We're in a strange place.
The Patriots won a game Sunday to get to .500. They were the far more physical team, affected the quarterback to the level their head coach demanded - Christian Barmore wasn’t the only one who said Mike Vrabel got on their ass - and got a half-dozen “x-plays,” offensively, as they like to say over there. Those were all undeniable positives, and a good response to what happened in Seattle.
And yet, there’s this uneasy feeling. Drake Maye doesn’t look like himself. This has been going on for some time — a half-dozen games, dating back to the start of last year's playoffs. It’s not as if his talent went poof and disappeared. We see that version of Maye come out in pockets here and there. But the consistency from series to series, hell, down to down, is lacking.
Perhaps Vrabel and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels can rediscover that version of Maye. But mostly, this falls on a 24-year-old. There is no substitute for time on task, and right now, Maye’s going through it. How he handles that will determine how quickly he gets to the other side. It’s not a guarantee, but internally, the Pats' belief in their quarterback remains unshaken. Until proven otherwise, mine does too (but don’t think he gets a free pass here. You know better).
On to Musings….
I don’t need the stats to tell me Christian Gonzalez owned his matchup with D.K. Metcalf. All they did was confirm what I saw with my own eyes (I wrote about that dominance in part of my postgame piece). However, who doesn’t love some nerd numbers to put an exclamation point on the day? Per Next Gen Stats, Gonzalez had Metcalf for 34 snaps, the most he’s ever gone head-to-head with another receiver. Metcalf finished with 3 catches for 11 yards in those scenarios, including two screen passes. Oh, and for you PFF lovers, they had Metcalf with a better grade than Gonzalez…
I see you, Elijah Ponder. I wrote that he had a pedestrian summer. I stand by that. But his start to the season has been exciting. After holding up well in Seattle, Ponder had six-plus plays, by my count, including three QB pressures, a sack, and, of course, the scoop-and-score. He’s holding up better against the run than anticipated.
A year ago, Will Campbell had his first “uh-oh” experience against the Steelers, getting tortured by Nick Herbig, who is good but not great. Sunday, the law firm of Herbig, Hightower and Watt rarely troubled the Pats' left tackle. I had him down for one QB hit and one pressure (both Hightower). Against that group, you’ll take that all day, every day.
As a runner, I didn’t see much different from the TreVeyon Henderson we saw last season. Yes, he had the 39-yard TD run, but it was more about the blocking than anything else. Beyond that, he missed a couple of cuts, including one that may have gone for another explosive (he just ran straight). What did change was his work in pass protection. He had two excellent blitz pickups, meeting force with force. If Henderson keeps that up, he could be more of an option as a receiver, especially on 3rd downs.
It seems to me Alijah Vera-Tucker kicked off the rust that showed up this summer, especially during the opener. He had a great block on Rhamondre Stevenson’s 24-yard run and was sound on passing downs (had him for one pressure).
Zak Kuhr let his linebackers blitz over and over again, and Robert Spillane and Christian Elliss didn’t let him down. Spillane had a team-high 4 pressures, and Elliss had a pair, including that absolutely picture-perfect hit that nearly broke Aaron Rodgers in half and, after the ball got kicked around like a hot potato, resulted in a 36-yard loss. Spillane also ran stride for stride with Pat Friermuth on a seam route and covered Metcalf on a snap. He was moving as well as he did pre-2025 foot injury.
With more on his plate after the Dre’Mont Jones injury, Gabe Jacas looked like he belonged in the starting lineup (and he may have to in Jacksonville, depending on Jones’ health). Three quarterback pressures - one unblocked - and a couple of plus-run snaps (offsetting two negative ones). Then the interception that was a result of his motor constantly running. Jacas pursued countless times, but stayed controlled (i.e., he was running around like a chicken with its head cut off). Hell, Rodgers even said something to him at one point about that very thing. Very promising.
I had Maye for 7 negative plays: high throws to Douglas and Gilliam, both the sacks the “graders” put on Morgan Moses, the interception (just take the underneath throw to Gilliam), and the delay-of-game penalty after the bomb to Doubs. If someone wanted to put the third sack on him, I wouldn’t argue too strongly. That said, Maye faced loads of pressure and handled most of it without turning into a puddle. His legs helped create a couple of positive runs and also led to both big strikes to Doubs.
A lot of folks just naturally assumed returning Jared Wilson to his natural position of center would mean an uptick in play. Perhaps, but man, did he have a hell of a time trying to pass protect in this one (Mike Onwenu did too before the injury). It wasn’t even Cam Heyward doing the damage. Instead, Keanu Benton and Yahya Black gave him fits. Both are solid players, but neither is headed to the Hall of Fame. Wilson made up for it somewhat with his run blocking - he climbed to the second level on the Henderson TD and had a couple of nicely executed double teams, but Vrabel called him out on Monday, rightfully so.
I will give Greg Van Roten some grace. He hasn't been here all that long, but he had his hands full stepping in for Onwenu. 5 minus plays, including a couple of blown assignments. I expect Van Roten to improve if he gets practice reps this week, but he’s also 36, and the Jags defense is no slouch — definitely something to keep an eye on.
Others of note:
- Charles Woods held up in coverage with Carlton Davis missing his first game as a Patriot (neck). The Steelers weren’t afraid to challenge him as a run defender either, and he stood up to that as well.
- The Pats shelved the big nickel and had Marcus Jones out there more than he was in the opener. He played outside on early downs and kicked inside in obvious passing situations. Jones is a dawg.
- 2nd-year DT Joshua Farmer had a pair of pressures and a sack. Good answer by him, with DaQuan Jones in the rotation (albeit ineffective in his 10 snaps).
- Stevenson can’t put the ball on the ground.
- Backup TE Cam Latu had a good run block, then four really poor snaps after that.
- The Pats talk about Kyle Williams one way but treat him another (just 11 snaps).
- Craig Woodson was playing very well before the injury.
- Romeo Doubs had 96 receiving yards and yet I was left wanting more.
- Christian Barmore drew a hold and then had the strip sack on back-to-back plays. Solid day by the big man.