Week 10 recap
Week 10 for the Patriots was less than to be desired on almost all fronts. We all remember the Titans’ first drive down the field. After the first kickoff, our special teams let Jennings run the ball back to the 40-yard line. This set the Titans up for their first touchdown, and the onslaught of offense started from there.
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It looked like the Patriots were going to make a comeback in the second quarter, but things kept getting out of hand. With the poor play from all 3 phases of the game, the Titans made the most out of every play, while the Patriots struggled to get things going.
My concern for this game and moving forward is our running game, and tight end situation moving forward. Sony coming off an injury only had 11 carries for 31 yards, which is only 3.5 yards per carry. The loss of Gronkowski for the week was a huge blow to the offense. He helps not only in blocking but draws up double coverage in the passing game as well. This will free up other receivers and allow the offense to get going.
Areas to improve
Offense
With a 10-34 loss, there are a lot of areas to improve in my opinion. First, let’s start with the offense. Although this was one of Brady’s worst games of his career, we were missing Gronkowski which could have helped the offense to get going. With him getting some extra rest these next couple weeks, he will be back and as healthy as possible for Week 12, as they get set to make their playoff run.
Sony’s knee is getting better all the time and will be even better coming back after the bye week. Hopefully, he can return to the 5 YPC we are used to seeing out of him. The Patriots also need to keep CP in the backfield, and well as a receiver and continue his development to help Michel out. It’s also a plus the CP has been open to the running back position as we are very short-handed in the backfield. With Rex Burkhead coming back, that will help with the running back depth.
Defense
The defense has had a lot of ups and downs this year. Brian Flores has been doing a good job as acting defensive coordinator, but we need to bring more pressure to the quarterback. Our secondary besides the play of Gilmore needs to improve. Too many times in the game on Sunday I saw very soft coverage, and the Titans just got to the ball faster than the Patriots secondary.
Special teams have had its ups and downs all season, but this is the time when all the adjustments are made. Letting the Titans run the ball back to the 40-yard line of the Patriots on the opening kick off is disheartening, to say the least. Patriots need to continue to kick the ball into the end zone for touchbacks to limit the number of runbacks the other team gets, and slow down the momentum of the other team. They also need to tackle better by wrapping the player up.
All around I think with the track record for this team and the players they have, the second half of this season will be fun to watch.
