Answering New England Patriots fans’ questions after the team got off to a 1-0 start.
On Sunday the New England Patriots started the Jerod Mayo era with a bang. New England was the biggest underdog of the week in the NFL heading into the season opener against the Cincinnati Bengals but – at least for a day – proved their doubters wrong with a 16-10 win on the road.
After a full offseason of speculation this game added some clarity to the team’s plan this year on both sides of the ball. It also raised some more questions.
What worked and what didn’t for the team in Week 1? Where do they go from here? We’ll get to both in this week’s Patriots Mailbag…
Patstradamus 🔮 on X (formerly Twitter): "Do you think this team can win without turnover luck behind Jacoby? / X"
Do you think this team can win without turnover luck behind Jacoby?
I wouldn’t characterize what happened on Sunday as turnover ‘luck’ – the Patriots made plays to force those turnovers. All offseason we talked about how the Patriots’ defense would need to win them games, and that’s what they did against the Bengals.
That being said, that kind of defensive effort is a major reason the Patriots won the game in the first place. For a team that is finding its footing offensively, the defense creating extra opportunities and helping to control field position will be crucial.
MMckenzie73 on X (formerly Twitter): "Why is Osborn getting wr1 reps when he's constantly not open / X"
Why is Osborn getting wr1 reps when he's constantly not open
In the Alex Van Pelt offense, the ‘Z’ wide receiver position is generally the most high-volume position. As things stand right now the Patriots have two prototypical ‘Z’ receivers on their roster in K.J. Osborn and Ja’Lynn Polk.
As we saw throughout the summer, the Patriots are easing their rookie class into their roles rather than throwing them in the deep end. Right now that’s primarily Osborn’s role, with Polk rotating in. However as the season goes on and Polk starts picking things up at the NFL level, the snap counts should start shifting in his favor.
That being said Kendrick Bourne can play the ‘Z’ as well, so it will be interesting to see what they do with him. Will he rep over Osborn and Polk, or get some run at the ‘X’ over Tyquan Thornton?
Pascal on X (formerly Twitter): "I feel like I can see how this offense takes another step with Drake behind center, what would you guess are his biggest issues that he needs to iron out before he starts? Is it just mechanics and learning defenses, or smaller stuff too like command of the huddle, cadence, etc? / X"
I feel like I can see how this offense takes another step with Drake behind center, what would you guess are his biggest issues that he needs to iron out before he starts? Is it just mechanics and learning defenses, or smaller stuff too like command of the huddle, cadence, etc?
Just based on what the Patriots’ coaching staff has talked about as well as other reports, there’s probably a few things that need to happen for Drake Maye to take over as the starting quarterback. On his end, just seeing more football will be beneficial. Going over the game tape with Jacoby Brissett each week to understand the ‘why’ of decisions he did or didn’t make will save him some in-game growing pains.
Some of it also likely has to do with the rest of the offense. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport shared some insight into this over the weekend, specifically mentioning the team wants to be more confident in the offensive line and receivers before turning things over to Maye. The current left tackle situation is a perfect example of this, as the Patriots still need to determine an established starter.
Qualitysmoke on X (formerly Twitter): "unning hills, multiple padded practices, tackling to the ground lots, a hard hard camp. Do you think Jarrod Mayo would have had the player buy in, outside NE or would he have been another Belicheck tree failure, like McD, Patricia, Judge where that approach didn't work? / X"
unning hills, multiple padded practices, tackling to the ground lots, a hard hard camp. Do you think Jarrod Mayo would have had the player buy in, outside NE or would he have been another Belicheck tree failure, like McD, Patricia, Judge where that approach didn't work?
It’s tough to say for sure how the camp Jerod Mayo ran would have been perceived elsewhere. On one hand, unlike most former Bill Belichick assistants who failed to find success elsewhere Mayo is a former player, which might help him connect with the team better. But in New England he already had preexisting relationships with the majority of the roster, something that definitely seemed to play into his ability to get buy-in with the team.
Whatever the reason behind it, the camp Mayo ran worked early on. On Monday, he talked about players referencing ‘the hill,’ where the team runs at the end of each practice, late in the win on Sunday as they tried to outlast the Bengals. As mentioned above, this team will need to find ways to beat their opponents on the margins in order to stay in games. Being better conditioned is certainly one way they can do that.
michael prew on X (formerly Twitter): "1. what is your ideal starting o-line?2. do you want maye to sit the whole season? / X"
1. what is your ideal starting o-line?2. do you want maye to sit the whole season?
1. Right now it’s…
LT: Vederian Lowe
LG: Sidy Sow
C: David Andrews
RG: Layden Robinson
RT: Mike OnwenuGiven the Patriots’ level of talent on the offensive line, there’s something to be said for sticking with the hot hand(s) up front. That’s what this represents. If the Patriots were going to make a change from this, the one that makes the most sense would be moving Onwenu to right guard and giving Chuks Okorafor another shot – this time at left tackle.
2. I think it would be best if Drake Maye did get on the field for at least a few games this season. It would give him a chance to get some game reps under his belt heading into a crucial second year, and perhaps more importantly give the team a look at what he’s doing well and what he may need the most help with at the NFL level, so they can plan their offseason accordingly.
Ben Larkin (Trinity Love) on X (formerly Twitter): "With the O-line as it is, how long can we be comfortable (are we comfortable?) about Jacoby spraying the ball and missing wide open guys? Isn't time to get the kid in there? Sure looks like the Packers need a guy fir the next 4-6 weeks, couldn't we pull a 5th or 6th for him? / X"
With the O-line as it is, how long can we be comfortable (are we comfortable?) about Jacoby spraying the ball and missing wide open guys? Isn't time to get the kid in there? Sure looks like the Packers need a guy fir the next 4-6 weeks, couldn't we pull a 5th or 6th for him?
The offensive line ‘as it is’ is still a work in progress, without an established left tackle. It may not ever become a dominant group this year, but there is certainly room for it to improve. Also Jacoby Brissett wasn’t exactly ‘spraying the ball’ on Sunday. He certainly could have been more accurate, but only two or three of his 24 attempts appeared to be notably off target. He certainly could be better, but his accuracy wasn’t overly concerning either (as it was late in the summer).
As for the second part of the question, the Packers probably aren’t too interested in a trade, given by the time the newly-acquired quarterback is acclimated Jordan Love will likely be back. For the Patriots, moving on from Brissett for a late Day 3 pick to rush Drake Maye onto the field behind a patchwork offensive line and a unit as a whole that is still picking up the offense simply wouldn’t be worth it.
Jordan Hamilton on X (formerly Twitter): "Jerod mayo said the plan this week was to run the ball and run it they did. Do you think that was also the game plan because they can't throw the ball / X"
Jerod mayo said the plan this week was to run the ball and run it they did. Do you think that was also the game plan because they can't throw the ball
I don’t think it’s so much “they can’t throw” as much as it is “they can’t pass protect.” For instance, the Patriots’ most conservative sequence of play-calling on Sunday came early in the third quarter, after the Bengals really started turning up the pass rush pressure late in the first half.
There were instances in the game on Sunday where pass catchers were open, but Brissett didn’t have enough time to get them the ball. Based off of Sunday, it feels like the Patriots’ passing game does have room to expand, but only once the offensive line can allow the quarterback the time to be more aggressive.
Dischop on X (formerly Twitter): "What can the pats do to generate more passing plays? / X"
What can the pats do to generate more passing plays?
As mentioned above, the best thing for the Patriots’ passing game right now would be to get the offensive line figured out. But another thing they should look to do is run more play-action. Despite their success running the ball on Sunday the Patriots only used play action five times on 29 drop backs, with no such calls in the fourth quarter. They succeeded in getting the Bengals’ defense to stack the front, the next step should be to throw the ball to the intermediate level behind all of those defenders for chunk plays. That will be something to look for moving forwards.
Ed Helinski 🇺🇸🇵🇱 on X (formerly Twitter): "How you feeling about the Pats chances against Seattle? Are you liking this early season matchup? / X"
How you feeling about the Pats chances against Seattle? Are you liking this early season matchup?
The Seahawks should be a good test for the Patriots. While the Bengals have a better roster overall, many of the Bengals’ weaknesses lined up well with the Patriots’ strengths. Seattle won’t give the Patriots as many matchup advantages.
One individual matchup I’m really looking forward to is Christian Gonzalez versus D.K. Metcalf. After failing to reach the (admittedly sky-high) expectations he had on him this summer, Gonzalez picked up where he left off before his injury last year locking down one of the best receivers in football in Ja’Marr Chase last week. A similar effort against Metcalf would be a strong statement that this is just the player that he is.
scottzolak 🏈 on X (formerly Twitter): "Do you like the lightning round? / X"
Do you like the lightning round?
Of course!
