New England Patriots: Four Takeaways From 34-9 Win Over The Detroit Lions

Nov 23, 2014; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick on the side line during the second quarter against the Detroit Lions at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports

4. Penalties Out Of Control

This has been a problem all year for the Patriots, and while it went away for a bit over the lat few games, it came back in a big way on Sunday. New England was flagged seven times in the first half alone against Detroit, and that was the sole reason why the Lions were not completely put away until later in the fourth quarter.

Part of it was some awful refereeing from Tony Corrente’s crew, but most of the blame has to be put on the Patriots, and their dumb decisions throughout the game. They were holding when they didn’t need to, pushing when it wasn’t necessary, or simply getting flagged for a bad false-start. This was a problem from start to finish, and going forward, I hope the Patriots work to fix this, because it could really hurt them down the road. Constantly making boneheaded plays that costs the team big yardage will eventually catch up to you, especially in playoff football.

With all of that said, that game was one of the worst officiated games I have ever watched. That crew needs some work.