Patriots: 3 plays that absolutely screwed New England in OT loss to Cowboys

Another heartbreaking loss for the New England Patriots. That marks three on the year and they’ve now fallen to 2-4 after coming up short against the Dallas Cowboys in an overtime thriller in Week 6.

The Pats had enough to deal with but had so many other things go against them in the 35-29 defeat.

Their offensive line still wasn’t healthy. They were hit with on-and-off injuries on defense throughout this one, with Chase Winovich, Matthew Judon and Dont’a Hightower all missing valuable snaps.

A couple of dropped balls halted potential important drives.

But the haters can crawl back into their hole on this Sunday evening because the referees really didn’t do New England any favors. In fact, two questionable officiating decisions ended up sealing the Patriots’ fate when all was said and done.

The Foxborough crowd brought it. The offense made big plays. The defense forced two turnovers in the red zone. The recipe was there for an upset victory.

And we’re not going to be able to overlook these three plays that ultimately screwed the Pats.

The Patriots lost a thriller to the Cowboys because of these three incidents.

3. “Pass Interference” at the Goal Line

With five minutes left in the first half, the Cowboys had driven deep into Patriots’ territory. They had a 1st and 10 from New England’s 16-yard line. On the ensuing play, Dak Prescott was hit by Judon and the intended pass fell well short of CeeDee Lamb, who was in the end zone waiting for it.

But then came a flag. The Patriots were arguing that the ball was tipped (even though it wasn’t) to get out of a ticky-tack pass interference call that ended up being confirmed against cornerback JC Jackson. Upon further review, however, it was more of a hold than anything, which should’ve been a five-yard penalty and an automatic first down at the Patriots’ 11-yard line as opposed to a 1st and Goal from the one.

Jackson did make illegal contact with Lamb, but it was by no means a spot-foul penalty to give the Cowboys a fortuitous situation at the goal line. You might think this is a futile complaint, but before this drive, the Patriots’ defense forced two red-zone turnovers (an interception and a fumble) when the Cowboys were looking like they were about to score.

Entirely different ball game if they need to go 11 yards for the go-ahead touchdown rather than one. Hold them to a field goal and we might be talking about a Patriots’ win.

2. Cowboys 4th and 5 Conversion Late in 4th Quarter

This was the killer. And there was nothing anybody can do about it. An unthinkable, clutch play by the Cowboys kept this one alive with 1:23 to go in the fourth quarter.

Faced with a 4th and 5 after giving up the go-ahead 75-yard touchdown from Mac Jones to Kendrick Bourne, the Cowboys needed a first down or else this one was over. The Patriots defense had the momentum and they played Dallas tight on the first three plays of the series.

But Prescott made a throw that only wide receiver Cedrick Wilson could catch … and Wilson came down with an incredible snag near the sideline for 13 yards.

What can you do, really? The Patriots collapsed the pocket and there was only ONE spot Prescott could’ve put that ball while facing pressure.

That kept the drive alive and it ended with the game-tying 49-yard field goal with 20 seconds remaining. At least this one didn’t involve the refs. It was simply a momentum-altering play that you have to tip your cap to.

This summed up the afternoon for the Patriots defense, though. Prescott finished with 445 yards and three touchdowns through the air. Can’t let that happen.

1. Illegal Contact/Facemask No-Call on Jakobi Meyers

This, however, was arguably the most egregious of them all. When the game went to overtime, the Patriots won the toss and elected to receive. They gained 21 yards on five plays and were faced with a 3rd and 5 at their own 46-yard line.

Who was Mac Jones going to go to? The sure-handed Jakobi Meyers, of course, who had one-on-one coverage on the outside against cornerback Anthony Brown. Can’t fault that logic. Meyers had five catches for 44 yards, one of which was good for a two-point conversion, and also had a touchdown catch called back because of a holding penalty.

So you’d think the refs would return the favor … but they missed this blatant facemask/illegal contact on Brown:

You saw that from your couch, so how did the ref RIGHT THERE on the sideline miss it? You can’t say that wasn’t a game-altering play, because the Patriots punted the ball after this and the Cowboys marched down the field to score the winning touchdown.

Instead of the drive being extended with an automatic first down in the form of a five- or 15-yard penalty, out came the punt team. At that point, you knew giving the ball back to Prescott and Co. was going to be the end. The Patriots defense was gassed, and it showed, because the unit allowed a seven-play, 80-yard drive that ended the contest.

That was it. The air sucked out of Gillette. Another deflating loss. It feels like it’s going to be a second straight tough year for this team after the kinds of defeats that have already been delivered in the first six weeks of the season.

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