Tuesday morning, I woke up and wished I had just had a bad dream. Monday night was an absolute fog of a football game in Foxborough. The Patriots went into the game heavy favorites and came out clueless. The Bears had to get off to a quick start, and that’s exactly what they did.
Quarterback Controversy
Mac Jones’ benching leads me to believe he wasn’t 100 percent. If he wasn’t 100 percent, I don’t think he should have even played. Bailey Zappe had the hot hand. We could see as soon as he entered. However, his hot streak ended quickly. If anything, Zappe should have been the starter, and if things went south, Jones could then step in. If Belichick actually planned on starting both, going with Mac first doesn’t make much sense.
They did not give Jones enough game time, and after seeing the clip of his interception ball hitting the camera wire, it’s not looking like his benching was fair.
He did not play well, but neither did Zappe. One of the foreseeable issues with Zappe was his tipped passes. His passes were being tipped all night. It is something that the coaches should have expected.
Why Are the Patriots Trying to Win Games With the Backups?
Not only was Mac Jones benched, but so was Damien Harris. Harris only had three carries on the night after being deemed healthy. I can see Rhamondre Stevenson hogging carries on a good day but not Monday night. He could not get anything going in the run game. When the game was over, Stevenson accounted for 39 yards on 11 carries.
Next week I hope to see Mac Jones and Damien Harris get a full game, enough of the backups.
The Patriot’s defense didn’t help. They allowed the Bears to dominate all night and looked unprepared. They could not keep up with Justin Fields. When he ran, they couldn’t catch him, and his receivers were wide open. Fields was able to take advantage of us with his ability to run, and the Bears’ run game in general.
They are and have been a good running team all year with the trio of Fields, David Montgomery, and Khalil Herbert. I think the Bears have a solid game plan going forward.
It’s hard to pinpoint what went wrong for the Pats, but I think it can come back to one thing, Confidence. There was none of it, bad football all around. The great thing about the NFL is that you always have the next week to turn things around.
Looking Ahead
The Patriots have nothing to lose after being embarrassed on Prime Time. Now they have the opportunity to turn things around versus the Jets. A team that they beat by 41 points last year.
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