Patriots vs. Broncos: Takeaways From 20-18 Loss

Offensive Line

You can talk about the missed extra point, 4th quarter coaching decisions, or New England’s receivers not getting open all you want, but when you boil it down, the biggest reason the Pats lost this game was the putrid play of the offensive line. Tom Brady did not play his best game, I know that. His two interceptions were bad decisions, the first one actually costing the Patriots 7 points. But even with all of that, if the offensive line had even played up to mediocre, I think New England is advancing to the Super Bowl right now. Von Miller and DeMarcus Ware absolutely abused Marcus Cannon and Sebastian Vollmer, as Brady rarely had more than two seconds to sit in the pocket before getting obliterated. At that point, it doesn’t matter if receivers are open or not, because Brady just doesn’t have enough time to get the ball to them.

AFC Championship Game stock watch: Offensive line stinks

The only other game I can think of where Brady was battered this much was the 2007 Super Bowl against the New York Giants. That defensive front whipped the Patriots’ offensive line back then, and this Denver defensive front did the same thing yesterday. Brady dropped back 61 times in this game, was sacked four times, and hit a whopping 20 times, which was the most a quarterback was hit in one game throughout the entire 2015 season. I know Brady keeps himself ridiculously healthy, but he is still a 38-year-old quarterback, and those hits are going to stay with him for awhile.

Another aspect of the offensive line’s play was their inability to get anything going on the ground. Coming into this game I knew the Pats wouldn’t be able to run the ball that well, but 14 carries for 31 yards (2.2 per) by running backs is an awful reflection of the five guys up front getting any push in the trenches. Running the ball against the Broncos defensive front isn’t easy, but 2.2 yards a carry is bad even going against a group like that.

Next: Defense Plays Well