The New England Patriots continue to not only be outplayed by opponents but by themselves as the team was dominated by the Detroit Lions 26-10 falling to 1-2 on the season.
The Patriots were given the ball first where wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson did what he does best returning the ball for over 40 yards.
The drive didn’t amount to anything as the Patriots were forced to punt to Matthew Stafford and the Lions.
The Lions moved the ball downfield at will on an 11 play drive that stalled ending with a 39-yard Matt Prater field goal to put Patricia’s group on the board first.
The Patriots stalled once again on offense totaling five yards the entire first quarter. The Lions then took the ball once again scoring seven points going to Kenny Golladay for the first touchdown of the game.
While there was a question whether it was a touchdown, Patricia challenged the ruling and won officially putting his team up by 10.
The Patriots didn’t have the ball long as the Lions received the ball back scoring another three points to put them ahead of the reigning AFC Champions 13-0.
The Patriots finally were able to get something going getting their first first down of the half with under five minutes to go in the first half. Until then, the Patriots had only had the ball for four minutes. Finally, they were able to get some points on the board going into hurry up offense all the way down into the red zone where they ran twice to Michel much to no avail settling for a field goal.
The Lions tried to get some extra points before receiving the second half kickoff but couldn’t get the ball in field goal range ticking the clock down the the end of the first half.
At the start of the second half, the team needed a big play and got it when rookie fifth-round pick Ja’Whaun Bentley picked off a pass intended for Luke Willson.
Brady commandeered the offense down the field with the help of Rob Gronkowski and Michel finishing it off with a third down touchdown pass to James White.
The team and their fans were then brought back down to Earth as Stafford commandeered his own offense down the field ending the drive with a huge touchdown to Marvin Jones Jr. against Stephon Gilmore.
The Patriots predictably stalled once again giving the ball back to the Lions who continued to impose their will on the Patriots who’s defensive woes continued to plague them but were however able to hold the Lions to an all important three points only and they took over looking to come back in the last 13 minutes.
The Patriots again couldn’t do anything giving the ball back to the Lions still down by 13 points where the defense was able to give the offense the ball back but Brady would throw a pass down the field only to have it picked off intended for Phillip Dorsett.
The team looked lethargic similarly to last week against the Jacksonville Jaguars just seemingly not wanting to do anything to win. The Lions got their first 100-yard rusher in Kerryon Johnson for the first time in five years since Reggie Bush.
The Patriots team has played their way out of elite status and look like mere mortals. The energy has been drained from the helmets and shoulder pads of the Patriots organization as the competitive fire seems to be no more.
The Patriots are set to take on the undefeated Miami Dolphins in divisional matchup at Sunday at 1:00 p.m.
Top Performers: Offense – 2 Defense – 1
Offense:
James White: James White continues to be the most consistent passing option for Brady and the offense catching a touchdown that got the Patriots back within three.
Rex Burkhead: Burkhead also continues to be a force in the passing game and the team desperately needs to keep getting him involved.
Defense:
Jason McCourty: McCourty proved to easily be a much better option at the No.2 corner spot than Eric Rowe adding physicality and speed to a position that lacked that with the one dimensional Rowe.
