Six Takeaways After Patriots Suffer Last-Second Loss Against Colts

FOXBORO, Mass. — The New England Patriots will have a mouth full of salt during their Week 14 bye.

New England led by a touchdown with five minutes left, but ultimately suffered a 25-24 loss to the Indianapolis Colts.

The Patriots enter their Week 14 bye at 3-10 while the Colts improved to 6-7.

Here are six takeaways after the Patriots-Colts:

Patriots defense can’t get needed stop
The Patriots defense has let the offense down time and time again this season, and their Week 13 loss was the latest example. Indianapolis marched 80 yards during a 19-play drive which took 5:22 off the clock. Anthony Richardson crossed the goal line on a game-winning two-point conversion with 12 ticks left. Richardson hit tight end Mo Allie-Cox on the intial fourth-down conversion before a 6-yard run and a 3-yard touchdown pass to Austin Pierce. New England’s Alex Austin was whistled for a defensive pass interference during the drive, as well.

Offense sustained drives, but red area struggles continue
The Patriots scored on each of their first four drives and would’ve went into the half having scored on all five first-half drives if it wasn’t for a chip-shot miss by Joey Slye. The exceeded 400 yards of offense for the first time this season, moving it well all day. But New England was unable to make the most of its trips to the red area. The Patriots entered Week 13 with the fourth-worst red zone percentage in the league (46.9%), and scored touchdowns on two of their six opportunities. The Patriots settled for field goals on each of their first three drives and had a goal-line interception in the third quarter. Drake Maye and company took another step forward against a below average pass defense, but the next step is capitalizing in the red area.

Much better day for Patriots rookie
Layden Robinson started his first game since being benched after he was destroyed against Tennessee Titans defensive tackle Jeffrey Simmons. The fourth-round pick, who replaced Michael Jordan at left guard, was much better than his last start and a noticeable improvement over Jordan. It wasn’t an easy task for Robinson either, as he faced a Colts defensive line with DeForest Bucker. Robinson allowed three pressures and was called for two holding penalties, but it was better against stiff competition. Buckner concluded with two pressures, but his sack came against right guard Mike Onwenu, per Pro Football Focus.

Patriots secondary bounces back after consecutive clunkers
It’s nice when you don’t have to go against talented tandems like Cooper Kupp-Puka Nacua as well as Tyreek Hill-Jaylen Waddle, right? New England’s secondary allowed an early explosive completion in zone coverage, but for the most part locked down Anthony Richardson’s weapons. The Patriots intercepted Richardson twice, their first game this season with two interceptions. Christian Gonzalez allowed two receptions for 15 yards while Alex Austin had a nice day and Marcus Jones had a crucial crunch-time pass breakup.

Why so sloppy?
New England’s first-half showing felt like a carryover from the previous week against the Miami Dolphins (10 penalties, 75 yards). The Patriots committed five first-half penalties, four of which were holding calls on the offensive line. They had another holding penalty declined, too. New England finished with seven penalties.

Jabrill Peppers removed as Patriots captain
When asked if Peppers would remain a Patriots captain, Mayo said the team would keep those conversations in-house. Well, that it until the Patriots take the field on gameday. Peppers, who was removed from the Commissioner Exempt list Tuesday, played for the first time since Week 4. He wasn’t wearing a captain’s patch, though, indicating the organization stripped his captaincy.