Patriots Lose Yet Another Big Game, 23-16 to Chiefs

The Patriots went down big and then clawed back, only to lose to the Chiefs on Sunday, 23-16. The loss keeps them a game up in the AFC East; however, it all but concedes the #1 AFC seed to the Baltimore Ravens (essentially two-games up with three games to play). The Pats retain the #2 seed position for now. Next up it's "On To Cincinnati" -- the perfect cure for what ails the Patriots.

The Pats had no business making this game close. KC dominated the first 37 minutes and was leading 23-7 at the time. But the New England defense tightened up, the offense figured out a few things, and they got another big special teams play to make it a game. But it was too little too late, as their 21-game home winning streak came to an end.

There were several blown calls that cost the Patriots points. And either of them could have swung the game in New England's favor. But let's be realistic; going down 23-7 to Kansas City is almost never a formula success. And they exhausted their timeouts and challenges hanging onto hope for dear life. They needed a bit more luck to win, and it never came through.

The defense was okay but not great. They held the Chiefs to 23 points (a touchdown less than their average). But they gave up too many big plays in the passing game, which let KC score easy points. And three of the four longest plays for the Chiefs came on third-downs, each helping keep drives alive when the Pats needed to get off the field.

Particularly galling were the 23-yard pass to Sammy Watkins on a third-and-10, and an outrageous 21-yarder to Tyreek Hill on third-and-19. Third-and-19 and they converted... really?! Doh! On balance the secondary played well, but situationally they need improvement.

The defensive star of the game was probably safety Devin McCourty. Not only did he lead the team with 9 tackles, but he forced a huge fumble on a second-effort play that gave the Pats a chance at the end. Linebacker Jamie Collins (7 tackles, 1 QB hit, 1 pass defended), and interior lineman Adam Butler (4 tackles and good inside run support) also played very well.

On offense it's tough to find many bright spots. That unit was pathetic in the first half, and looked a lot like they did in recent games against the Ravens and Texans. In fact, the game went almost exactly like the Texans tilt -- the Patriots got dominated for three quarters and then came to life at the end of both games, only to fall short each time.

It was good to see the tight end Matt LaCosse get more involved. But the rookies had mixed results: N'Keal Harry's only catch should have been a touchdown but the officials blew the call. And Jacobi Meyers dropped an easy first down toss on third-down -- on a drive where the Pats went for it on fourth-down and missed.

Maybe the only positive offensively was how they put together drives late. But even that comes with a caveat: they should have made their adjustment earlier in the game. Any score earlier would have made it a much closer contest later.

Special teams were very trick-or-treat. They had a field goal blocked when a guy busted right through the middle almost untouched. But then they had the block on a KC punt that got them back in the game. However, on one Chiefs punt they left no returner back, and the ball bounced KC's way for an additional 20 yards of field position.

There were a lot of problems with the coaching in this one. First was the inability to adjust the offense until far too late in the game. Then the first challenge by Bill Belichick was on a pass-interference non-call/first-down mark. He was unlikely to win the first, and upon seeing the replays, had no chance to win the second.

Later on, when N'Keal Harry was called out-of-bounds at the three yard-line, they needed that challenge to get those points. Also, the curious decision not to use a punt returner backfired.

And after the Harry non-TD, the team sorta fell apart. They ran a James White sweep to avoid a five-yard penalty, but instead lost two yards and a down. Then they had an incompletion to Meyers that was signaled TD by one ref -- so the offense started leaving the field. But when it was reversed by another official, the team burned a timeout that they could have used later in the half. A curiously non-Patriots-like sequence of plays.

Where does this leave us? 10-3 still isn't bad, but the team is now in a dogfight for the division title and the #2 seed. Their offense should have been better against KC. So that tells me their offense is what it is: 14-21 points a game and hope the defense can hold the opponent down.

Non-Brady MVP: Probably Julian Edelman again. 8 receptions for 95 yards and a touchdown, 1 rush for 8 yards, and drew double-teams all night so other receivers could get open.

Biggest on-going concern: Offensive futility. Although they appeared to have figured out something, that by putting Edelman outside the numbers, they could move one of the safeties out of the middle of the field.

The problems started up front this time, with sometimes porous protection and sometimes the inability to run the ball. But wherever they started, they will likely be the downfall of the team come playoff time.

Statistical oddity: With James White's touchdown pass, the Patriots now have two people on the team with higher QB ratings that Tom Brady. White (118.8) and Edelman (158.3) have higher ratings than Brady (86.5).

(Trivia Question: can you name the last year two Patriots players had higher season-long QB ratings than Brady? Bonus question: can you name either of the two players? Answers below.)

Water-cooler wisdom: "It ain't over 'til it's over, but it sure feels over."

Keep the faith,

- Scott

PS. 10-3!

PPS. Trivia answer:
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In 2001, Brady's first year as a starter, both receiver David Patten (95.8) and running back Kevin Faulk (118.8) had higher QB ratings than Brady (86.5).

Double-bonus trivia question: In the 2000 season, three players had better QB ratings than Brady... how many of the three can you name? Answer below.

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Double-bonus trivia answer: QB Drew Bledsoe (77.3), QB Michael Bishop (64.4), and punter Lee Johnson (118.8) had better QB ratings than Brady (42.4).