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Patriots’ conservative approach in key moments is holding them back originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
In the end, the Patriots took their tenth L of the season for the same reason they took their ninth last Sunday against Miami. And their eighth against the Rams.
Penalties. Cement-headed mistakes. Tentative coaching.
There’s no doubt this one-point loss looked and felt a lot better than last week’s drumming, during which the Patriots fell behind 31-0.
They could have scored more than 30 for the first time since Oct. 16, 2022 (a 38-0 win over Jacoby Brissett and the Browns)! Hell, they could have scored 40! Ten points were given away on Joey Slye’s missed 25-yard field goal and the goal-line interception off the body of Hunter Henry. They also had first-and-goal at the Indy 7-yard line, first-and-goal at the 2-yard line, first-and-10 at the 11-yard line and came away with six points on those three drives.
Meanwhile, they gifted the Colts their first touchdown by being unprepared at the snap and leaving two Indy pass-catchers completely wide open for quarterback Anthony Richardson. Then they allowed three third-down conversions and three fourth-down conversions on Indy’s 19-play, 80-yard game-winning drive.
🔊 Patriots Talk Podcast: ‘Cautious’ Patriots continue to coach not to lose in maddening loss to Colts | Listen & Subscribe | Watch on YouTube
If you want to seek solace, it’s there to be found. The Patriots should have killed the Colts the same way they should have beaten the Seahawks, or the Snoop Huntley-led Dolphins, or the Titans, or even the Rams. Including Indy, that’s five wins if the Patriots want to play the “it’s not you, it’s me…” game. Which they often do.
But here’s the problem. The mistakes are a feature. Not a bug. If it’s not a penalty at a critical moment, it’s an assignment bust.
Kendrick Bourne copped to mangling his route on third-and-goal from the 5-yard line, getting in Henry’s way and causing a Drake…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/patriots-conservative-approach-key-moments-190501290.html
Author : NBC Sports Boston
Publish date : 2024-12-02 19:05:00
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