Ups and Downs: Pats show some fight, but not nearly enough in season-ending loss to Bills
BOSTON -- There was a lot stacked up against New England on Sunday, playing in an emotionally charged environment in Buffalo against an emotionally charged Bills team. The Patriots put up a solid fight early in the contest, but ultimately ran out of steam against a Super Bowl contending team, and now their season is over.
The Patriots fell, 35-23, in Buffalo to end their season at 8-9. With a Dolphins win over the Jets mixed with New England's loss, Miami claimed the final Wild Card spot in the AFC on the final day of the season.
A long offseason lies ahead for the Patriots, who are postseason spectators for the second time in the last three years. A number of players are heading toward free agency, and all-time Patriots Matthew Slater and Devin McCourty may have played their final game on Sunday before heading off into retirement. There should also be some big changes to Bill Belichick's coaching staff, considering the offense and special teams were a giant mess throughout the campaign.
But before we get to the bigger picture, we'll take a look back at what went right and what went wrong for the Patriots in Buffalo, costing them a trip to the playoffs. (Though really, it was their lackluster play throughout the season that cost them a spot in the postseason.)
Downs
Nothing special about special teams
The Patriots really missed Brenden Schooler on Sunday. That is no typo.
Nyheim Hines returned the opening kickoff 96 yards in a truly amazing moment in NFL history. The stadium was rocking from the pregame ceremony for Damar Hamlin, and that moment was just... it was special.
But it wasn't so great for the Patriots, who fell into an early 7-0 hole. And it was just another instance of special teams being anything but special for New England.
It happened again after the Pats took a 17-14 lead in the third quarter, when Hines returned Nick Folk's kickoff 101 yards for yet another touchdown, giving Buffalo a 21-17 lead.
Of the six kickoff returns in the NFL this season, the Patriots surrendered three of them. Yuck.
Mental mistakes and missed tackles on special teams hurt New England all season long. The Patriots gave up 14 points on special teams on Sunday. You just cannot give a team like the Bills free points and expect to win.
HUGE missed call
After the Bills took a 14-7 lead, the Patriots started their ensuing drive with... a six-yard loss on a rush attempt by Harris.
But there was a massive missed offsides call on the play that helped Buffalo blow it up on New England:
It was a huge play, as it put New England in a second-and-16. Jones hit DeVante Parker for a nine-yard connection on second down, but then Trent Brown missed his assignment and gave Tremaine Edmunds a free pass to the quarterback. Mac did a good job scrambling and throwing the ball away, before Edmunds sent him to the turf.
The drive got off to a bad start for the Patriots, but it's hard to blame them when the zebras missed such an easy call.
Mac's INT to open third quarter
The Patriots were driving to start the third quarter thanks to conversions on a third-and-4 (Mac to a diving Hunter Henry for 14 yards) and a fourth-and-1 (Mac to Henry again for five yards), but it ended on a throw that got away from the QB and landed in the hands of Tre White.
Mac was playing his best game of the season to that point, but that interception hurt. At least the defense got the ball back when Jonathan Jones forced a fumble and Devin McCourty picked it up at the Buffalo 11. But...
Not scoring a TD after defense gets the ball back
The offense had to settle for a field goal after getting the ball back. Harris got two yards on a first-down rush, and then was shoved in the end zone by Matt Milano as he tried to bring in Mac's pass on second down.
It's tough to put this in the "Downs" because the officials missed a clear DPI on that second-down play. But Mac had to scramble for just a few yards on third down, and New England settled for a 24-yard field goal. It gave the Pats a 17-14 lead -- their first of the game -- but that was erased almost instantly when the Bills returned the ensuing kickoff for another special teams touchdown.
Hunter's OPI
After Matthew Slater made a great play on special teams to help get the ball back to the offense, the Pats didn't do anything with the opportunity. Facing a first-and-10 on the Buffalo 13, Hunter Henry was flagged for offensive pass interference that made it a first-and-20.
The quarterback's next pass went off the fingertips of Kendrick Bourne, and his third-down try to Hunter near the end zone was tipped and fell into the hands of Matt Milano for an interception, essentially putting the game away for Buffalo -- and ending the season for New Engalnd.
The Patriots did a good job for most of the afternoon not getting into long yardage situations. But a big penalty hurt them at a crucial moment.
Offense fades on third down
Mac and company started the afternoon an impressive 3-for-6 on third downs, mostly thanks to picking up a decent amount of yards on the first two downs. That was not the case to end the game, as the Patriots converted just one of their last seven third-down tries.
Another loss to the Bills
The Bills are a very good team, but the Patriots have now lost four straight to their divisional foe. This is the second straight season that New England's season comes to an end in Buffalo. That will not sit well in Foxboro.
It's over
And now an intriguing offseason arrives. Will Devin McCourty and Matthew Slater call it a career? Will free agents Jakobi Meyers and Damien Harris be back? What will Bill do to fix this coaching staff?
We'll get some answers soon, but not before 14 other teams battle for a Super Bowl, while the Patriots sit at home and watch.
Ups
Red Zone INT by McCourty
The Bills looked poised to take a lead into halftime, facing a third-and-10 at the New England 15. But the Patriots' pass rush upped the pressure on Allen, who threw a really bad pass with Matthew Judon essentially tickling his toes.
That bad pass was picked off by Devin McCourty, and kept Buffalo off the board just before the break. Talk about a timely pick.
It had been forever since Allen had thrown one against the Patriots, with the QB going 197 pass attempts between INTs against New England.
It was McCourty's fourth interception and second in the last three weeks. He has 35 regular season interceptions for his career, which is good for second-most in franchise history, just one pick behind Ty Law and Raymond Clayborn.
McCourty also had that big fumble recovery deep in Buffalo territory in the third quarter, but the team only got a field goal out of it. If this was McCourty's last game, he had a hell of a finale to an incredible career.
Parker has his best game
DeVante Parker returned from his concussion and had his best game of the season, hauling in six of the seven passes that went his way for 79 yards and two touchdowns. He was awesome on Sunday.
Meyers toe-tapping touchdown
This was pretty.
Meyers is a free agent this offseason, and said after the loss that he hopes to be back.
Solid, but uneven day from Mac Jones
Mac had three touchdowns and racked up 243 passing yards, making some very good decisions -- and throws -- throughout the game. He also had three picks and tightened up when the Patriots fell behind in the second half.
There's some thing to build off this game with Jones, but he still doesn't have a signature comeback with the Patriots.
Heady play by Slater
If this was Matthew Slater's last game, he made one heck of a play to keep his team in it. After the Patriots punted away in the fourth quarter, the special teams captain pushed Buffalo's Taiwan Jones back toward the ball when it was rolling on the field. The ball touched Jones' leg, and Ja'Whaun Bentley pounced on it to give New England the ball at the Buffalo 35.
The turnover gave the Patriots a little bit of hope down 35-23, but the ensuing possession ended when Mac was picked off in the end zone.
But that was a smart play by Slater to give his team a little bit of hope, something we've seen plenty of for the last 15 years. It will be a shame if his and McCourty's career ends after such a loss.
Showing some fight
The Patriots came back from that opening kickoff return and responded with a touchdown drive. The offense looked like a legit NFL offense on all three of its scoring drives.
Even when they went down 28-17 late in the third, the team kept fighting. They answered with an eight-play 85-yard touchdown drive, capped off by Paker's second score.
They had plenty of fight in a charged atmosphere on Sunday. But as was the case throughout most of the season, it wasn't enough for the Patriots.
