Final, Seahawks 31-24: In a rematch of one of the most thrilling Super Bowls ever, the New England Patriots came up 1 yard short.
Tom Brady’s pass to Rob Gronkowski on fourth-and-goal from the 1 fell incomplete, handing the ball back to the Seattle Seahawks with 11 seconds remaining.
Seattle proceeded to run out the clock to put the finishing touches on a dramatic victory at Gillette Stadium.
Next up for the Patriots, who fall to 7-2, is a trip to San Francisco next Sunday to face the 49ers. — Z.C.
Fourth quarter, 4:24, Seahawks 31-24: The Seahawks capitalized on Julian Edelman’s miscue, embarking on an eight-play, 44-yard drive that culminated in a 15-yard touchdown pass from Wilson to Doug Baldwin. The Seahawks receiver burned Logan Ryan on the play, continuing what has been a brutal night for the Patriots’ defense.
Seattle failed to convert on a questionable two-point conversion attempt, however, meaning New England can tie the score with a touchdown and an extra point. — Z.C.
Fourth quarter, 8:29, Seahawks 25-24: The Patriots took over with prime field position followning a 45-yard kick return by Cyrus Jones, but they quickly handed the ball right back to the Seahawks.
Julian Edelman fumbled on the second play of the drive, and Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman recovered the loose ball.
Jones also coughed up the ball during his runback, but Nate Ebner — who has been arguably the Patriots’ best special-teamer this season — was quick to jump on it. — Z.C.
Fourth quarter, 8:56, Seahawks 25-24: Elandon Roberts is fast for a linebacker, but he couldn’t keep up with Seahawks running back C.J. Prosise on a deep route down the left side.
Much like Brady did with Edelman on the previous drive, Russell Wilson dropped a perfect pass into Prosise’s arms, giving Seattle the ball at New England’s 2-yard line.
Prosise came up just shy of the goal line on an inside handoff two plays later, and Jimmy Graham was called for a false start on third-and-goal from the 1. That backed up the Seahawks to the 5, and after a Wilson pass fell incomplete, they were forced to settle for a field goal. Still, those three points were enough to put the visitors back ahead.
On a day full of thrilling football, this game certainly has not disappointed. — Z.C.
Fourth quarter, 13:00, Patriots 24-22: Brady was stopped short of the end zone on third-and-goal, bringing out Stephen Gostkowski for his first field-goal attempt of the night. Gostkowski booted it through, putting the Patriots back in the lead. — Z.C.
End of the third quarter, Seahawks 22-21: Third-and-25? No problem.
Tom Brady hit Julian Edelman on a fade pattern down the left sideline for a pickup of 33 yards on third down, giving the Patriots a first down at Seattle’s 9-yard line.
And with that, we head to the fourth quarter. — Zack Cox
Third quarter, 2:52, Seahawks 22-21: The Seahawks are back ahead, but they had to settle for a field goal after the Patriots brought the heat in the red zone.
Patriots defensive end Trey Flowers has two sacks on the game and four in his last two games.
Third quarter, 7:52, Patriots 21-19: The Patriots are back in the lead after LeGarrette Blount’s third touchdown of the game, this one a 13-yarder. He has 16 carries for 61 yards with the three scores.
Tom Brady is 15-of-20 passing for 162 yards with one interception.
Tight end Martellus Bennett leads the team with five catches on five targets for 58 yards.
Brady also took a shot to his right knee and has something on it on the bench. It could be ice or heat.
Third quarter, 13:26, Seahawks 19-14: The Patriots’ defense just forced a three-and-out. Linebacker Dont’a Hightower forced a punt on a third-down pass breakup.
End of the first half, Seahawks 19-14: The Patriots’ defense allowed the Seahawks to cruise down the field to end the half in just over a minute. They looked lost on an 18-yard touchdown connection from Russell Wilson to Doug Baldwin.
Second quarter, 1:05, Patriots 14-12: The Patriots’ offense didn’t stall on that drive. Tom Brady hit Martellus Bennett for completions of 14 and 16 yards, and LeGarrette Blount scored from 1 yard out after Rob Gronkowski, who was injured earlier in the drive, drew a holding penalty in the end zone.
Second quarter, 6:04, Seahawks 12-7: The Patriots’ defense finally made a stop, as Rob Ninkovich recorded his first sack of the season on third down. Cornerback Logan Ryan broke up a pass earlier in the drive.
Second quarter, 9:04, Seahawks 12-7: A Patriots quarterback has thrown an interception, as Brady’s ill-advised and short pass to rookie wideout Malcolm Mitchell was picked by DeShawn Shead.
The Patriots threw an NFL-record 258 pass attempts without an interception to begin the season.
Second quarter, 10:52, Seahawks 12-7: The Patriots lost the lead as the Seahawks did most of their damage on the ground. Seattle ended the drive on a 6-yard touchdown hookup between Russell Wilson and Doug Baldwin, with Malcolm Butler allowing the score.
First quarter, :02, Patriots 7-6: The Patriots’ offense went three-and-out again. It’s time for the defense to stop bending now.
First quarter, 5:46, Patriots 7-6: The Patriots bent and didn’t break again, stopping the Seahawks in the red zone.
Justin Coleman allowed the Seahawks to get downfield on a 20-yard defensive pass interference penalty. Linebacker Shea McClellin also allowed an 18-yard catch to running back C.J. Prosise.
Seahawks kicker Stephen Hauschka finished the drive with a 31-yard field goal.
First quarter, 5:46, Patriots 7-3: The Patriots went three-and-out on their second drive. Tom Brady was 1-of-2 passing for 4 yards, and LeGarrette Blount lost 1 yard on one carry.
The Seahawks have the ball on their own 21-yard line after a nice punt from Ryan Allen and solid coverage from Matthew Slater and Joe Cardona.
First quarter, 7:10, Patriots 7-3: As has become the norm, the Patriots’ defense bent but didn’t break.
Third cornerback Justin Coleman allowed a 36-yard catch to Tyler Lockett, allowing the Seahawks to get downfield quickly. The Patriots stood the Seahawks up near the goal line and forced a field goal, however.
First quarter, 10:19, Patriots 7-0: The Patriots made the Seahawks’ vaunted defense look like a JV squad on their first drive. LeGarrette Blount finished the series with a 1-yard TD run.
Tom Brady was 3-of-4 passing for 46 yards on the drive. Rob Gronkowski caught one pass for 22 yards, and James White caught the other two for 24 yards. Gronk also drew a defensive pass-interference penalty when Kam Chancellor tackled him in the end zone.
First quarter, 15:00: The Seahawks won the coin toss and chose to defer. The Patriots will receive to start the game. Let’s go.
8 p.m.: Here’s the Patriots’ starting defense in warmups:
DT Malcom Brown
DT Alan Branch
DE Trey Flowers
DE Rob Ninkovich
LB Dont’a Hightower
LB Elandon Roberts
LB Shea McClellin
CB Malcolm Butler
CB Logan Ryan
FS Devin McCourty
SS Patrick Chung
— Ryan is back as a starting cornerback.
— It’s interesting to see Flowers, not Sheard, starting at defensive end. We’ll see if that sticks.
7:03 p.m.: Here are the Patriots’ inactives:
RB Dion Lewis
CB Eric Rowe
DT Woodrow Hamilton
OT LaAdrian Waddle
LB Kyle Van Noy
RB D.J. Foster
TE Matt Lengel
Some notes:
— The Patriots activated Lewis from the physically unable to perform list early just to make him inactive. LeGarrette Blount, James White and Brandon Bolden will be at running back tonight.
— With Rowe out, Cyrus Jones and Justin Coleman will battle for No. 3 corner reps behind Malcolm Butler and Logan Ryan. Jonathan Jones also is active.
— The Patriots activated just three defensive tackles — Malcom Brown, Alan Branch and Vincent Valentine — which makes sense because the Seahawks have struggled to run the football of late.
— Van Noy and Lengel will have to wait at least another week to make their Patriots debuts.
— Wide receivers Chris Hogan and Malcolm Mitchell both are active. Mitchell was a healthy scratch last week, and Hogan popped up on the injury report with a back ailment Friday.
6:45 p.m.: We could see the return of rookie cornerback Cyrus Jones. Fellow cornerback Eric Rowe was walking toward the press box while the rest of his teammates began warming up. That’s an indication Rowe will be inactive.
5:45 p.m.: Wide receiver Chris Hogan (back) just put in a pregame warmup in front of head trainer Jim Whalen, indicating his status will be a game-time decision. Hogan is moving much better than he was Friday, when he first popped up on the injury report.
Hogan spoke to Whalen and wide receivers coach Chad O’Shea after his workout was complete, then he returned to the field. Hogan did sprints and ran routes on the field.
Linebacker Kyle Van Noy, who has yet to make his Patriots debut, also got in a pregame workout.
5 p.m.: I’m posted up in the press box three and a half hours before kickoff. It’s a beautiful night in Foxboro for both a Super Bowl rematch and a potential Super Bowl preview.
11 a.m. ET: The New England Patriots enter their Week 10 Sunday night matchup coming off a two-week break while their opponents, the Seattle Seahawks, had just six days’ rest. Advantage: Patriots.
There are multiple captivating storylines as the Seahawks come to Foxboro for the first time since 2004. The Patriots beat the Seahawks two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLIX. In the teams’ previous matchup in 2012, Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman made permanent enemies out of Patriots fans when he tweeted a “U MAD BRO?” meme at Tom Brady. There’s also this: Pete Carroll hasn’t coached a game in New England since January 2000, when he still was leading the Patriots.
The Patriots and Seahawks remain two of the NFL’s premier teams, and this week’s matchup could wind up being a Super Bowl preview.
Patriots running back Dion Lewis was activated off the physically unable to perform list Saturday and could make his season debut Sunday night. If he plays, Lewis likely won’t receive a full share of snaps.
The Patriots haven’t ruled out any players for the matchup, though wide receiver Chris Hogan was added to the injury report Friday with a back ailment. He wasn’t moving well in the Patriots’ locker room.
If Hogan is forced to sit out, Danny Amendola and Malcolm Mitchell would receive more playing time. The Patriots also likely would go heavy with two-tight end sets. The Patriots also could use two running back sets with Lewis and James White as passing backs.
It’s not easy to predict inactives, but we’ll go with: RB D.J. Foster, WR Chris Hogan, TE Matt Lengel, OT LaAdrian Waddle, DT Woodrow Hamilton, LB Kyle Van Noy, CB Cyrus Jones
The game kicks off at 8:30 p.m. and airs on NBC.
Thumbnail photo via David Butler II/USA TODAY Sports Images