Mike Onwenu Dominating, Jake Bailey A ‘Weapon’ And Other Patriots-Chiefs Final Thoughts

Some final thoughts on New England’s 26-10 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs as the Patriots quickly regroup ahead of Sunday’s matchup with the Denver Broncos:

— One player who deserves a shoutout after Monday night’s contest is second-year punter Jake Bailey, whose field-flipping ability was vitally important for New England.

Bailey’s three punts traveled 51, 47 and 48 yards, pinning Kansas City at its 15-, 4- and 11-yard lines, respectively. The first was fair-caught by Mecole Hardman, the second bounced out of bounds off Tyreek Hill’s chest, and the third was downed after nearly grazing Hardman’s fingers.

During an interview Tuesday on WEEI’s “Ordway, Merloni & Fauria,” Patriots coach Bill Belichick lit up when asked about Bailey’s performance.

“That’s an excellent observation,” Belichick said. “He took those two explosive players — Hardman and Hill — out of the game. We almost had a turnover on the punt that they weren’t able to handle — well, there were a couple they weren’t able to handle.

“But he did an excellent job of not only hitting for distance but placing the ball. It was kind of a tough wind there (Monday) night; it was a crosswind and had a little bit of gust to it, as well. So it was not the easiest conditions to kick or catch in in the punting game.”

Belichick said Bailey and punt returner Gunner Olszewski both handled the conditions well. Olszewski made his season debut Monday night after beginning the campaign on injured reserve.

“But you’re right, Jake was a weapon,” Belichick continued, using the same compliment he famously paid to All-Pro Johnny Hekker in 2016. “He really came through for us (Monday) night.”

Bailey also delivered touchbacks on all three of his kickoffs. The Chiefs started at or inside their 25-yard line on each of their first eight possessions.

— We’ve asked before how Mike Onwenu managed to slip to the sixth round of the 2020 NFL Draft … but how the heck did Mike Onwenu slip to the sixth round of the 2020 NFL Draft?

The big-bodied Michigan product has been astonishingly good for New England, allowing zero sacks, zero quarterback hits and just two total pressures through four games, per Pro Football Focus, while playing four different positions along the offensive line.

Onwenu on Monday made his first NFL start at right guard — his primary position in college — in place of an injured Shaq Mason. He was perfect in pass protection, continued to move bodies in the run game and earned the highest PFF grade of any rookie, regardless of position.

Onwenu, who entered the game as PFF’s highest-graded rookie, now is the analytics site’s second-highest-graded O-lineman behind Cleveland Browns guard Wyatt Teller.

Teammates Joe Thuney (12th), Jermaine Eluemunor (15th), Isaiah Wynn (21st), Mason (23rd) and David Andrews (29th) all rank in the top 30.

Fellow rookie sixth-rounder Justin Herron also played well in his first NFL start. He got the nod at right tackle after Eluemunor suffered a migraine minutes before kickoff.

— It’s been interesting to watch Jason McCourty’s role evolve this season.

Primarily an outside cornerback for much of his NFL career, the veteran defensive back has taken on much more safety responsibilities in 2020 following the departure of Duron Harmon and Patrick Chung’s opt out.

McCourty was a full-time safety Monday night, playing the majority of his snaps either in the box or as a deep-half defender alongside his brother, Devin.

Here were his snaps by position, per PFF:

Box: 15 snaps
Free safety: 10 snaps
Wide corner: six snaps
Slot: four snaps

McCourty was matched up on tight end Travis Kelce for much of the game. His handful of snaps at wide corner all came when Kelce split out from the formation.

McCourty’s positional splits through four games, again via PFF:

Box: 49 snaps (32.5 percent)
Wide corner: 48 snaps (31.8 percent)
Free safety: 28 snaps (18.5 percent)
Slot: 26 snaps (17.2 percent)

He played 55.3 percent of his snaps as a wide corner and 33.1 percent in the slot last season. Those marks were 57.3 percent and 31.4 percent in 2018.

Positional versatility within the secondary has been a major asset for the Patriots thus far.

— The Patriots utilize more two-back sets than almost any team in the NFL. They love the benefits of having a fullback on the field. They also like the mismatch capabilities of their “pony” package, which features both James White and Rex Burkhead.

New England used plenty of both of those Monday night. It also broke out a brand-new look on a third-and-1 late in the first half: one receiver (rookie Isaiah Zuber), two tight ends and two backs, with Damien Harris, not Johnson, lining up in a three-point stance in the fullback spot.

Harris took an inside handoff while Burkhead flared out to his left, but the play was blown dead for a false start. Harris led all rushers with 100 yards on 17 carries in what essentially was his NFL debut.

— The Patriots returned Zuber to the practice squad Monday after calling him up to the 53-man roster as a COVID-19 replacement for quarterback Cam Newton.

Since his call-up was COVID-related, it did not count as one of his temporary practice squad elevations. Each P-squad player gets two of those before his team would need to sign him to the 53. Zuber, who was elevated for last week’s win over the Las Vegas Raiders, has one remaining.

The Patriots seem intrigued by the undrafted rookie’s skill set. He’s played a total of 15 offensive snaps across his two appearances and has touched the ball in both, picking up 13 yards on a jet sweep against the Raiders and 8 on a reverse against the Chiefs.

Zuber played more offensive snaps Monday (nine) than Olszewski (six), and both were active over Jakobi Meyers.