Continuity along the offensive line doesn't matter when the talent you're running out there is subpar or so raw and inexperienced that it leads to a slew of errors. So, while the Patriots have tried to settle on five guys, the bottom line is they don't have five guys playing well enough to be locked into starting roles.
The first half in Arizona was another example of how critical it is that this group undergoes a major facelift this off-season. That could also pertain to coaching, although it's hard to know just how good Scott Peters and Robert Kugler are when they're living in the land of misfit toys.
1st series: Center Ben Brown has a shotgun snap hit off his own arse. Drake Maye shows excellent poise in fielding the ball and completes a short pass to Rhamondre Stevenson that turns into 16 yards. Later in the drive, Layden Robinson gets called for a hold that wipes out a third-down conversion (and substantial gain) by Antonio Gibson. Joey Slye misses a 53-yard field goal.
2nd series: Vederian Lowe whiffs on his first down block, and Stevenson loses two yards. On the next play, the left tackle barely provides resistance on edge Baron Browning, and Maye is sacked. Punt.
3rd series: On first down, Demontrey Jacobs misses a cut block; Hunter Henry has to jump over his fallen body and ends up with a four-yard gain.
Alex Van Pelt dials up a wide receiver screen to Kendrick Bourne on second down, but Jacobs misses his block, and it goes for a one-yard loss. Brown finishes this piece de resistance by butchering the snap again. Punt.
4th series: 3rd & 1 from the Pats' 44, Van Pelt calls for max protection, sending only three receivers into the route. No one is open, and the protection isn't wonderful. Maye gets brought down for a 0-yard sack. On 4th down, there is a questionable call to hit the edge of the defense; however, Lowe's block is poor, Henry (who otherwise blocked well) blocks no one, and Ja'Lynn Polk has to handle two defenders and can't sustain contact. Only Stevenson's toughness allows for the first down conversion.
Later, on the draw call that led to the cutaway of Jonathan Kraft crapping on Van Pelt, Lowe misses his block, Robinson blocks no one, and Brown gets pushed backward into the ball carrier. I'm sure Jonathan apologized to AVP once he broke down the film. The drive ends with another long field goal and the only points the Pats had in the first half.
Of course, there's one problem with my call to action on revamping this unit: free agency and the draft aren't loaded with tackles, especially if Ronnie Stanley doesn't reach the open market (and I suspect he might be willing to show the Ravens some loyalty after they stuck with him through his myriad of injuries). In addition, LSU's Will Campbell is considered the top offensive lineman in the draft, but despite being a three-year starter at LT for LSU, might be more guard than tackle. Ditto Texas tackle Kelvin Banks. Ohio State's Josh Simmons, definitely a tackle, was trending toward being a first-round pick but had season-ending knee surgery in October. GM Eliot Wolf and his scouts will have to earn their money for this team to improve up front (and everywhere else, for that matter).
NOT MUCH BETTER
Perhaps Kayshon Boutte made it up the back steps at One Patriot Place to campaign to ownership that he should be the next offensive coordinator. Boutte was critical of the game plan following Sunday's loss after making an excuse for why he couldn't hang on to what turned out to be the interception near midfield.
I agree that the first-half plan was conservative — a ton of screens and almost everything within 10 yards of the line of scrimmage. But I suspect Van Pelt didn't like how his line started the game and went into a shell until they could prove they could work out of it. By then, they were facing a 13-point deficit — less than ideal.
What's also incredibly obvious is that this receiver group is almost as bad as the offensive line and maybe a tick better than the "Stink, Stank, Stunk" group a year ago. There are very few teams where Boutte would lead the group in snaps. He's a limited player, even as he's shown growth and some physical toughness this season.
Polk clearly flattened out his corner route down by the goal line (his only target of the game), and Maye launched the ball 5 yards out of bounds. He also appeared to run the wrong route at least two other times. When you consider he was on the field for ten pass plays, that's a lousy percentage.
Demario Douglas would have a more significant role in a different offense. In this one, Van Pelt has to scheme up targets vs. it coming in the flow of the game. He's a fine player, and as your #3, you might be cooking with gas. But as the best of the bunch, you got problems, man.
I give plenty of credit to Bourne. He has flaws, but he's caught 14 of his 16 targets over the last four weeks, proving he should have a spot in the room next year. He did a terrific job stacking the corner on the 37-yarder (what a throw by Maye), and his catch on a slant that was thrown behind him would have gotten more love if, you know, it led to a touchdown.
Did you know that of the top passing offenses in the league, only Patrick Mahomes (43.4%) and Lamar Jackson (46.4%) are under 50% in terms of percentage of completions to wide receivers, and when you consider Baltimore has long-built their passing offense around the middle of the field and their tight ends, and Mahomes has Kelce, that comes as no surprise. Maye is currently sitting at 47.6%. Hey, Eliot, get this guy some help on the outside.
GIVE THE MAN HIS FLOWERS
Christian Gonzalez has been the Patriots' best player this year, and that continued on Sunday. He was nearly flawless shadowing Marvin Harrison Jr., with the lone reception allowed to come off a well-executed pick play by tight end Trey McBride on the game's opening drive. Harrison went for 23 yards, but after that, Gonzalez plastered him, breaking up three throws in his direction, two in the end zone. On all but one of Harrison's targets, the second-year corner blanketed him. On the double move that created a possible touchdown, Gonzalez ate up the slight separation and then finished strong as the catch point, tearing at Harrison's hands and forcing the incomplete. He's all that and a bag of chips. Get him on the All-Pro team.
UP AND DOWN
Thumbs up to Christian Elliss, who kept showing up on Sunday. He made a hell of a play in the opening quarter, disrupting a crossing route, then chasing down a scrambling Kyler Murray, stopping him a couple of yards short of a first down (forcing the Cards to kick a field goal). He and Jabril Peppers stuffed James Conner, who bounced outside to end the third quarter but was corraled by the Pats' duo. Overall, he found himself around the football quite a bit.
That was good because fellow linebacker Jahlani Tavai got a thumbs down. He whiffed more times than Bobby Dalbec. Conner stiff-armed Tavai on the Cardinals' second drive, then got abused by the running back on a double move in space two series later. Had Murray even glanced to the wide side of the field, he had himself a long touchdown. To start the third quarter, Tavai was late in coverage on a completion to Greg Dortch, appeared to have a miscommunication with Kyle Dugger on a third down conversion by Trey McBride, and then picked the wrong side on Arizona's final touchdown. He missed three tackles total. Yuck.
Thumbs down for both starting safeties, Peppers and Dugger. Peppers was primarily responsible for Conner's 53-yard run (although there was plenty of blame to go around) and had some responsibility for Dortch's 39-yard gain off a screen (he was too easily blocked). Dugger was lost in zone coverage a whole bunch (duh), missed a tackle on the Dortch screen, and lacks the explosion in the box that got him paid this off-season. Also, watching him desperately try to catch up to Conner, who is not fast, on that long gainer was hard to watch.
Thumbs down for Davon Godchaux. They couldn't move him at the deadline because of depth issues, but he's not played exceptionally well since his early-season showcase. He has to be a tone-setter in the run game, and when you give up 163 yards on the ground—and plenty of that came between the tackles (and that's his bread-and-butter), Godchaux gets blamed (rightfully so). He got pancaked on a wham block and reacted slowly to a handful of cutback runs. Not great.
Thumbs up to Antonio Gibson. He's been the team's best running back for a month and ran with vision, decisiveness, and power. I had him for nine forced missed tackles. As we've been writing in this space, he's a better fit for what Van Pelt wants to do than Stevenson (who did run much better this week).
Thumbs down for Lowe (reasons already mentioned).
Thumbs down for Sione Takitaki. What is it you do here, sir?
And an obvious season-long thumbs up for Gonzalez.