Why Stephen A. Smith Wants To ‘Pump The Brakes’ On Any Patriots Panic

Stephen A. Smith has a message for Patriots fans: The sky is not falling despite back-to-back losses in which New England played uncharacteristically bad.

The Patriots lost to the Lions 26-10 in Detroit on Sunday night, one week after falling to the Jaguars 31-20 in Jacksonville. Some pundits, including FS1’s Skip Bayless, believe New England is in trouble, but Smith isn’t ready to push the panic button just yet.

Smith explained Monday on ESPN’s “First Take” that New England’s Week 3 loss to Detroit was a “living nightmare” complicated by Lions head coach Matt Patricia, who served on Bill Belichick’s coaching staff with the Patriots from 2004 through 2017. He’s confident New England will bounce back, though, in large because Belichick will make necessary adjustments and the Patriots will benefit from the eventual return of wide receiver Julian Edelman.

Smith’s colleague, Max Kellerman, isn’t quite as confident in the Patriots’ ability to rebound from their 1-2 start to the season. Then again, Kellerman has been saying for years that Tom Brady’s production is on the verge of falling off a cliff, so there’s that.