The New England Patriots put their 21-game home win streak on the line in this Week 14 matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs. The Patriots came into the game with a record of 10-2 looking to bounce back after last week’s loss to the Houston Texans. However, that wouldn’t be the case. This matchup had just about everything a fan could ask for and carried a real playoff feel. Read on for everything you need to know about the Patriots 23-16 loss to the Chiefs.
New England Patriots Offensive Woes Continue in Loss
The story of the season for the Patriots to this point has been the struggles of the offense. The unit has been downright terrible at times this year, and this week was no different. For a majority of the first half, New England had a difficult time moving the ball with any kind of consistency. Aside from a trick play in the first quarter that resulted in a Julian Edelman touchdown this continued to be the case. The issues can be traced back to several sources, including the poor offensive line play, receivers being unable to get open, and some questionable decision-making on the part of Tom Brady. Despite all of these issues, the Patriots were able to hang in there against the Chiefs.
Officials Steal the Show
As is often the case with this team, the defense and special teams began to turn the tide. It started with a blocked punt in the third quarter by Nate Ebner. This play immediately led to a touchdown run by Brandon Bolden. The New England defense followed this up by stopping Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City offense several times. The tide really seemed to shift when Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce fumbled a ball that bounced to a running Stephon Gilmore. However, the officials blew the play dead saying Kelce was down by contact, negating the run back for Gilmore. After a New England challenge, the play was overturned giving New England possession, but it still cost them a large chunk of yardage in Gilmore’s would-be return. Officiating would continue to be a story going forward.
Just a few plays after the overturned play that gave New England possession, rookie receiver N’Keal Harry scored a touchdown. Despite it appearing as though Harry tightroped his way to the end zone, the officials ruled him out of bounds at the three-yard line. To compound matters, New England couldn’t challenge as they had unsuccessfully challenged offensive pass interference earlier in the game, as well as the fumble by Kelce. These two missed calls played a large part in deciding the game, but it wasn’t the entire story.
Missed Opportunities
Missed opportunities on offense plagued New England in this game. After the missed call on the Harry touchdown, rookie wide receiver Jakobi Meyers dropped an open pass in the end zone. Had he caught this pass, the poor calls would’ve been rendered irrelevant. In addition to this, the Patriots converted on just 16 percent of third downs on the night. This simply isn’t enough to win a football game in the NFL. While the officiating was objectively horrendous, it doesn’t tell the whole story. The Patriots once again dug themselves a hole that they just weren’t able to climb out of.
What’s Next
The Patriots have to go into the “on to Cincinnati” mentality, literally. The Patriots go on the road next week to play the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 15. This is the perfect opportunity to bounce back against a bad opponent. Hopefully, for New England they will be able to use the game as a chance to figure some things out on offense and pick up a much-needed win in the process.
If Patriots fans are looking for some positives to take from Week 14, here they are. The defense effectively shut down a high powered Chiefs offense to three points in the second half. James White looked fantastic in the running game and was one of the few bright spots on offense. Finally, the tight ends, Matt LaCosse and Ben Watson, were able to have a role in the offense. It was small, but it’s better than nothing. Overall, this was easily the toughest loss of the season, but the Patriots can absolutely learn from and improve because of it.
