Patriots Live Blog: Seahawks Make Goal-Line Stand To Beat Pats
Final, 31-24 Seahawks: Brady threw a lofted pass toward the pylon, and Gronkowski made a ridiculously athletic catch at the 2-yard line.
On first down, Brady ran for a yard. On second down, Blount was stuffed. On third down, Brady fumbled on a sneak and lost a yard, but they made it up on a 12-men penalty on Seattle.
So, on fourth down from the 1-yard line, Brady threw a fade to Gronkowski. Chancellor took down Gronkowski, but because Gronkowski engaged the contact, no penalty was called.
That one is likely to get discussed for quite some time, but it wasn't quite as egregious as the Luke Kuechly play a few years ago.
Wilson then charged forward on a sneak when Seattle got the ball again. After a timeout, he did it again, and that was the ballgame. What a wild one.
Fourth quarter, 2:00, 31-24 Seahawks: The Patriots are driving. It's first-and-10 from the Seattle 24-yard line after Edelman just hauled in another perfect deep(ish) ball, this one for 30 yards up the right sideline.
Fourth quarter, 4:24, 31-24 Seahawks: Turnovers kill.
No teams in the NFL know that better than these two, and the Seahawks just provided the latest example, with Prosise continuing to slice up the New England defense. On third-and-3 from the 15-yard line, Wilson lofted a pass to the back of the end zone and let Doug Baldwin go and get it. He did, and the Seahawks went up seven.
Then, inexplicably, rather than kick the PAT, Pete Carroll called for his Seahawks to go for two. It was madness. If they kick the PAT, they're up eight, and the Patriots could only tie at best. Instead, Carroll decided to go for the win. It didn't work. And now the Patriots just need a touchdown and a PAT to tie the game instead of a touchdown and a two-point conversion.
Fourth quarter, 8:29, 25-24 Seahawks: The Patriots fumbled again. This time, they weren't so lucky to recover it. Edelman got caught fighting for more yards, and with Wright and Chancellor ripping him in half, he dropped the ball just before his knee touched down. Richard Sherman recovered and ran it out to midfield. Huge play, obviously.
Fourth quarter, 8:46, 25-24 Seahawks: Cyrus Jones broke a great return on an intentionally skipped kickoff. He was off to the races, breaking for 45 yards. But then he coughed it up. Fortunately for the Patriots, Nate Ebner was there to recover the ball, but uhh ... Cyrus Jones might be relegated to healthy scratch again soon.
Fourth quarter, 8:56, 25-24 Seahawks: The Patriots had a chance to get the ball back with a chance to stretch the lead. Instead, Wilson launched a deep ball to C.J. Prosise, who had a step-and-a-half on Elandon Roberts. Prosise made the catch just over the outstretched hand of Roberts, and he held on as Devin McCourty came flying into his chest at the 2-yard line. It was a big-time play, and it set the Seahawks up for a big-time score.
Two plays later, Prosise carried to the 1-inch line, but was ruled to have been stopped short. Seattle challenged, but replays were inconclusive.
On the ensuing third-and-goal, the Patriots utilized a late defensive line shift, which drew Jimmy Graham to jump early. (The Patriots did the same thing last year in Week 1 vs. Pittsburgh.)
So, instead of two cracks at a TD from about 3 inches out, the Seahawks were back on the 5-yard line. Wilson overthrew Lockett, and they had to settle for the field goal.
Hauschka came on for the 23-yarder, and, hey, look at that. Another lead change. What a game.
Fourth quarter, 13:00, 24-22 Patriots: The Patriots couldn't turn that third-and-25 conversion into a touchdown. Blount went nowhere on first down, Brady had to scramble for 2 yards on second down, and he was yanked down by the jersey by Frank Clark on third down.
Gostkowski sent the 30-yard field goal through the uprights though, and we've got another lead change. At this rate, it looks like a basketball team. The last team with the ball will win.
End of third quarter, 22-21 Seahawks: Third-and-25. Seattle 42-yard line. Not looking great.
But then, Brady locked in on Edelman, who was in one-on-one coverage on the outside. Brady lobbed a ball up the left sideline and simply put it in a spot. Edelman went and got it. Perfection, really. It's a beautiful thing.
And so, the third quarter ended on that note. It's first-and-goal from the 9-yard line to start the fourth quarter.
Third quarter, 2:52, 22-21 Seahawks: The first-half Pats defense came back for a spell, as Paul Richardson found a huge soft spot in the D behind the linebackers on the Seahawks' second play of that drive. Wilson easily fitted a pass over Hightower to Richardson for a gain of 39. Jimmy Graham later drew a pass interference penalty on Hightower, who was trying to give Graham a shove off the line but did so when the pass was in the air. Prosise then set up a goal-to-go situation with a 7-yard reception.
But, as it has numerous times tonight, the Pats' D got strong in the red zone. Trey Flowers dominated left guard Mark Glowinski en route to sacking Wilson on second down, and Wilson was again under duress on third down, resulting in an intentional grounding penalty.
Hauscka did hit the 41-yard field goal, though, and the Seahawks once again have the lead. If nothing else, it's been a spectacularly entertaining contest.
Third quarter, 7:52, 21-19 Patriots: LeGarrette Blount is having himself a night, as he ran for 29 yards on four carries on that drive, capped off with a 13-yard run off the left edge for his third touchdown of the night.
For Blount, that's his second three-touchdown regular-season game of his career, and he's up to 61 yards on 16 carries on the night.
The Patriots endured a scare on that drive, as Kam Chancellor took a dive at Tom Brady's right knee on a third-down incompletion. Chancellor was flagged for going low on the QB, keeping the drive alive, and Brady -- after limping a bit -- seemed to be OK.
Danny Amendola also came up with a huge catch on third-and-2 from the 37-yard line on a play when Brady had nobody opened but waited an extra tick for Amendola to find some space over the middle for a gain of 14 yards.
Third quarter, 13:26, 19-14 Seahawks: The Patriots' defense must have heard your complaints, because they opened up the second half by forcing a three-and-out. Wilson nearly threw a pick right to Hightower, but it was just outside of the linebacker's reach.
Cyrus Jones returned the punt 21 yards to the New England 35-yard line, but it came back due to a clipping penalty on Justin Coleman. So the Patriots will start their first drive at their own 9-yard line.
Third quarter, 15:00, 19-14 Seahawks: Hey, look, we're back. Gostkowski booted the opening kick of the second half out of the back of the end zone. It's football time again.
Halftime, 19-14 Seahawks: You might start hearing the name "Jamie Collins" being muttered around New England, as the Patriots' defense just looks dreadful.
They just allowed Wilson to stand in the pocket for a solid 5 seconds before delivering a 24-yard strike up the right sideline to Lockett to get into field-goal range. But they didn't settle for three, instead going with a pass to Prosise over the middle for a gain of 12 to get down to the 18-yard line. They then hurried to the line and ran another play, and Doug Baldwin ended up wide open, uncovered at the goal line. He looked like he was catching a punt as he waited for Wilson's throw, and Patrick Chung's pursuit came much too late. (It's unclear if it was Chung or Logan Ryan that blew the coverage.)
You have to question the coaching on that drive, because on the 24-yard pass to Lockett, they rushed just two people and put absolutely no pressure on Wilson. Eventually, someone was going to get open.
And so, the Seahawks head into halftime with a lead, and they'll get the ball back to start the second half. The pressure's on Belichick and Patricia to do ... something, anything to try to slow down the Seahawks, who have gained 248 yards and have put up 19 points in 30 minutes of football.
Second quarter, 1:05, 14-12 Patriots: The Patriots were finally able to sustain a long drive again, aided by a 15-yard facemask penalty on Richard Sherman (even though it lookedl ike he was actually pulling on Edelman's shoulder pad. Nevertheless, the Patriots took the yards.
Rob Gronkowski had to leave the field for several plays after getting lit up by Earl Thomas. It looked like Gronkowski got the wind knocked out of him more than anything, but he was able to return to the field and draw a holding penalty on Cliff Avril in the end zone to set up a first down at the goal line.
Blount then punched it in, initially crossing the plane on a run up the gut but continuing to fight and dragging multiple bodies with him across the goal line.
It was an 11-play, 81-yard drive, and Gostkowski's PAT was good, giving the Patriots the lead again. They'll need a stop before half, because Seattle's getting that ball to start the second half.
Second quarter, 6:04, 12-7 Seahawks: Brady's pick didn't end up being too painful for New England, nor was Chris Long's offside penalty on a third-down incompletion, as Rob Ninkovich flew in from the right side of the offense and wrapped up Wilson for a loss of 9 on third-and-3.
Cyrus Jones returned the 51-yard punt just 4 yards, and the Patriots take over again on offense on their 19-yard line.
Second quarter, 9:04, 12-7 Seahawks: Brady picked up the first down with a QB sneak, but then Brady ran all around the pocket before launching a very ill-advised deep duck intended for Malcolm Mitchell. The underthrown wobbler was picked off easily by DeShawn Shead, and the Seahawks take over at their own 24-yard line. A really bad pass by Brady there.
Second quarter, 10:01, 12-7 Seahawks: That was a short review. The Pats keep the ball and they'll have a third-and-1.
Second quarter, 10:01, 12-7 Seahawks: The Patriots decided they needed to get Rob Gronkowski involved in the offense. They did. They gained a some yards. But then he fumbled, and turned it over.
That's the bad news ... for now. The play is going to review, and it looks like Gronkowski's massive elbow pad was on the ground before the ball was knocked loose. You never know with reviews, but this one seems pretty clear cut.
Second quarter, 10:52, 12-7 Seahawks: The New England defense has just been carved up yet again, and this time it didn't make the red-zone stop. Russell Wilson connected with Doug Baldwin for a 6-yard touchdown in front of Malcolm Butler to give Seattle its first touchdown of the night.
The Patriots were able to block the PAT to keep the score at 12-7, but Seattle just drove 65 yards on 10 plays, and they now have gained 168 yards on the night and they have scored on all three of their possessions. New England's defense is going to have to get to work quickly, because this plan so far is not getting anything done.
Shea McLellin is the one who gets credit for the PAT block, if you're into keeping tabs on that sort of thing.
End of first quarter, 7-6 Patriots: Another drive for New England, another three-and-out. This one began with a four-yard pass to White running an out on the left side, followed by a Blount run to nowhere. On third down, Brady went deep up the left seam to Edelman, but he was well covered and had no chance to make the catch.
Allen punted a bit shorter this time, with Lockett losing a yard on the return. The Seahawks kicked off their drive at their own 35-yard line, with Wilson rolling right and hitting Jimmy Graham for an 11-yard gain on the right sideline.
And with it, the first quarter came to an end.
First quarter, 1:33, 7-6 Patriots: The Patriots appeared to have matched the Seahawks in the three-and-out department, following a Trey Flowers/Malcom Brown sack on first down and a Justin Coleman pass breakup on third down. But a flag came in after Coleman broke up the pass intended for Lockett, giving the Seahawks 20 free yards and a first down. I personally didn't like the call, as the biggest offense Coleman committed might have been having his arm briefly lock with Lockett's wrist for a split-second, but it wasn't an uncommon call.
The Seahawks then built a nice little drive, with Prosise picking up 18 yards on a third-down reception. But the Patriots' defense stiffened in the red zone, forcing an incompletion on third down and leading to another short field goal for Hauschka.
First quarter, 5:46, 7-3 Patriots: A much better showing for the Seattle defense on drive No. 2, as they forced Brady to leave the pocket and throw one away on first down, stuffed Blount for a loss of a yard on second down, and then collapsed the pocket and forced a quick throw to Bennett for a gain of 2 on third down.
Ryan Allen boomed a punt 56 yards down the field, and the New England coverage team did well to limit Lockett to just a 5-yard return. Seattle takes over on its own 21-yard line.
First quarter, 7:10, 7-3 Patriots: Stephen Gostkowski made his PAT. But then he sent the ensuing kickoff out of bounds. That mistake gave the Seahawks the ball at their own 40, and they picked up 36 yards on their second play from scrimmage when Russell Wilson and Tyler Lockett connected on a nice deep ball up the right sideline with Justin Coleman in decent coverage.
Seattle drove inside the 10-yard line, but Trey Flowers made a great tackle in pursuit of C.J. Prosise on a second-and-4 from the 8, and Jermaine Kearse couldn't hold on to a third-down pass at the goal line. Seattle settled for the short field goal. It's a positive to get points on the opening possession, but they know that field goals will not cut it tonight.
First quarter, 10:19, 7-0 Patriots: The Patriots' offense looks like it has spent the last 14 days practicing for every single second, as they just casually marched 75 yards in 4:41 to take an early 7-0 lead.
It began with a 13-yard screen pass to James White, and three plays later on a third-and-5, Rob Gronkowski was uncovered across the middle, caught a pass, deflected a would-be tackle from Earl Thomas, and then dragged Bobby Wagner on his back for 10 yards for a gain of 22.
On a second-and-8 from the 10-yard line, Brady lobbed a pass to Gronkowski, who was flat-out tackled by Kam Chancellor in the end zone. The pass interference penalty put the ball at the 1-yard line, and LeGarrette Blount plunged in for the score.
Brady was 3-for-4 for 46 yards, while Blount ran for 20 yards and a touchdown on five carries.
First quarter, 15:00: Cyrus Jones was back deep for the Patriots, but the kick went 5 yards deep into the end zone. He took a knee for the touchback and this one is underway.
8:25 p.m.: The captains just went out to midfield for the coin toss. The Seahawks won and deferred, so the Patriots will receive to start the game.
7:02 p.m.: The inactive lists are out. They are:
PATRIOTS
Woodrow Hamilton, DL
Dion Lewis, RB
LaAdrian Waddle, T
Kyle Van Noy, LB
Eric Rowe, CB
D.J. Foster, RB
Matt Lengel, TE
SEAHAWKS
Tanner McEvoy, WR
Thomas Rawls, RB
Tyvis Powell, S
Rees Odhiambo, G
Michael Bennett, DE
Bradley Sowell, T
Luke Willson, TE
From a spectator standpoint, it's disappointing to see Dion Lewis inactive. But as stated before, his impact was going to be minimal tonight if he were to suit up. It'll be LeGarrette Blount and James White as the backs getting the action tonight.
The list also confirms that Cyrus Jones will be active again this evening. We'll see if he resumes his role as a kick/punt returner or if Belichick has moved on from that proposition. Receiver Chris Hogan is also active.
For the Seahawks, running back Christine Michael is notably missing from the list, meaning he's healthy enough to play this evening.
6:50 p.m.: It seems as though cornerback Eric Rowe won't be in action tonight, as Mike Reiss and Doug Kyed both spotted him away from the field.
Rowe did not have a great performance two weeks ago in Buffalo, when he took three penalties. One of them was a bad call, but the other two were not. And so, we may see the return of rookie Cyrus Jones, who's been a healthy scratch since getting ejected during the Week 5 win in Cleveland.
6:09 p.m.: Checking in here at Gillette, after navigating a state-wide traffic jam caused by the football team having the nerve to play a game at night. Not much has changed since mid-afternoon. We're waiting to see the inactive list at 7 p.m., which will tell us whether or not Dion Lewis will be active for tonight's game.
It'll be fun and all to watch Lewis again (he was, truly, amazing last season), but as far as tonight is concerned, he won't make a significant difference either way. The Patriots are smart, and they know that he could be a real X factor in January and February. Throwing him into the fire and asking him to have 5-10 touches in his first action in a year just wouldn't work toward that end, so even if he is active tonight, don't expect too much from him.
Receiver Chris Hogan did come out and go through a pregame workout. He was listed as questionable for the game, so his name will be one to keep an eye on when that inactive list comes out.
3 p.m.: It's only mid-November, yes, but there's a special level of excitement for the football game that will take place at Gillette Stadium this evening.
A number of factors are working toward that excitement. For one, it's the first real prime-time game of the year for the Patriots (meaning it's the first prime-time game for Tom Brady this year). It's also an opponent not often seen in these parts, and it just so happens to be a team the Patriots haven't seen since that fateful meeting in Super Bowl XLIX two years ago.
It also comes after a bye week, a 14-day football-free window that always goes by painstakingly slow. And in Seattle, the Patriots will finally face a worthy foe with Brady under center.
The game ought to be a good one. The weather should be fine. The crowd will be raucous (on both sides, as those self-congratulatory 12s do often travel well). And all the eyes of the football world will be fixated on the events of this evening.
While there's a 99.9 percent chance that we won't see a game with as scintillating a conclusion as we saw in that Super Bowl, we still should expect to see a good one. Check back here in the live blog for updates all afternoon long and analysis from the opening kick to the final whistle.