FOXBORO, Mass. -- A report over the weekend suggested Bill Belichick could save his job with a strong finish to the season. Well, the Patriots head coach didn't help his cause Sunday.
After a competitive opening half, New England unraveled after halftime en route to a 27-17 loss to the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs at Gillette Stadium.
The defeat dropped the Patriots to 3-11 on the season, matching Belichick's highest single-season loss total with three games still remaining. With the Carolina Panthers winning Sunday to move to 2-12, New England will enter Week 16 just one game back of the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
Here are six instant-reaction thoughts on Sunday's result:
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1. Same story for Bailey Zappe
Zappe was excellent in the first half Sunday, just as he was in the Patriots' Week 14 win in Pittsburgh. The second-year quarterback's passing line over the first two quarters: 17-for-19, 141 yards, one touchdown, no turnovers.
His touchdown to tight end Hunter Henry -- their third such hookup in the last two games -- was a perfectly placed pass between two Chiefs defenders on fourth-and-2. Zappe also had another impressive touchdown to Henry wiped out by a holding penalty on left tackle Conor McDermott.
But for the second straight week, Zappe and the Patriots' offense cratered after halftime. His first pass attempt of the second half went straight to Chiefs linebacker Willie Gay, who easily intercepted it and returned it to New England's 7-yard line. KC scored two plays later to take a 24-10 lead, and the Patriots never recovered.
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Zappe later had a fumble that New England was able to recover and badly missed an open Demario Douglas downfield. The Patriots' only second-half points -- an 18-yard touchdown run by elevated practice squadder Kevin Harris -- came after a Jahlani Tavai interception set them up just outside the Chiefs' red zone.
On their other six second-half possessions, the Patriots gained just one total first down. Belichick showed little interest in pushing the envelope, punting on fourth-and-3 from his own 42 and fourth-and-4 from his own 33 down three scores in the fourth quarter.
Zappe went 6-for-12 for 39 yards with no touchdowns and one interception after halftime.
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2. Five gut-punch penalties
Count 'em:
1. Brenden Schooler was flagged for holding on the opening kickoff, wiping out a 46-yard runback by Jalen Reagor. It was the fifth penalty in the last eight games for Schooler.
2. Demario Douglas was penalized for grabbing the facemask of a Chiefs defender before catching a red-zone slant. That catch would have given the Patriots the ball at Kansas City's 6-yard line. Instead, the penalty stuck them with a first-and-25 from the 27. They wound up settling for a 41-yard field-goal attempt that Chad Ryland missed.
3. An illegal contact penalty on Jonathan Jones negated an intentional grounding by Patrick Mahomes. Jones strongly pleaded his case to an official, but to no avail. One play later, a blatant coverage bust resulted in a 48-yard gain for Clyde Edwards-Helaire, setting up the Chiefs' first touchdown of the game.
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4. The McDermott hold that got Zappe's second touchdown pass to Henry called back.
5. Alex Austin was hit with a ticky-tack defensive holding call, erasing a forced fumble by Jones and recovery by Jabrill Peppers. Kansas City went to to kick a field goal to go up 17-10.
3. Where was J.C. Jackson?
Jackson was active for Sunday's game, but he didn't play a snap and wasn't even spotted on the Patriots' sideline. He was not listed on New England's injury report, and the team offered no in-game explanation for his absence.
It's been a rocky return for the former Patriots standout, who's struggled on the field and dealt with reliability issues off it since signing back in October.
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Making Jackson's usage more puzzling was the fact that reserve cornerback Shaun Wade was a healthy scratch Sunday. If the Patriots did not expect Jackson to play, why not make Wade available?
Instead, the Patriots were forced to play Austin on nearly every defensive snap. The 22-year-old rookie made his New England debut the previous week after his own string of healthy scratches. Austin finished with three tackles and was penalized twice.
Jones also missed part of one series with a knee injury but later returned.
4. Cole Strange carted off
The Patriots lost their starting left guard to what appeared to be a serious knee injury during the second quarter.
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Strange landed awkwardly while blocking All-Pro defensive tackle Chris Jones and immediately grabbed his left knee. A large group of Patriots came over to support him as he was loaded onto a cart, including head coach Bill Belichick.
New England quickly ruled Strange out for the rest of the game -- never a good sign for an injured player. Rookie Atonio Mafi replaced him.
Strange dealt with a lingering knee injury in training camp and the early part of this season, but he came into Sunday healthy and was playing some of the best ball of his career. With just three games remaining, we now might not see the 2022 first-round pick back on the field until 2024.
The Patriots also were without their starting left tackle against Kansas City, as Trent Brown missed the game with a hand injury, ankle injury and illness. McDermott started in his place but could not finish the game. He suffered a head injury late in the third quarter and was replaced by Vederian Lowe.
Henry also exited the game with a knee injury, Peppers got banged up late, and Matthew Slater, Ja'Whaun Bentley and Anfernee Jennings all received medical attention before later returning. Brown, wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster and running back Rhamondre Stevenson were inactive for the Patriots, who have been hammered by injuries this season.
5. Marte Mapu shows up
Largely invisible through the first 14 weeks of his Patriots career, Mapu made his first impact play as a pro on Sunday.
One play after Zappe found Henry to tie the score at 7-7 midway through the second quarter, the third-round rookie ripped a Mahomes pass away from Chiefs tight end Blake Bell for an interception.
Mapu's return set the Patriots up at Kansas City's 8-yard line. Zappe found Henry for a second score on the ensuing drive, but it was wiped out by a McDermott holding penalty, forcing the Patriots to settle for a field goal.
The Chiefs victimized Mapu later in the half, however, successfully picking him on a short touchdown pass to Jerick McKinnon.
6. Taylor Swift was there
Hi, Taylor.
The Patriots did a fine job of defending Swift's boyfriend, tight end Travis Kelce, who finished with just five catches on seven targets for 28 yards. Kansas City got a big game from rookie receiver Rashee Rice, however, who caught all nine of his targets for 91 yards and a touchdown in the win.
Featured image via David Butler II/USA TODAY Sports Images
