Patriots Pass Protection Crumbles On Game-Clinching Sequence

The New England Patriots showed signs of improvement offensively but still lost to the Las Vegas Raiders, largely in part to another set of struggles from an underperforming positional group.

Trailing 19-17 with under three minutes to go, the Patriots got the ball back deep in their own territory with a third chance for a game-winning drive in six weeks. New England went nowhere and faced a 3rd-and-10 that was ultimately blown dead for a delay of game penalty against the Patriots. Before the referees stopped the play, Las Vegas pass-rusher Maxx Crosby had a free rush up the middle against Mac Jones.

On the updated 3rd-and-15 after the penalty, Crosby got through two New England blockers to sack Jones for a game-clinching safety and a 21-17 win for the Raiders.

Upon further replays of the safety, the All-Pro defensive star got to the Patriots quarterback virtually untouched on the game's most important play.

The New England offensive line has struggled all season and allowed three more sacks on Sunday in Las Vegas.

The quarterback and the scheme certainly have room for improvement with this Patriots team. To do that, the offensive line absolutely has to find a path to stability to win the battle at the line of scrimmage.