The New England Patriots went into M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore with an 8-0 record and ready for their first real test of the season. New England made quick work of their previous eight opponents, seldom playing a close game on their way to an 8-0 start. Week 9 against the Baltimore Ravens, however, was a blow out of a different variety. The Patriots fell 37-20 to the Ravens in a game where the vaunted New England Patriots defense looked lost at times. Read on for everything you need to know about the Patriots Week 9 loss against the Ravens.
New England Patriots Defense Stalls Against Baltimore Ravens
There wasn’t a period of time in this game where the New England Patriots defense looked comfortable. From the start, Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson and the offense were getting whatever they wanted, particularly on the ground. The first negative sign for the Patriots defense came on the first drive of the game, when Baltimore kicker Justin Tucker lined up for a field goal. Patriots special teamer/linebacker Shilique Calhoun jumped offside on the field goal attempt giving Baltimore a fresh set of downs inside the red zone which was promptly turned into six points by Jackson. It didn’t get better from here as the Pats defense was gashed for 30 points on the night, a season high. Jackson threw for 163 yards and a touchdown and added two more on rushes, and running back Mark Ingram ran wild for 115 yards. Running back Gus Edwards also tacked on 27 yards and a touchdown.
Despite the overwhelming sense of negativity from the defensive side of the ball there were some positives. New England did force a fumble when linebacker Kyle Van Noy punched the ball out on an Ingram run. In addition to this former Raven Justin Bethel recovered a muffed punt from Cyrus Jones. While the overall play of the defense wasn’t great there isn’t great cause for concern. New England committed several penalties on third down extended Baltimore’s drive which led to the Ravens dominating time of possession.
Patriots Shine on Offense
Moving over to the offensive side of the ball, nobody shined brighter then new addition Mohamed Sanu. Sanu hauled in ten catches for 81 yards on the night and seemed to be clicking with quarterback Tom Brady. He made several key receptions in big spots and scored his first touchdown in a Patriots uniform. By finding the end zone, Sanu became the 74th different player to catch a touchdown pass from Brady. The one blemish on the night for Sanu came on a pass he didn’t even catch. He seemingly gave up early on a route and failed to touch down Baltimore safety Earl Thomas after he intercepted the pass. Outside of this however, Sanu looked excellent in his second game with New England.
Outside of Sanu, receiver Julian Edelman and running back James White had solid games as well. Edelman hauled in ten catches for a team high 89 yards, while White found the end zone on the ground. Despite his good numbers and several nice third down catches Edelman cost the Patriots in this one to a certain extent. New England had the momentum down 17-13 at halftime and began the third quarter by marching down the field. However this momentum ended abruptly when Edelman fumbled in plus territory and the ball was run back for a touchdown. This one play wasn’t the difference between a win or loss, but there was a clear momentum shift after this play.
What’s Next
Sorry to continue with the bad news, but the Patriots don’t have a ton to look forward to next week. This loss will have to sit for an extra week as New England heads into the bye. On the other side waits the NFC East foe Philadelphia Eagles. The Patriots will have plenty of time to reflect on what worked and didn’t work in their first real test of the season. Hopefully for them it translates into a bounce back performance against the Eagles. The good news for the Patriots is that many of the mistakes tonight were self inflicted. The Ravens were clearly the better team tonight but New England never looked overmatched. On top of this heading into the bye with a record of 8-1 and atop the AFC standings isn’t bad.
New England fans can also expect rookie receiver N’Keal Harry on the field after the bye week. Harry has worked his way back from IR and is poised to make his debut Week 11 in Philadelphia. In addition to this left tackle Isaiah Wynn has begun practicing again and it looks like his return is imminent. The loss may sting, but there was good to take out of it. Sanu looked at home in the offense, and most of the mistakes were self inflicted. The Patriots don’t often beat themselves so expect this to be the outlier. Despite the loss there is plenty for the Patriots to be optimistic about moving into the latter portion of the schedule.
Main Photo:
Embed from Getty Images
