Ups & Downs: Henry's big day not enough for uneven Patriots offense in loss to Seahawks
FOXBORO -- The Patriots have a razor-thin margin for error, and they simply didn't make enough plays to win Sunday's home opener against the Seattle Seahawks. They could be 2-0 on the season, but lost a very winnable game at Gillette Stadium.
There is a lot to learn from Sunday's 23-20 overtime loss. The Patriots were competitive throughout the defeat, but where they won on the margins in Week 1, they lost them in Week 2.
There was the blocked field goal off the foot of Joey Slye in the fourth quarter. Defensive miscommunications cost New England some big plays. After Ja'Lynn Polk scored his first career touchdown, the offense got next to nothing out of its receiving corps.
Meanwhile, Jacoby Brissett is still running for his life behind a makeshift offensive and doing some impressive things with his legs, but it's going to catch up to him eventually. There were a few times Sunday where it didn't look like Brissett would make it to the end of the game.
New England can't dwell on the loss for too long, because they have a visit to the 1-1 New York Jets on Thursday night. Here are the Ups and Downs from Sunday's defeat.
DOWN: Patriots receivers need to be more involved
Polk caught his first career touchdown in the first quarter, but had just one more catch the rest of the day on three total targets. Until K.J. Osborn brought in a nice diving reception in overtime, Polk was the only New England receiver to catch a pass on Sunday.
Demario Douglas, the team's leading receiver last year, saw one target on Sunday, which isn't in the box score because the play was wiped out by a Seattle DPI call. But just one target for Douglas is unacceptable from a game-planning standpoint.
"Obviously we would like more in our passing game. I've got to do a better job of getting a lot of those guys involved in the game plan and throughout the game," said Brissett. "I take responsibility for that."
UP: Hunter Henry's big day
The tight end had a career game for the Patriots, finishing with eight catches for a career-best 109 yards. He made seven of those catches in the first half, and accounted for 98 of the team's 117 passing yards over the first 30 minutes.
Each of Henry's first five receptions went for a Patriots first down. He was an important safety valve for Brissett, who found Henry while on the run on a number of occasions.
DOWN: Tough day for the New England secondary
Christian Gonzalez and Kyle Dugger had a costly miscommunication in the second quarter, and it left DK Metcalf wide open for a 56-yard touchdown. Marco Wilson was called for a DPI for the second straight week, this time on Tyler Lockett in the end zone which set up a Seattle touchdown.
Jonathan Jones was hit with a questionable -- and costly -- pass interference in overtime, though it's hard to blame him for that one. But Geno Smith picked the New England defense apart on Seattle's winning drive, completing six of his seven passes for 51 yards.
DOWN: Third down offense
The Patriots were just 6-for-16 on third down, and went five straight third downs without a conversion at one point.
Brissett was sacked on third-and-6 at the Seattle 21 the play before Slye's 48-yard attempt was blocked, which swung momentum of the game. The Patriots faced a third-and-1 on their only possession of overtime, and Rhamondre Stevenson was stuffed for no gain to force a New England punt.
"Execution just wasn't good enough," said Mayo. "I wish I had an excuse. We just have to be better."
The New England offense picked up just 11 yards on their final nine plays of the game on Sunday.
UP: Jacoby Brissett's escapability
Brissett once again had to use his legs to keep plays (and himself) alive on Sunday. He was sacked three times and hit a total of eight times by the Seattle defense, and those numbers would have been a lot higher if it weren't for Brissett's ability to scramble out of trouble.
DOWN: Brissett needing to use his escapability so much
At some point, Brissett isn't going to be able to bounce back up, limp to the sideline, and shake it off. And his lack of time in the pocket -- or lack of a pocket in general -- is a big reason why the receivers aren't seeing many passes.
DOWN: Patriots have some injury concerns
The Patriots lost linebackers Ja'Whaun Bentley (shoulder) and Oshane Ximines (knee) to injuries on Sunday. Their statuses going forward is unclear right now, but Bentley would be a huge loss as the team's leader in the middle of the field on defense.
Left tackle Vederian Lowe also had to make his way to the medical tent late in the game. With the future of Chuks Okorafor up in the air, the Patriots could find themselves extremely thin at left tackle in Week 3.
The Patriots can't afford any injuries, and they really can't afford them this week with their next game on Thursday Night Football against the Jets.
UP: Bryce Baringer's punts
These are literally up, as Baringer's average hangtime is roughly seven minutes (rough, rough exaggerated estimate). But actual math tells us he averaged 57 yards on his six punts on Sunday, and put three of them inside the 20.
