FOXBORO — Rhamondre Stevenson gimped off the sector with 4:25 left within the first quarter Sunday, anguished by a recent ankle harm that brought on him to fumble and will quickly trigger him to overlook video games.
Lucky him.
Stevenson missed the remainder of one other depressing loss, one other D-minus offensive efficiency, one other is-this-rock-bottom second for the Patriots.
Somehow, we’re nonetheless asking, and so they’re nonetheless sinking.
Bailey Zappe, in fact, was no savior. He accomplished 13 passes over 11 scoreless drives within the 6-0 loss, his first begin of the season. Not that Zappe had a lot assist.
Until late within the third quarter, Stevenson nonetheless led all Patriots in all-purpose yards. Meanwhile, Tyquan Thornton dropped a pinpoint deep ball, DeVante Parker stepped out of bounds on one other bomb, Ezekiel Elliott fumbled and JuJu Smith-Schuster completed with one catch for the fourth time this season.
Credit to them for combating by way of a miserably chilly rain Sunday. But all credit score stops there.
How do Bill Belichick’s Patriots get shut out by one of many league’s worst defenses? How do they drop the NFL’s lowest-scoring recreation in 5 years? How do they fail to attain greater than seven factors for a 3rd straight recreation, a franchise first in 30 years?
And how does any group lose three straight video games, regardless of permitting 10 factors or fewer in every of these outings? Because the one different NFL franchise of the final 85 years that may reply that query is the 1938 Chicago Cardinals.
This is the corporate the traditionally putrid Patriots hold now. Sunday was a full-blown catastrophe in a rising pile of them. How a lot worse can they get?
If you wish to dispute the Patriots are the worst group in soccer – with lesser top-end expertise than the Panthers and Cardinals, who each boast higher turnover margins – go forward. But there is no such thing as a debating they’re the NFL’s most boring.
Sunday showcased each purpose why they grew to become the primary residence group in NFL historical past to get flexed out of a Monday Night Football. Fans really feel it, just like the rain droplets that soaked their jerseys and sweatshirts Sunday; tears from the Foxboro soccer gods above. Tickets offered for as little as $19 earlier than kickoff.
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Even Belichick’s lame, mumbly and defensive press conferences are scoring extra factors with a ticked-off fan base than his offense is. This was the newest from Belichick on Sunday: “I don’t know,” he stated when requested about his shock over the offense’s struggles.
Here are extra of these struggles in context: the Patriots have been shut out in a number of residence video games for the primary time since 1992. Sunday marked the primary time they’ve failed to attain within the first half of back-to-back video games since 1993.
By comparability, the Chargers solely scored on two quick fields and could not run the ball. Their receivers had extra drops than a Little League proper fielder. And their offense, averaging a measly 4 yards per play – 4! – nonetheless out-classed the Patriots.
Meanwhile, the Patriots’ protection looks like it may possibly’t permit any factors. We know this as a result of gamers at the moment are open about it, violating Belichick’s longstanding media coverage of treating reporters like mushrooms: hold them at midnight and feed them (expletive).
Source: Patriots RB Rhamondre Stevenson to bear MRI to verify ankle sprain
“We gave up 10 points, and lost the game two weeks in a row. So now, we’ve gotta give up zero,” Pats security Adrian Phillips advised the Herald final week. “If 10 ain’t enough, then we gotta bat 1.000, and give up zero.”
After Sunday’s loss, defensive sort out Davon Godchaux vented to the Herald about subsequent week’s recreation at Pittsburgh.
“We can’t even afford to let (the Steelers) kick a field goal — we’ve gotta hold them to zero. It’s going to be interesting next week,” he stated.
Phillips and Godchaux acknowledge their protection has turn into soccer’s Sisyphus; a unit fated to hopelessly roll the identical boulder up the identical hill understanding it would roll again down earlier than they ever attain the highest Sunday. This is the life they’ve identified for weeks, and the life they are going to lead till a reliable quarterback and set of pass-catchers emerge.
At least they’ve discovered peace in resignation.
Sunday’s post-game locker room hardly resembled the morgue-like local weather discovered after sure losses. Some defenders smiled, others joked. Players have breezed by way of the levels of grief over their misplaced season.
Shock and denial handed across the time the Patriots had been first shut out at residence in Week 5. Anger and bargaining adopted quickly after. It’s full-blown acceptance now in Foxboro.
The excellent news?
There’s solely 5 video games left.
The unhealthy information?
There’s nonetheless 5 video games to play and learn how distant all-time low actually is.
Source: www.bostonherald.com