Five Patriots Takeaways From Season-Opening Loss To Eagles

FOXBORO, Mass. — The New England Patriots near-upset of the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday was a clear sign of positive progress on both sides of the ball.

It also was another example of the same old post-Tom Brady Patriots playing a more talented opponent closely but making too many mistakes to pull out a victory.

Here are five takeaways from New England’s season-opening 25-20 loss at Gillette Stadium on the day the team honored its legendary former quarterback:

1. There’s hope for the offense
Yes, it started off ugly. Mac Jones threw a pick-six on the opening drive, Ezekiel Elliott lost a fumble one play later, receivers created little separation for the first quarter-and-a-half and the Patriots quickly sank into a 16-0 hole amid a torrential Foxboro downpour.

But once the Patriots’ offense settled in, it showed real potential in the maiden voyage of the Bill O’Brien era.

Jones went 35-for-54 for 316 yards and three touchdowns — the first 300-yard, three-TD game of his NFL career. Hunter Henry (5-56-1, including a one-handed catch to convert a fourth-and-8) and Kendrick Bourne (6-64-2) were his top targets, sparking memories of what worked for Jones during his promising rookie year in 2021.

O’Brien rotated liberally at all three skill positions, and eight different Patriots players caught multiple passes — three wideouts, three running backs and two tight ends. We also saw a bevy of different formations and personnel groupings, including some creative ways of deploying Rhamondre Stevenson and Elliott together. Even cornerback Marcus Jones saw action on offense — a wrinkle the Patriots hid throughout training camp.

The Patriots never found much success running the ball behind an offensive line that was missing starting guards Cole Strange and Mike Onwenu, and right tackle Calvin Anderson and rookie left guard Atonio Mafi both were popped for holding penalties. But Philadelphia’s vaunted D-line is fully capable of wrecking a game, and New England’s depleted group held up well enough. Jones wasn’t sacked until the fourth quarter, when Philly got to him twice.

New England ultimately came away with just 20 points despite reaching the red zone five times, and their failure to convert on two primo fourth-quarter scoring chances prompted Jones to blame himself for the loss. The Patriots won’t win many games with that scoring output, even with their defense playing as well as it did Sunday.

But the framework of a successful offense is there. If the Patriots can get and stay healthy — starting receiver DeVante Parker also was inactive with a knee injury — they should be on the path back to respectability under O’Brien.

2. The defense shut down a legit offense
Last season, the Patriots beat up on teams with untalented or injury-depleted offenses but struggled to rein in those with legit quarterbacks and high-end weapons.

Well, they successfully did the latter on Sunday. New England held 2022 NFL MVP runner-up Jalen Hurts to 170 passing yards and 37 rushing yards and the Eagles — who ranked third in the NFL in scoring last season with largely the same cast — to one offensive touchdown and four field goals. Their lone trip to the end zone came on a short field after Elliott fumbled (his first since 2021) at his own 26-yard line.

Six of the Eagles’ 11 non-kneeldown possessions featured zero first downs — including four straight in the second quarter — and only one traveled more than 50 yards. Steve Belichick and Jerod Mayo crafted an excellent game plan to contain Hurts, and the Patriots got strong performances at all three levels, led by stalwarts like Matthew Judon, Ja’Whaun Bentley and Kyle Dugger.

The Eagles went just 4-for-13 on third down and averaged a meager 4.1 yards per play after ranking fourth and sixth in the league in those categories in 2022, respectively.

We’ll see if the Patriots can replicate this effort in Week 2 against a Dolphins team that shredded the Los Angeles Chargers in its opener. Miami quarterback Tua Tagovailoa — who’s never lost to New England in his career — threw for 466 yards in a 36-34 win, including 215 on 11 completions to Tyreek Hill.

It’s the first of several high-powered AFC offenses the Patriots will face as they navigate arguably the NFL’s most difficult schedule. But Sunday’s showing suggests they are better equipped to combat it than they were in years past.

3. There’s some real talent in this rookie class
Christian Gonzalez and Keion White both delivered standout defensive performances in their NFL debuts. Gonzalez played every defensive snap and notched seven tackles, a sack and a fourth-down pass breakup while White generated frequent pressure on Hurts. Marte Mapu logged just 10 snaps but showcased what Judon called “unbelievable” versatility by playing safety, linebacker and outside linebacker.

Jabrill Peppers said rookies Christian Gonzalez, Keion White and Marte Mapu were “damn good” today.

On Gonzalez, who had a sack and a fourth-down PBU: “We need him to keep playing like that.” pic.twitter.com/9QSaqY3fwt

— Zack Cox (@ZackCoxNESN) September 11, 2023

On offense, Mafi and Sidy Sow went wire to wire at the two guard spots — despite Sow playing exclusively right tackle this spring and summer — and receivers Demario Douglas and Kayshon Boutte both saw large and prominent roles in Parker’s absence.

Douglas finished with four receptions for 40 yards, including a nice 23-yarder during a second-quarter touchdown drive. Boutte didn’t have a catch on four targets and couldn’t get both feet down in bounds on the Patriots’ final offensive play, a just-missed fourth-and-11 conversion in the Eagles’ red zone. Still, the fact he and Douglas played every snap on the Patriots’ last-gasp drive was eye-opening.

Bryce Baringer launched a few booming punts and pinned the Eagles inside their own 10-yard line twice. Chad Ryland wasn’t asked to attempt any field goals (more on that below) but went 2-for-2 on extra points and sent three of his four kickoffs into the end zone for touchbacks.

4. A fourth-quarter second-guess
Speaking of field goals, Bill Belichick opted to keep his offense on the field rather than try one from the Eagles’ 17-yard line, down 22-14, with 9:39 remaining.

That gamble failed, as Jones threw incomplete to Elliott on fourth-and-3 while being hit by Haason Reddick. The Eagles responded with a four-minute drive that produced a Jake Elliott field goal, extending their lead to 11 points.

The Patriots quickly scored on their next possession — Jones hitting Bourne from 11 yards out, followed by a failed two-point conversion — then had two more late chances to pull ahead after a Jabrill Peppers forced fumble and a fourth-down stop halted two Eagles drives near midfield.

New England failed to reach the end zone both times, with its final drive stalling in what should be field-goal range for Ryland. Had Belichick settled for the field goal earlier, the Patriots might have trailed by just two rather than five in those final minutes.

Belichick said he “made the best decision we could at the time.”

“Didn’t know we would be down there multiple times,” the head coach said. “Six minutes to go in the game. I don’t know. If we had kicked it, I’m sure you would be asking why didn’t we go for it.”

ESPN Analytics’ model sided with Belichick’s decision.

On Bill Belichick's decision to go for it on fourth-and-3 from the Eagles' 17 — trailing 22-14 with 9:39 remaining:

Very close, but ESPN Analytics agreed with the choice.

🏈Win probability going for it: 21.4%
🏈Win probability kicking: 20.8%

Thanks for the info, @SethWalder.

— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) September 11, 2023

5. Where was JuJu?
Remember how we said Douglas and Boutte both played the Patriots’ entire final drive? They did so over JuJu Smith-Schuster, the biggest free agent signing of New England’s offseason.

This was not a banner debut for the ex-Steeler/Chief. Smith-Schuster converted one third-and-10 to help set up the Patriots’ first touchdown, but he finished with just four catches for 33 yards on seven targets for an offense that was missing its other starting wideout. He dropped a low throw from Jones to end one Patriots drive.

Smith-Schuster was not listed on the injury report coming into this game, but the Patriots might have been taking steps to manage his oft-scrutinized knee. It’s hard to imagine he’d play 12 fewer snaps than Boutte (55 to 43) if he was 100%.

Meanwhile, the player New England signed Smith-Schuster to replace, Jakobi Meyers, caught nine of 10 targets for 81 yards and two touchdowns in his Las Vegas Raiders debut.