New England Patriots - NESN.com
The New England Patriots dropped their season-opening matchup with the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday.
It’s too harsh to say things looked the same, but they definitely didn’t look different enough…
The Patriots allowed mistakes to tell the story of the entire game, as they fell into the same habit of watching things snowball once their momentum was halted. The Raiders looked better equipped to take advantage of mistakes — which is one of the many key takeaways coming out of the loss:
Drake Maye has the tools to be as good as anyone, but there’s an erraticism to his game that doesn’t appear to be going away any time soon.
Maye had several misfires, which almost always came when his feet got tangled up or he was forced to make off-platform throws. It’s been a process for him to find the right mechanics, and he’ll occasionally make magic out of nothing, but the coaching staff needs to find a way for him to get into something of a rhythm.
Maye also needs to be better, as simple as that might sound.
Kyle Dugger won’t be nearly at noticeable as he’s been in recent seasons, but there’s still room for him…
The Patriots opened the game with three safeties on the field, with Dugger joining veteran Jaylinn Hawkins and rookie Craig Woodson. The Raiders opened with a two-tight end set featuring Brock Bowers and Michael Mayer, which likely will be sort of personnel groupings that get the former captain on the field this season — outside of special teams packages, where he remains a staple.
The Pittsburgh Steelers (Pat Freiermuth and Jonnu Smith), Buffalo Bills (Dalton Kincaid and Dawson Knox) and Cleveland Browns (David Njoku and Harold Fannin Jr.) are some notable opponents who could cause us to see more Dugger.
Kayshon Boutte has become the most consistent receiver on the roster, as he finished with four first-down receptions in the loss — totaling six catches for 103 yards to lead the way for New England.
Boutte’s continued success should allow the club to bring some newcomers — Kyle Williams and Efton Chism III — along slowly.
The Patriots can’t survive unless they’re playing complimentary football, and we saw a few great examples in this one.
Carlton Davis III and Jaylinn Hawkins combined for an interception in the first quarter, which was followed up by a long touchdown drive in which the offense kept itself ahead of the sticks and marched down the field.
Maye’s interception on the first drive of the second half immediately led to the worst defensive drive of the game, where the defense immediately allowed two chunk plays to begin a five-play touchdown drive.
New England isn’t talented enough for things not to line up.
Will Campbell wasn’t a complete and total disaster, but he definitely didn’t look like the fourth overall pick.
Campbell gave up two...
