Real football is back (well, the preseason variety), which means BSJ's extensive football breakdowns are back. What you'll get down below: video breakdowns of the coaches film, player ratings, player thoughts and 3 up/3 down.
Let's start with Bailey Zappe. I thought, overall, he played fine in this game. Didn't have him for any plus plays — the pass to Tyquan Thornton was fine, but it wasn't a good or great play — and two minus decisions on the first drive. Other than that, he did what was expected.
Overall, I didn't think pressure was a huge issue. It wasn't great, but it wasn't god-awful (the run blocking, however, was terrible). I had an overall pressure rate for the entire game of 21 percent with six total QB pressures. PFF had seven, so we were in the same ballpark.
Breaking down Zappe in the first half:
2-10-HST 24 (11:05) B.Zappe pass short right to P.Strong to HST 18 for 6 yards (C.Harris).
Zappe's first dropback was probably the play I had the biggest issue on. Am I going to rip him for not making a decision on the very first snap? No. And he could have been on instructions not to throw the ball to Demario Douglas, but the rookie to the post was the better read and probably would have been a touchdown, instead of the checkdown to Strong.
3-4-HST 18 (10:28) (Shotgun) B.Zappe sacked at HST 25 for -7 yards (D.Perryman).
I ended up splitting this sack between Zappe, James Ferentz and Atonio Mafi. It is a tough grade for Zappe, especially on his second dropback, but I thought he should have recognized the Patriots didn't have this blocked properly — they didn't appear to identify the Mike, which led to Ferentz blocking no one and the Pats missing the looking MLB — and that it was man coverage, leading to a quick checkdown in the left flat to JJ Taylor perhaps for a touchdown. Ferentz and Mafi should have worked better to clean up this pressure.
1-10-NE 12 (6:38) (Shotgun) B.Zappe pass short middle to J.Taylor to NE 15 for 3 yards (H.Ridgeway).
Designed screen. Taylor slips.
2-7-NE 15 (5:55) K.Harris up the middle to NE 14 for -1 yards (J.Greenard, H.Ridgeway).
Zappe may have checked into a bad run but McDermott and Sow just get straight beat.
3-8-NE 14 (5:19) (Shotgun) B.Zappe pass deep left to T.Thornton to NE 41 for 27 yards (S.Nelson).
Good read by Zappe, not a great throw considering it was an inch from being overthrown and normally this kind of pass gets Thornton nailed by the overrated Jalen Pitre. A better read and safety at least breaks this play up. Great catch by Thornton.
1-10-NE 41 (4:45) B.Zappe pass short right to T.Nixon ran ob at 50 for 9 yards (D.King).
Proper read. No one open. Thornton doesn't run a great route but it's jumped in any even.
1-10-HST 48 (3:41) (Shotgun) B.Zappe pass incomplete short left to M.Sokol. thrown away from outside the pocket
Zappe waited forever on Thornton to hitch his route with the CB over the top. Zappe read this correctly. In my opinion, Thornton didn't run the correct route and caused the throwaway.
2-10-HST 48 (3:33) (Shotgun) B.Zappe pass short left to T.Nixon to HST 48 for no gain (D.Perryman).
Designed screen. Really poor pad level by the OL.
3-15-NE 47 (2:39) (Shotgun) B.Zappe pass short left to J.Taylor to HST 45 for 8 yards (D.Perryman; J.Pitre).
Designed screen. Mafi was really poor on this play. Stared at Taylor, stopped, nearly turned all the way around. This is a really green play by a rookie but he's just a few years from being a DT.
2-7-NE 20 (13:06) (Shotgun) B.Zappe pass short right to T.Nixon to NE 25 for 5 yards (M.Stewart).
Designed quick game. Nixon needs to make more than 5 yards. Boutte's block average.
3-2-NE 25 (12:38) (Shotgun) B.Zappe pass short right to P.Strong to NE 26 for 1 yard (H.To'oTo'o).
Zappe does what he is supposed to do. Man coverage, Patriots are running their staple pick play where Boutte is supposed to get in the way of the safety in man coverage against Strong. Boutte takes too much of an inside angle, isn't physical going up the field, and the safety gets over the top and Strong doesn't make him miss. This is a play Boutte should correct this week with film and practice.
1-10-HST 49 (8:29) B.Zappe pass short right to T.Thornton to HST 45 for 4 yards (K.Hollman).
Timing is again off between Zappe and Thornton, who is developing some bad habits getting into and at the top of his route.
3-8-HST 47 (7:16) (Shotgun) B.Zappe pass incomplete short left. thrown away from outside the pocket
Nobody's open. Protection was fine.
2-9-NE 10 (4:36) (Shotgun) B.Zappe pass short left to M.Sokol to NE 14 for 4 yards (T.Thomas; H.To'oTo'o).
Correct read.
3-5-NE 14 (3:57) (Shotgun) B.Zappe sacked at NE 13 for -1 yards (K.Hinish)
No chance. Sack split between Chasen Hines and Sow.
PLAYER RATINGS
QUARTERBACK
Malik Cunningham did a really nice job late showing off his athletic ability against the bottom of the Texans' roster (and Chase Winovich lol). Had a nice throw against pressure, some nice designed runs, threw a perfect pass on the move that Tre Nixon dropped for a touchdown, and had a great TD run. These types of performances are a dime a dozen in the preseason. We'll see what he does going forward. ... Trace McSorley had a nice scramble but a poor decision and he was late on a throw after a great route from Thyrick Pitts. ... Zappe was fine.
RUNNING BACK
The blocking was really to blame here but all three backs left plays on the field. ... All three also had broken tackles, with Kevin Harris leading with two. ... Harris needs to be more decisive, like we saw last year at the end of the season. He has a real chance to show something. ... Pierre Strong needs to play with the mentality of a playmaker.
RECEIVERS/TIGHT ENDS
Kayshon Boutte lacks speed and explosiveness on film in this game. It could be from just thinking through plays, but the feeling here is he will need to show rapid improvement to make this team. I don't really blame him for the missed rub route. Tough play for a rookie that will get corrected. ... Tyquan Thornton needs a lot of work on his route running. He is slow to get off the line as he bends his knees after the snap as a false step instead of getting going. That needs to be corrected ASAP. ... Matt Sokol had a brutal missed block on Winovich for a sack.
OFFENSIVE LINE
The fundamentals in this group were really poor in the first outing, especially run blocking, which should be the easiest part. Is that coaching, or a lack of padded practices? Time will tell. Biggest repeated issues: Too much leaning and overaggressiveness, poor initial angles/footwork on running plays, and the double-team timing/teamwork was really poor. Adrian Klemm has a lot of work to do. ...Kody Russey was probably the best of the group but he's really small and it's a problem. ... Andrew Stueber looks too slow to play tackle, certainly the left side. ... Atonio Mafi was solid overall but needs a lot of fundamental work. ... Conor McDermott had a rough go at left tackle, but that's not his spot so I'm not going to slam him. ... James Ferentz had one of the worst games I've seen him play. He's better than that. ... Sidy Sow needs to make rapid improvement or it might be time to take more of a look at guard. Feet were slow and he's not showing the power I thought he would. ... After a good week of practice, Chasen Hines was really poor in this game. Whiffs at times, little power in the run game. ... Jake Andrews was solid in this game but I'm hoping to see more. ... Really rough start for the young players but it's time for corrections and being better this week.
ONE UP
QB Malik Cunnigham: The only player who stood out in this game. That's an issue. No, I'm not going nuts about his future yet.
THREE DOWN
OT Conor McDermott: Kind of unfair to make him play left tackle with one practice on that side.
C/G James Ferentz: Just a really rough game.
TE Matt Sokol: Thought he had a real chance to stick as the third tight end. That's in danger now. He needs to show he's the best blocker. That sack was brutal.