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Patriots’ creep toward mediocrity comes with increased scrutiny originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
There’s no questioning whether the “soft” grenade Jerod Mayo lobbed in London on October 20 had the desired effect.
At that point the team was 1-6, had been blasted in four of its five previous games and lost to Snoop Huntley and the Dolphins in the other. Since that day — a convincing loss to the disastrous Jaguars — they are 2-2 and quite easily could be 4-0.
The Patriots are creeping toward mediocrity, separating themselves just a bit from stale and still-sinking teams in Dallas, New York, Jacksonville, Cleveland and Vegas. Toss in Carolina and Tennessee as well if you want to.
They’re not objectively good. God no. But instead of being between the 28th- and 32nd-best team in the league, they’ve probably rocketed up to the 23-to-26 bracket. Baby steps.
But attached to the modest improvement are rising expectations. Stuff you might have shrugged at a few weeks ago and said, “Whatcha gonna do? They stink right now…” is less excusable. Scheme, in-game decision making, player gaffes and breakdowns are all in for heavier scrutiny.
And there’s a ton to scrutinize from Sunday’s 28-22 loss to the Rams. So let’s attack in bullet-point fashion.
Zero logic
There’s a time and a place for a zero blitz.
The time is NOT on the second play of the second half when you are already down 14-10 and you are facing a 16-year veteran quarterback who’s seen everything there is to see. Especially when he’s got an All-Pro wideout that he shares a brain with at his disposal.
Because if you fail — as the Patriots did when they blitzed Matthew Stafford and he hit Cooper Kupp for a stroll-in 69-yard touchdown — you are down 11. Right out of the locker room.
Who knew? The Patriots should have. In Week 2, they sent the house against a lesser veteran quarterback, Geno Smith, near the end of the first quarter. The Seahawks quarterback sniffed it immediately and threw a…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/patriots-creep-toward-mediocrity-comes-185904297.html
Author : NBC Sports Boston
Publish date : 2024-11-18 18:59:04
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