain anything offensively, and defensively didn’t put up any resistance and their opponent marched up and down the field. 

“This is what I told the players – there’s really nothing good to take out of that game today. Just the lack of execution,” head coach Jerod Mayo said to open up his postgame press conference. “We just didn’t play well enough in any phase of the game. No complementary football, and that’s what you get.”

Maddie Meyer/Getty Images

As Mayo’s comment suggests, it was a non-competitive effort for 60 minutes from the Patriots. They were outgained 428 yards to 181 in this game, with 51 of their yards coming on a final garbage-time drive. 

The Patriots also failed to possess the ball for more than 20 minutes – their final time of possession was just 19:26. It’s their second sub-20 minute time of possession game this year, the first time they’ve had two such games in a season since at least 1984 (as far back as the data goes on Pro Football Reference). That’s as much a reflection of the defense – which couldn’t get off the field – as much as it is an offense that couldn’t stay on it. 

This level of regression from the Buffalo game is jarring, but not out of character for a team that has struggled to put good performances together. “It’s very disappointing, and it comes back to consistency,” Mayo said postgame when asked about the juxtaposition of the two games. “That’s what it is, consistency.”

Over the past few weeks, leading up to Saturday morning before the game, reports indicated Mayo’s job was likely safe heading into 2025. “Barring some type of calamity over the final two games of the campaign, the expectation is Kraft gives Mayo another season to prove him right,” NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport wrote in his Saturday morning column. 

In terms of on-field product, this game certainly could be viewed in the category of a ‘calamity.’ Saturday took the conversation around the Patriots from potentially trending the right way heading into 2025, to the loudest calls yet for organizational change. There’s still one week left before those decisions have to be made, but football is a ‘what have you done for me lately’ business, and with a game potentially against the Bills’ backups next week Saturday’s game could serve as the ‘latest’ example of the state of the Patriots’ operation. 

Again, there’s still a week left in the season before the decisions – at all levels of the coaching staff – that will dictate the Patriots’ future will be made. In the meantime, here are a few other game-specific takeaways from Saturday, starting with more from the coaching staff…

• Lineup changes

  

  FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS – DECEMBER 28: Rhamondre Stevenson #38 of the New England Patriots carries the ball during the first quarter against the Los Angeles Chargers at Gillette Stadium on December 28, 2024 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

  In a move that’s been seemingly in the works for a few weeks, Cole Strange made his return to the field on Saturday after suffering a significant knee injury 377 days ago. Strange’s return saw him move from his natural position of left guard to center – a position he’d never played in a game in college or the pros.

  Given it was his first time at center in a live game, Strange did relatively well. He delivered all accurate snaps, and didn’t allow a pressure in 34 pass blocking reps according to PFF’s initial charting. He also made a heads up play to get a snap off when the Chargers jumped offsides, leading to a free play and 36-yard touchdown pass late in the second quarter.

  There were some bumps – he had an early snap that resulted in a sack in the third quarter, and was later called for an illegal man downfield penalty in the fourth quarter that erased a 19-yard gain.

  “I thought he handled it well. A lot of pressure on him,” Drake Maye said of Strange after the game. “His first start at center, it’s a different job than playing guard. I was proud of the way he worked, proud of the way he fought. Got to watch the tape and probably go over some little things that maybe we can do better, but he caught the guys offsides. That’s really him doing that. He snapped the ball, and really credit to him.”

  Strange wasn’t the only offensive lineman to return to the field on Saturday. Rookie tackle Caedan Wallace was activated from IR before the game. Surprisingly Wallace didn’t get the start over Demontrey Jacobs, who has struggled in recent weeks. However he did get into the game late, playing 15 snaps in Jacobs’ place.

  That few snaps that late in a blowout limits the chances for a full evaluation of Wallace, but it certainly is a good sign he got back on the field for the first time since Week 4. We’ll see if the team gives him a more extended look next week. With left tackle already a lock to be an offseason need, it would help the team to have an idea of what they’re working with at right tackle, and see if they potentially need to spend premium assets at both positions.

  Without a doubt though, the weirdest personnel development came at running back. Last week, Rhamondre Stevenson fumbled for his NFL-leading seventh time this year. After that game Jerod Mayo was initially non-committal about a potential change in the running back rotation. Fast forward to Saturday morning, when Mayo told 98.5 The Sports Hub during his weekly pregame interview that Antonio Gibson would start in Stevenson’s place.

  That led to the surprise of Stevenson not only being on the field for the Patriots’ first offensive snap of the game, but getting a carry on the play as well. That ended up being one of only two carries Stevenson got in the game. Gibson out-repped him 29 snaps to 24, and carried the ball 12 times for 63 yards (with six carries for 10 yards before the final garbage time drive).

  Ultimately, Gibson had more of a ‘starting back’ kind of role with more snaps and more touches, but the symbolism of Stevenson getting to ‘start’ the game still remained despite Mayo saying that wouldn’t be the case due to his fumbling issues.

  “That was just a coach’s decision,” Mayo said after the game when the question of Stevenson starting after his comments came up. Asked if something changed between when he recorded the interview Saturday morning and the game, Mayo replied “I understand your question. Look, it’s a coach’s decision. So I’ll leave it at that.”

  After the game, Gibson shared his view on the situation. “I was told nothing all week about me starting,” he said to ABC6 Providence’s Nick Coit. “[I] have no feelings toward that. We did the same thing we’ve been doing.”

• Rookie wide receiver ‘showdown’

  

  FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS – DECEMBER 28: Ladd McConkey #15 of the Los Angeles Chargers scores a touchdown during the third quarter against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium on December 28, 2024 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

  Sticking with usage, this game represented a new low for the Patriots’ wide receiver duo of Ja’Lynn Polk and Javon Baker. Per PFF’s initial charting, neither one played a single snap until Polk came onto the field for a 3rd & 10 with 4:36 to go in the third quarter, after Kayshon Boutte had run a deep route and needed a breather.

  By the end of the game Polk had played 12 snaps and Baker 11, but the majority of those came when multiple offensive backups entered the game late. Both were targeted once in 11 combined pass plays, and neither recorded a catch.

  That usage and production came in stark contrast to that of Chargers’ rookie receiver Ladd McConkey. The Chargers drafted McConkey in the second round after trading up with the Patriots, and sending back second- and fourth-round picks New England ultimately used on Polk and Baker, respectively.

  McConkey was arguably the most dominant player in this game. He caught eight passes for 94 yards and two touchdowns. That yardage total surpassed Polk’s total for the season.

  In particular McConkey had success against veteran slot cornerback Jonathan Jones, who failed to build on what was his best game of the season last week. PFF’s initial charting had McConkey down for four catches on six targets against Jones for 55 yards and a touchdown. McConkey’s other touchdown came against Kyle Dugger, who had another rough game.

  This game saw McConkey pass the 1,000-yard mark for the season (he’s the third rookie to do so this year along with Malik Nabers and Brock Bowers), and set franchise rookie receiving records for the Chargers. That juxtaposition was a great example of what happens when a team can both identify and develop talent at the wide receiver position from the draft.

• An eventful day for Drake Maye

  

  Dec 28, 2024; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye (10) passes the ball against the Los Angeles Chargers in the second quarter at Gillette Stadium. Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images

  This game was a wild one for Drake Maye. His stat line of 12-of-22 for 117 yards and a touchdown with six carries for 32 yards doesn’t properly illustrate all that was going on for him on Saturday.

  Maye’s day almost ended early. At the end of the Patriots’ first drive of the game Maye tried to extend a scramble along the sideline and ended up taking a hit to the head. After staying down on the turf for an extended period of time he ended up going into the locker room to be checked as part of the NFL’s concussion protocol – a similar chain of events to earlier in the year when he missed most of a game against the New York Jets.

  Unlike that game, Maye was able to return after missing just one drive in this one. He was able to produce a few highlights, mainly his 36-yard touchdown pass to Pop Douglas on which he drew the Chargers offsides, then knowing he had a free play was able to get off a deep pass off his back foot against pressure for the score.

  However, despite Maye having taken that hit and the score getting out of hand the Patriots elected to keep him in late, well after the score got out of reach. It felt like a risky decision, given the poor play of the offensive line protecting the future of the franchise.

  “Look, we’re trying to develop a quarterback, and he wants to play,” Jerod Mayo said after the game when asked about keeping Maye in as late as the Patriots did. “He’s a competitor. He went out there.”

  “I wanted to be in the game. I think that’s the biggest thing,” Maye said himself. “I wanted to be in the game. I want to be out there with those guys. If our guys are out there, I want to be out there with them. Shoot, may see something that may help us next week out there.” Maye added that there was an “understanding” about him staying in the game, but didn’t say whether or not a conversation took place on the sideline with him and the coaches.

• The latest questionable turnover

  Justin David Kish * Sports Journalist on X (formerly Twitter): "Sports Highlights (NFL): New England Patriots mishap on offense leads to a fumble and turnover as Los Angeles Chargers defensive back Derwin James Jr. recovers the fumble into Patriots territory. #NFL #Chargers https://t.co/BU4EHOAJvY pic.twitter.com/ZbclsbjKof / X"

  Sports Highlights (NFL): New England Patriots mishap on offense leads to a fumble and turnover as Los Angeles Chargers defensive back Derwin James Jr. recovers the fumble into Patriots territory. #NFL #Chargers https://t.co/BU4EHOAJvY pic.twitter.com/ZbclsbjKof

  For the second week in a row, the Patriots lost a fumble due to play design. Midway through the second quarter the Patriots had a drive halted when Drake Maye pitched a ball to nobody, which the Chargers recovered. The turnover led to a Los Angeles field goal that put the Bolts up 17-0.

  Unlike last week, when a pass designed to go forwards went backwards, this was an outright lateral that didn’t find its intended target. Without knowing the exact play-call but based on what happened on the play and what was said after the game, it seems like the goal was to toss the ball to Pop Douglas as he motioned across the formation on a jet sweep, disguising the play to look like a regular toss sweep with Rhamondre Stevenson beginning to go the other way.

  It’s a clever design that does have potential for a big play, but it’s not an easy play to execute. The timing has to be perfect, and in this case it wasn’t. Maye’s pitch was too far out ahead of Douglas, whose momentum was taking him the other way, preventing him from getting back to recover the fumble.

  “We’ve practiced the play for a long time. I felt like we were executing it well,” Maye said after the game. “They happened to bring the nickel off the edge, and I think he just kind of – right by Pop, and that’s unfortunate. Just a good call on their part. I’ve got to give him a better ball to catch. That falls back on me. I think kind of Pop readjusted his thing a little bit, his route or his path just because of the blitzer off the edge. But yeah, we just got to give him a chance – can’t turn the ball over.”

  This is the balance offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt has to fight right now. The offense needs more splash plays, but the personnel limits just how complex they can be. A handoff rather than a toss from a similar look would have been easier to execute, and still achieved the same basic look.

• Situational defense

  

  FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS – DECEMBER 28: Justin Herbert #10 of the Los Angeles Chargers throws a pass during the first quarter against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium on December 28, 2024 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. (Photo by Winslow Townson/Getty Images)

  This was a long day for the Patriots defense. Their issues against the run continued (the Chargers ran for an even 4.0 yard per carry), but they regressed against the pass as well. After holding Josh Allen to a pedestrian performance last week, they let Justin Herbert throw the ball all over the field – he finished 26-of-38 for 281 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions.

  The biggest issue though was the situational defense. Coming into this game the Chargers ranked 17th in the NFL in third down offense, converting just 37.9 percent of the time. Against the Patriots they kept the chains moving regularly converting on 10 of their 17 third downs (59 percent). On top of that, they converted on both of their fourth down attempts as well.

  That allowed Los Angeles to have long, sustained drives. In the end the Chargers ran 77 offensive plays, truly testing the stamina of the Patriots’ defense. That showed on the field as things seemed to erode more for the Patriots defensively as the game went on.

  “I feel like towards the end of the 4th quarter, some of the guys just give up, and some guys play to the end of the whistle,” defensive lineman Daniel Ekuale said after the game via Andrew Callahan of The Boston Herald. “To speak for myself, I’ve seen a lot of stuff out there. It feels like a lot of guys start giving up when things get hard.”

  A big part of the reason the Chargers were able to be so efficient on offense was the lack of pressure the defensive front put on Herbert in the passing game. PFF’s initial tracking had the Patriots with just nine pressures on 41 dropbacks (21.9 percent), with most of those coming after the Chargers had established a multi-score lead. Herbert was hit just four times in the game, and wasn’t sacked.

  In fact, the biggest hit the Patriots had on Herbert was on one of their worst plays of the game. With the Chargers up 17-7 in the final minute of the first half, they were just outside of field goal range with 17 seconds to go and no timeouts left. With the Patriots getting the ball at halftime, it felt like they still had a chance to get back in the game with a stop.

  Instead, defensive end Yannick Ngakoue hit Herbert well after a throw, gifting the Chargers 15 yards and a clock stoppage. While the Chargers did only turn that penalty into a field goal, the shift in momentum was palpable.