Sloppy Patriots rack up penalties, lose preseason finale to Commanders
BOSTON -- The New England Patriots closed out the preseason with a 20-10 loss to the Washington Commanders, a game that saw Drake Maye make more impressive plays while veteran Jacoby Brissett struggled to get much going.
Brissett also suffered a right shoulder injury in his one series, which will just add more intrigue to Jerod Mayo's decision on who will be his starting quarterback for Week 1 against the Bengals.
As was the case with New England's previous two preseason opponents, the Commanders did not play their starters on Sunday night, including second-overall pick Jayden Daniels. The Patriots played their starters in all three preseason games, but only saw an opposing team's starters in their joint practice session with the Eagles.
While the New England defense played well again, holding the Commanders scoreless until the second half, the offense left a lot to be desired in the team's final tune-up ahead of the regular season. The offensive line remains the biggest concern with the 2024 New England Patriots, and the line's issues were prevalent throughout Sunday night's preseason finale.
Penalties were a massive issue and storyline for the Patriots in Sunday's loss. The team was hit with 18 flags and the Commanders accepted 10 of them, costing New England 157 yards. The offensive line was responsible for the majority of those infractions, which has to have New England's offensive coaches fuming.
"That was just undisciplined football," Mayo said after the loss. "Hopefully we're all on the same page going forward."
How did Patriots quarterbacks play in the preseason finale?
Jacoby Brissett got the start -- and got rocked because of the offensive line. He got demolished by KJ Henry when guards Sidy Sow and Layden Robinson ran into each other along the line, giving Henry a free path to Brissett.
Brissett suffered a right shoulder injury on the play, but he did remain in the game after the hit. He looked OK as he delivered a downfield pass two plays later, but it fell incomplete and the drive (and his evening) ended. Brissett finished 2-for-4 for 19 yards against the Commanders to cap off a lackluster preseason, and was just 5-for-15 for 38 yards and a red-zone interception over his three exhibition appearances.
Mayo said that Brissett could have remained in the game, and told him that he was "good" following the loss.
Drake Maye was a solid 13-for-20 for 126 yards and his first touchdown pass at the NFL level, which came at the end of his first drive when he hit Kevin Harris with a short pass and the running back took care of the rest. Maye had a nice 17-yard run of his own on a third-and-14 and also hit Ja'Lynn Polk for a 29-yard connection on his touchdown drive.
For the preseason, Maye completed 21 of his 34 passes for 192 yards and a touchdown. He had another seven rushes for 32 yards and a score.
Chances are he won't beat out Brissett for the starting job come Week 1, but the future looks bright for New England once Maye is ready. (And the offensive line is ready to protect a quarterback.)
Joe Milton III took over out of halftime and effortlessly showed off his big arm a few times, but he was just 5-for-17 for 78 yards. He added 23 yards on the ground on three scrambles. Milton tried to scramble for a first down on a fourth-and-4 deep in Washington territory, but was brought down a few yards short. It wouldn't have mattered anyways since rookie Caedan Wallace was flagged for a hold, which the Commanders declined.
Bailey Zappe got New England's final drive of the game for the second straight week, but handed the ball off five times. His only "throw" was spiking the ball to set up a last-second field goal try for Joey Slye.
The New England offensive line is a mess
This is going to be a long, long season for anyone playing quarterback for the Patriots. The offensive line was an absolute mess on Sunday night, which won't make anyone feel any better about the unit heading into the regular season.
The Patriots offensive line did everything you DON'T want to see out of an offensive line on Sunday night. There were bad snaps from Nick Leverett, who started in place of David Andrews. There were false starts and illegal formations, linemen running into each other and linemen stepping on their quarterback. And that was just the first half.
On one play, the Pats were hit with two flags on the offensive line, both of which were declined because it came on a third-and-20. Starting left tackle Chukwuma Okorafor was called for three illegal formations, as he lined up too far back from the line. Head official Sean Hochuli pulled out a "once again" when announcing one of Okorafor's penalties. The tackle's second penalty took Maye's 48-yard touchdown bomb off the board.
"The biggest concern is the lack of discipline they showed today," Mayo said. "Referees warned us multiple times, and then they flagged us multiple times because we didn't adjust. You have to self-adjust and get better, and we didn't do that tonight."
It was an outright disaster for the New England offensive line on Sunday. Guys were running into each other, leading to Brissett's injury, and the line even managed to take Maye's cleat off on one drop-back.
To make matters worse, starting left guard Sidy Sow left with an ankle injury in the second quarter and didn't return. He was spotted leaving the locker room in a walking boot.
Sow's injury left Michael Jordan to take over at left guard, and he was promptly hit with a holding penalty. Sow will undergo an MRI on Monday, according to Mayo.
We knew that the offensive line was a mess, but Sunday night showed just how bad the offensive line could be in 2024.
The Patriots got their run game going
After struggling to get much going on the ground over the first two games, the Pats rush attack had a nice night in Maryland. New England ran for 139 yards yards on 27 attempts, good for a 5.1 yards-per-carry average.
Terrell Jennings led the way as he made a strong push for a roster spot, rushing for 36 yards on his six carries. Antonio Gibson got it all started with 17 yards on his three carries with the starters, adding a 13-yard reception as he solidified himself as the team's No. 2 back.
Which Patriots bubble guys made their case?
Linebacker Joe Giles-Harris made a good case for a roster spot with a nice interception in the second quarter. Linebacker Christian Elliss was also having a great night, leading the team with 11 tackles before he left with a head injury.
Harris likely locked up the No. 3 running back job with his touchdown. But Jennings had some heavy runs, including a 13-yard run where he brought a few defenders with him.
Corner Austin Hearns did not make a strong case, as he was hit with two big defensive pass interference penalties: one for 45 yards and another for 19 yards. Both led to Washington touchdowns.
Kicker Joey Slye missed both of his field goal attempts, but both were from 60 or more yards. Chad Ryland got to kick his first field goal attempt of the preseason, and connected from 38 yards. It seems like Slye has the edge over Ryland as we head toward the regular season.
What's next for the Patriots?
Patriots players won't practice again until Wednesday. The New England brass will be hard at work over the next two days as they have to trim the roster from 90 to 53 players before 4 p.m. Tuesday evening.