Run the ball. Play physical football. Lean on the defense. Win or lose, this is the New England Patriots’ philosophy in 2024.
That seems to be the way Patriots coach Jerod Mayo is looking at things after his team’s overtime loss to the Seattle Seahawks.
After taking the ball to start overtime, there was little mystery in what the Patriots were going to try and do. It was simple smashmouth.
It didn’t work Sunday. Even so, don’t expect Mayo to change course much.
“Look, this isn’t a fancy football team,” Mayo said. “This is one of those teams whether we throw it or run it that we just have to be a tough football team, but at the same time, have to be smart. We have to be able to go out there and line up and be mentally tough on a down-after-down basis.”
So far, we’ve seen the positives and negatives of the smashmouth approach. Last week, New England showed that its physical brand of football can grind out a win. This week, the Patriots looked one-dimensional in a loss.
New England’s approach featured plenty of running and little passing outside of tight end Hunter Henry. The Patriots ran the ball 36 times today and threw it 27. Of those 27 attempts, only three resulted in completions to receivers.
The running game was effective for much of the day. But when the Patriots needed to make a play, the passing attack simply wasn’t there when they needed it.
Mayo has stressed that he wants to make these Patriots a tough team. But did Sunday’s game show that the team’s limitations?
Mayo said that he’s not sure, but knows that New England definitely needs to be more balanced on offense.
“We’ve got to be able to pass,” Mayo said. “We’ve got to be able to ping-pong between the two. It’s something that we need to work on. That’s what I would say.”
The Patriots hung with the Seahawks all afternoon. But in the closing minutes, the offense went radio silent, gaining just 11 total yards on its last nine plays. The running game was no longer there, and there didn’t appear to be much of a passing game to fall back on.
New England appears to be pretty one-dimensional on offense. Sure, Rhamondre Stevenson is a great back. Heck, Jacoby Brissett does a good job running the show and avoiding sacks. But right between poor blocking up front and lack of production from the receivers, the offense hasn’t been up to snuff.
Mayo’s team doesn’t have much time to try and get things back on track. It’s a quick turnaround this week as the Patriots head to the Meadowlands to take on the New York Jets on Thursday Night Football.
