FOXBOROUGH – From one embarrassing loss to another, this Patriots season has turned into a disaster. The offense continues to falter and Sunday’s 6-0 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.
At this point, the Patriots have the worst offense in the NFL, averaging a league-low 12.3 points per game. The offense has scored just 13 points over the last three games. That brings into this week’s matchup – a Thursday night game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Much like the Patriots, the Steelers have struggled offensively this season. That’s one reason why head coach Mike Tomlin fired offensive coordinator Matt Canada. The Steelers head into this matchup ranked 28th in scoring, averaging 16.0 points per game. To make matters more difficult for Pittsburgh is their quarterback situation.
On Sunday, they lost starting quarterback Kenny Pickett, who suffered a high-ankle sprain. That means Steelers backup Mitchell Trubisky will start opposite of Bailey Zappe on Thursday night in Pittsburgh.
For the 7-5 Steelers, a playoff spot is still on the line. For the Patriots, this season has turned into a battle for a higher draft pick. After Pittsburgh’s loss to Arizona last weekend, the Patriots currently sit in the spot for the No. 2 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. We’ll see if that changes this weekend.
Here are five things to watch on Thursday:
Sample HTML block
Bailey Zappe
Bailey Zappe wasn’t exactly good on Sunday. The Patriots didn’t reach the red zone or score a point in their shutout loss to the Chargers. Zappe completed 52% of his passes (13-of-25) for 141 yards. For comparison’s sake, Mac Jones had a better completion percentage in 10 of his 11 starts this season.
However, Zappe showed the ability to avoid the pass rush and made a couple of nice throws in the second half. That’s probably why he’s going to start on Thursday – he’s less prone to errors. We’ll see if a second-straight start, albeit on a short week, produces a better showing from Zappe. At this point, the Patriots quarterback play is one of the many things holding the offense back.
Malik Cunningham
Despite being on the game-day roster, Malik Cunningham didn’t play a single snap in the Patriots loss to the Chargers. That was frustrating considering the offensive output was non-existent. The Patriots likely had red zone plays in mind with Cunningham, but the team never entered the red zone.
Steelers coach Mike Tomlin, however, seems to think that Cunningham could play a larger role on Thursday. Tomlin told the Pittsburgh media on Monday he’s “really concerned” about what the Patriots will do “at the quarterback position” adding “Malik Cunningham is potentially very different” to game plan for. If the rookie plays on Thursday, that would at least make for some much-needed entertainment. We’ll see if it actually happens.
Patriots run game
The hits keep on coming for the Patriots. On Sunday, Rhamondre Stevenson suffered a high-ankle sprain and will be out for weeks (at least). That means the Patriots dreadful offense will move forward without its best player. That’s been a common theme for this year’s team as big losses (Matthew Judon, Christian Gonzalez, Marcus Jones, and Kendrick Bourne) have added up.
Now, Ezekiel Elliott will take the reins as the Patriots starting running back. Elliott’s averaged 3.8 yards per carry this season. He’s second on the team in yards from scrimmage (583) behind Stevenson (857). The Patriots also have running backs Jamychal Hasty, Ty Montgomery, and Kevin Harris on the practice squad. The Steelers run defense is ranked 22nd this season, so we’ll see how the Patriots look without Stevenson.
Mitchell Trubisky
Kenny Pickett hasn’t been great this season. The Steelers starting quarterback has 2,070 passing yards to go with six touchdowns and four interceptions. Still, he is their best option. That’s why the Patriots defense should be salivating at the thought of facing his backup, Mitchell Trubisky. The former Chicago Bears starter has 273 passing yards to go with two touchdowns and two interceptions this season.
Trubisky was put in this same position last year and the Steelers lost, 17-14, to the Patriots in Week 2 of the 2022 season. Trubisky is 0-2 lifetime against the Patriots. In 2018, he threw for 333 yards to go with two touchdowns and two interceptions. The Patriots defense should feast on Thursday night.
Patriots run defense
The Patriots run defense was phenomenal on Sunday, limiting Austin Ekeler to 1.3 yards to carry. The Chargers run game averaged 1.2 yards per carry, rushing for 29 yards on 24 carries. The key for the Patriots is to keep up that effort on Thursday. The Steelers’ passing offense ranks 28th in the NFL while their run game ranks 14th in the league.
Without their starting quarterback, Pittsburgh will be more reliant on their run game. The Patriots need to slow down the Steelers two-headed rush attack of Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren. Harris leads Pittsburgh with 661 rushing yards to go with four touchdowns. Warren has 601 rushing yards to go with three touchdowns. The combination averaged 105.2 rushing yards per game.
Prediction: Steelers 12, Patriots 9
