Patriots’ Best Won’t Be Good Enough in January

The Patriots may have played their best game as a team on Monday night in Arizona. Defensively they racked up six sacks, an interception, and even a fumble recovery that Raekwon McMillan took the distance. The Cardinals’ offensive line was no match for the dominant dual pass rush of Josh Uche and Matt Judon.

On offense? Well, it was surely an improvement from last week versus the Bills. Second-year quarterback Mac Jones still had his moments of cussing out Matt Patricia on national television. Even waving him off and telling his play caller to “shut up” as he walked to the huddle. But they had moments of big play potential. Without Rhamondre Stevenson (early injury in the game) and Damien Harris (inactive), their run game still proved promising. With rookies Kevin Harris and Pierre Strong Jr. taking command and rushing for a combined 96 yards and two touchdowns.

Jones, although throwing no touchdowns and an interception that wasn’t his fault, was efficient. When Patricia let him sling it downfield, Jones rewarded him. With big plays up the seam to Nelson Agholor and Hunter Henry. It wasn’t a great day for the offense like it was in Minnesota for all but one quarter. But it was an improvement over last week’s debacle against Buffalo.

But this still isn’t enough. I don’t want to be the “Debbie Downer” of Patriots football right now. I think Felger and Mazz of 98.5 The Sports Hub do that well enough. But I think it’s on the minds of all of us that down the stretch, 20 points on offense isn’t good enough. New England can’t bet on other teams making mistakes and hope to win more than they lose. It might work against a 4-9 Cardinals team that just lost their superstar quarterback for the season. But how well did that strategy work for you against the Dolphins in the season opener? Or even the Bills last Thursday? You play those two teams in the final two weeks of the season. Never mind the defending AFC champion Cincinnati Bengals on Christmas Eve in just two weeks.

The Patriots inserted themselves back into the playoff picture last night. They’re currently the seventh seed and would play the #2 Kansas City Chiefs in Arrowhead if the season ended today. There’s a long way to go before this team is going toe-to-toe with Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce. But strides were certainly made in the desert.

The Patriots, sitting at 7-6, can probably only afford one loss down the stretch if they want to be in the playoff picture. The Chargers and Jets are right on their heels with the same exact record. In the final weeks of the season, the Patriots take on Las Vegas on the road, then Cincinnati and Miami at home, and close the year in Buffalo. How much do you like the odds of them finishing 3-1 with those teams on the schedule? As of now, I’d say it isn’t great.

They have a good chance to continue building momentum as they take on their former offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and the routinely self-sabotaging Raiders. Who’s defense is likely to give the same opportunities Arizona did. And then the three-game gauntlet to end the season. There’s not a whole lot of time for Bill Belichick and company to get this Patriots team in a position to compete in a playoff game. Their defense has proven the ability to give the offense a shot. Matt Judon hasn’t slowed down. Marcus Jones, Kyle Dugger, Raekwon McMillan, and Josh Uche all turned up in this game. What is the offense going to do to match that? We’ll find out soon enough.

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