Three Studs, Three Duds From Patriots’ Week 1 Loss To Eagles

FOXBORO, Mass. — With Tom Brady watching, the Patriots on Sunday began their season with a 25-20 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.

New England got out to an early 16-0 deficit, largely thanks to a Mac Jones pick-six followed up by an Ezekiel Elliott fumble. But the Patriots bounced back and entered halftime trailing just 16-14.

The game stayed close the rest of the way, and New England had two chances to drive for a lead inside four minutes. But the first drive, a gift after a Jalen Hurts fumble, ended with a four-and-out and the second stalled out when Kayshon Boutte couldn’t get both feet down on a sideline catch.

Jones was shaky early but overall played well, completing 35 of 54 passes for 316 yards and three touchdowns to go along with the one pick. Tight end Hunter Henry caught five passes for 56 yards and a touchdown, with Kendrick Bourne adding two scores on six receptions for 64 yards. Running back Rhamondre Stevenson also racked up 64 receiving yards, 32 of which came on one play.

On the other side, Hurts completed 22 of 33 passes for 170 yards and one touchdown. He added 38 yards on the ground while fumbling once.

New England finished with 382 yards of total offense compared to Philly’s 251. The Patriots also picked up seven more first downs.

New England dropped to 0-1 with the loss while the Eagles moved to 1-0. The Patriots will be home again next Sunday night when they host the Miami Dolphins.

Here are three studs and three duds from the Patriots’ tough Week 1 loss:

STUDS
LB Matthew Judon
Was a menace in this game, finishing with three tackles and one sack. But it wasn’t just about the numbers, as Judon generated pressure in key moments and once again looked like the best player on New England’s roster. If Judon stays healthy, he could be in line for another huge season.

TE Hunter Henry
Made some big plays during the second quarter and scored the Patriots’ first touchdown. He also delivered the catch of the game in the fourth quarter. Henry is Jones’ most trusted target and is incredibly important to this offense and Bill O’Brien’s plans for it. Also, we thought the third-quarter holding penalty he got flagged for was a bogus call.

Secondary
Yeah, Hurts and the Eagles made some plays — but they were going to. They have one of the best offenses in football. Ultimately, New England’s defensive backs deserve a ton of credit for limiting A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith to just 79 and 47 yards, respectively. The Patriots didn’t have Jack Jones (injured reserve) available and gave a ton of playing time to rookie Christian Gonzalez. It was a good performance, albeit one that would’ve looked different had Hurts’ late 48-yard completion to Brown held up under review.

Honorable mentions: Mac Jones, Ja’Whaun Bentley, Christian Gonzalez, Keion White, Kendrick Bourne, Ty Montgomery, Demario Douglas, Myles Bryant

What We Learned In Patriots’ Loss To Eagles On Tom Brady Day

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DUDS
Run blocking
Overall, the line deserves credit for holding up (somewhat) against a ferocious Philly front seven. However, the run blocking largely was non-existent, especially when the Patriots wanted to run up the middle. The rookie guards, Atoni Mafi and Sidy Sow, appeared to struggle the most. New England finished with just 76 rushing yards on 22 attempts.

QB Mac Jones (first five drives)
Jones was good after this point, but he didn’t play well over the first 20 minutes of the game. He appeared to be at fault on the Darius Slay pick-six, and a few other passes in the first quarter were off-target. Honestly, it looked like he had some early season jitters compounded by pressure created by the Brady festivities.

WR JuJu Smith-Schuster
The prized offseason acquisition caught four balls for 33 yards. He wasn’t necessarily bad in this game, but he had one bad drop in the first quarter and wasn’t the explosive weapon the Patriots needed. Smith-Schuster needs to offer more if New England’s offense is going to keep up with some of the NFL’s more high-powered attacks.

Honorable mentions: Marcus Jones, Ezekiel Elliott, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Deatrich Wise, Bryce Baringer