The New England Patriots’ offense came back down to earth on Sunday afternoon.
After having their way against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Miami Dolphins and New York Jets, Tom Brady and Co. struggled to get anything going against the Buffalo Bills, who limited the Patriots quarterback to 150 passing yards in the Week 4 contest. New England still managed to grind out a 16-10 win at New Era Field, but the reigning champs likely would have been hit with their first loss of the season had it not been for great showings from the defense and special teams units.
Shannon Sharpe on Monday didn’t mince words while assessing Brady’s lackluster performance against the Bills. Considering Sharpe’s “Undisputed” co-host, Skip Bayless, is an unapologetic Brady supporter, the Hall of Fame tight end seemed to bask in the opportunity to criticize New England’s signal-caller, who recently was named the league’s top quarterback by Pro Football Focus after Week 3.
“…The best quarterback in the NFL is supposed to deliver,” Sharpe said on FOX Sports 1. “What has happened is, and I guess Pro Football Focus doesn’t take into account, Miami Dolphins had the 32nd-ranked defense, the Pittsburgh Steelers had the 31st-ranked defense, the New York football Jets had the 17th-ranked defense. I guess they (PFF) didn’t take that into consideration. It would be a great luxury to have if you’re a quarterback and you could score 10 points from an offensive standpoint and still win the game. That would be an unbelievable luxury to have. Patrick Mahomeboy (Mahomes) has yet to score fewer than 26 in his life. Brady, bad interception in the end zone, two first downs in the second half, a QBR of 10. Ten. Not T-E-N, T-I-N because that’s what he played like, that’s what he moved like, the tin man.
“…Brady has to play better. That mistake in the end zone you can’t take, especially when you know the game is going to be nip and tuck. So it’s not going to be a game where you get into a shootout. Points are gonna be at a premium. So three points really could have been the difference in the ball game. If Buffalo could’ve had anything, anybody, any competent, breathing, one-celled amoeba that could play quarterback, they would have beat them yesterday. Josh Allen was terrible, then they bring Matt Barkley in and Matt Barkley was even worse. They had anybody that could play, they would have beat the Patriots yesterday. But Tom Brady was awful. He was god awful and the defense was unbelievable.”
Brady on Monday was relatively candid about his Week 4 showing, noting he was feeling “mixed emotions” following the Patriots’ fourth consecutive win to start the season. The 42-year-old obviously is happy his team was able to come out on top, but he knows there’s quite a bit of work to be done on offense.
Luckily for Brady and the Patriots, their upcoming schedule sets the stage for a bounce-back. New England will visit the winless Washington Redskins on Sunday before hosting the New York Giants in a “Thursday Night Football” showdown Oct. 10.
