Ups and Downs: Patriots cost themselves a win against Vikings

BOSTON -- The Patriots played their most exciting game of the season and were in a position to beat a good football team on their home turf in primetime. But then the mistakes piled up in the second half, and it cost New England what would have been its most impressive win of the season.

The Pats lost to the Vikings, 33-26, on Thursday night, and their myriad of miscues was the prime reason why. Sure, the officiating did them no favors, taking a Hunter Henry touchdown off the board in controversial fashion, but the Patriots had their chances after that call. They did not take advantage of any of them.

The Patriots' season is now on the line next Thursday night when they host the 8-3 Buffalo Bills. But before we start to look ahead to that massive game, we look back at the things that went right, and all the things that went wrong, for New England on Thanksgiving night.

DOWNS

Nothing Special About Special Teams

A 97-yard kickoff return touchdown by the Vikings. Running into the kicker on fourth-and-3.  A 31-yard punt by Michael Palardy.

It was an absolutely gross night for the New England's special teams, and it cost the Patriots 14 points and the game. Bill Belichick was livid with his third phase of the game all throughout the night.

Right after a Henry touchdown (one that officials couldn't overturn) gave the Patriots the lead early in the third quarter, the Vikings took it right back when Kene Nwangwu ran back a kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown. It was a bad kick by Nick Folk, players took bad routes to Nwangwu, and just like that the game was tied again at 23-23.

Then in the fourth quarter, after the defense had forced a punt, rookie Pierre Strong ran into Vikings punter Ryan Wright and gave the ball right back to Minnesota. Just three plays later, the Vikings were in the end zone again when Kirk Cousins hit Adam Thielen for a 15-yard touchdown. That was the game-winning score.

Strong got an ear-full from Belichick on the sideline, and shouldn't be expecting an extra slice of pie after that one. Cam Achord has a lot to discuss with his special teams players this week.

Mental Mistakes Ahead of Halftime

The Pats were flagged for six penalties, costing them 55 yards, but those weren't the only mental errors that they inflicted on themselves. Two big ones came before halftime, and cost the team a shot at four more points.

After the Vikings took a 16-13 lead, the Patriots had a chance to go on top thanks to a 22-yard connection between Mac Jones and Henry. It got the Pats to the Minnesota 48, but Henry didn't run out of bounds and Belichick had to burn a timeout with 55 seconds left. A few plays later, Jones had no one open downfield and chose to run, until he didn't. He slid for a "sack" and forced the Pats to use their final timeout with 24 seconds left. 

Henry not running out of bounds essentially cost the Patriots another play from inside the Minnesota 10-yard line, and the Patriots had to settle for a Folk field goal before the half to tie the game 16-16.

Belichick was not happy with the mental errors on that final drive of the half, and was animated about it on the sideline.

Red Zone Offense

While the offense was in a different universe compared to earlier in the season, the red zone woes continue. The Pats were 0-for-3 in their trips inside the 20, settling for three field goals instead.

That includes one right after Jonathan Jones picked off Cousins early in the game and gave the offense the ball at the Minnesota 17. The Patriots cannot keep settling for field goals when they get in the red area and expect to win.

Offense Dries Up

After they had to settle for a field goal following the Henry controversy, the Patriots did not score again over the final 21 minutes of the game. 

After the Vikings tied it at 26-26, Mac and Co. went three-and-out. After the Vikings went up by a touchdown, Mac and Co. went three-and-out. 

The offense got the ball back twice in the final 4:21, but did nada with it. Jones was sacked ahead of the two-minute warning to set up a fourth-and-16. Nelson Agholor stopped running for Mac's deep ball, and was hurt diving for the incompletion. The Pats got the ball back in the final minute, but were no threat to tie the game.

Again, the offense was much, much, much, much better overall on Thursday night. But when they had to make a play in the fourth quarter, they did not. 

Third Down Defense

The Patriots D struggled to get off the field on third down, with the Vikings converting eight of their 15 third-down plays. The biggest one was a 37-yard catch by Jefferson -- which came right after a Matt Judon offsides turned a third-and-12 into a much more manageable third-and-7 in the second quarter. Minnesota ended the drive with a touchdown, giving the Vikings a 16-10 lead at the time.

UPS

Mac Looked Really Good

Jones had his best game of the season, connecting on 28 of his 39 passes for a career-high 382 yards (whoa!) and two touchdowns. It was his first game all season with multiple touchdown passes. He had time to throw and, for the most part, delivered nice strikes on the money. He even had the deep ball working, leading to New England's first first-quarter touchdown of the season.

In a season that has been full of backward steps, Mac took a big step in the right direction Thursday night.

O-Line Holds Ups 

Down a pair of starters in David Andrews and Isaiah Wynn, this one could have gone sideways on the offense real easily. But the New England offensive line went out and had maybe their best showing of the season, keeping Jones clean until the final quarter. The QB was given ample time to operate and his receivers had time to get open downfield. 

Jonathan Jones' INT

This was a big boy play by the veteran defensive back, who broke off his double team on Justin Jefferson to pick off Cousins. 

Unfortunately, it set the offense up in the red zone, and we know how that went on Thursday evening.

Another Great Return By Marcus Jones

There were a few positives on special teams. One is that rookie Marcus Jones keeps getting more and more dangerous as the weeks go by. 

This time it was a 46-yard kickoff return that set the Patriots up at midfield in the second quarter.

The offense didn't take full advantage of that field position though, gaining only 23 yards on five plays before settling for another Folk field goal.

Nick Folk

Speaking of the Folk hero. After a rough day in a windy Gillette Stadium on Sunday, he was a perfect 4-for-4 inside the dome in Minnesota.