Wow. There are no words for what the New England Patriots put on the field during Sunday’s 35-6 butt-kicking by the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Drake Maye’s early-season slump took a turn for the worse and Mike Vrabel’s group got out-coached and embarrassed in all three phases.
Are there any positives to take away from this?
All we've got is one — with so, so much more to be concerned about entering a Week 4 road trip to Buffalo.
The lone winner from the Patriots' embarrassing Week 3 loss
Mack Hollins, WR
Yes, Hollins was called for a mind-numbing taunting penalty that led to one of the Patriots’ many failed drives into Jacksonville territory. It is what it is.
He was the only Patriots player who looked like he didn't want to tap out on Sunday. At least he battled.
Loser No. 1
Drake Maye (and the entire offense)
It’s been bad, but this was Maye’s worst. He now leads the NFL in turnovers with seven — and he was lucky the Jaguars only caught two of his turnover-worthy throws in this one.
Is all hope lost? Of course not. Maye had a touchdown run called back by a questionable holding penalty. He made a great throw to Hollins over a defender in the end zone, and Hollins couldn’t squeeze it out. He escaped pressure and had DeMario Douglas open for a walk-in touchdown, and just missed him.
He had a would-be touchdown pass that sprung Kyle Williams, but Williams stepped out of bounds before he could score.
Maye had plenty of chances to gain momentum. Instead, everything that could have gone wrong, went wrong.
This is a young quarterback — he turned 24 at the end of August — who’s struggling to find any kind of rhythm right now, but that boils down to the offense as a whole. Per Greg Bedard of Boston Sports Journal, the Patriots “haven’t scored a touchdown on last 12 drives into opposing territory.” That's brutal.
Loser No. 2
Mike Vrabel (and his three top coordinators)
Vrabel and the Patriots’ coaches got worked in this game by Liam Coen and the Jaguars.
The offense had no excuse for playing that poorly against a Jacksonville defense that was a step down from Seattle and Pittsburgh. Vrabel’s defense allowed Jacksonville to convert 8 of 12 third downs and score touchdowns on all five of their red-zone trips. Special teams committed multiple penalties and made other blunders.
That was an embarrassing game all around, and it starts with Vrabel.
Loser No. 3
Kyle Williams (and every WR outside of Mack Hollins)
Williams saw a season-high 22 offensive snaps, but it was mostly an all-around disaster for the second-year pro. Maye attempted a back-shoulder throw to Williams that fell far short and was picked off. Later, Williams was off to the races for a touchdown but stepped out of bounds along the sideline without being touched.
Williams also returned five kickoffs. On one of them, he caught the ball at the 8-yard line and stepped out of bounds at the 9-yard-line.
It’s not just Williams, though. Romeo Doubs remains a non-factor. DeMario Douglas caught a 38-yard pass in the second quarter, but that was it on five targets. Tight end Hunter Henry had one catch for 5 yards.
Williams was the talk of the preseason, but that shine has come off quickly against real competition.
Loser No. 4
Milton Williams
The Patriots have two $100 million players on their defense, and Milton Williams is one of them. He's been extremely quiet through three weeks, to the point where he's hard to even notice on the field.
“Is there somebody y’all want to blame? Look at me. Blame me,” Williams told reporters in the visitor’s locker room, per Christopher Price of the Boston Globe.
It’s nice to hear one of the team’s best players admit it. Obviously, the Patriots need more from their big-money defensive tackle, who has just four quarterback pressures through three games, per Pro Football Focus.
Loser No. 5
TreVeyon Henderson (and the entire running back room)
This is the type of game Patriots fans have seen way too often from Henderson. There were no clear gaps to run through, and as a result, Henderson couldn’t make anything happen on his eight rushing attempts.
There was hope that getting Henderson back healthy would make the offense more explosive, and he hit a big run against Pittsburgh last week. Remove that 39-yard touchdown run through the heart of the Steelers’ defense, and Henderson is averaging 2.6 yards per carry this season. He's only been targeted once in the passing game through two games.
Rhamondre Stevenson didn't fumble, at least. The running game as a whole continues to be a major problem for New England.
Loser No. 6
Jaylen Reed
Reed, the safety the Patriots got back in the Kayshon Boutte trade with Houston, had a chance to win fans over. He started against the Jaguars in place of the injured Craig Woodson.
Reed did make a play, notching a pass breakup that resulted in a Marcus Jones interception. Otherwise, the 2025 sixth-round pick did little but make fans long for Woodson’s return.
He played 52 snaps against the Jaguars but only factored in on two tackles. PFF's live tracking shows he got picked on for 33 yards and a touchdown in coverage. Reed just wasn’t very inspiring overall in his first full game on defense.
Loser No. 7
Andy Borregales
The Patriots nearly got points to start the second half after a 10-play drive, but Borregales missed way right on a 38-yard field goal. The kick would have made the score 14-6.
Was the miss the difference in the game? Heck no, but that chip-shot field goal could have at least given the offense something. Borregales now has a miss from inside 50 yards in back-to-back games.
The Patriots can’t do much well on offense right now, at least not consistently, and the young kicker isn’t inspiring much confidence either. That’s how you score 29 total offensive points over a stretch of three games.
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