FOXBORO — In a season when wins will be hard to come by, the Patriots let one slip out of their hands in Sunday’s 23-20 overtime loss to the Seahawks.
Leading 20-17 with less than five minutes left in the fourth quarter, quarterback Jacoby Brissett — under siege throughout the game behind a leaky offensive line — took a back-breaking sack to back up kicker Joey Slye’s field goal attempt to 48 yards. The kick, which would have forced the Seahawks to score a touchdown in the final minutes, was blocked, giving the Seahawks the ball at their own 38-yard line with 3:54 on the clock.
That was more than enough time to tie the game, sending it to overtime on a Jason Myers field goal after a nine-play, 42-yard drive.
The now 1-1 Patriots got the ball first in overtime with the score knotted at 20-20 and went three-and-out on offense. Stevenson began the drive with a 2-yard run before Brissett completed a 7-yard pass to wide receiver K.J. Osborn. Stevenson was stopped for no gain on third-and-1, but the results of the play didn’t matter. The Patriots were penalized for illegal formation after offensive tackle Caedan Wallace neglected to report as eligible.
The Seahawks started their ensuing drive from their own 16-yard line after the Patriots punted. But the defense couldn’t hold. Quarterback Geno Smith completed two passes for 15 yards before Patriots cornerback Jonathan Jones was flagged for a questionable 20-yard pass interference penalty that even Seahawks wide receiver Tyler Lockett disagreed with.
Smith completed three of his next four passes for 27 yards before running back Zach Charbonnet, replacing injured starter Kenneth Walker, delivered a dagger by moving the Seahawks even closer with a 9-yard run.
It was easy pickings for Seahawks kicker Jason Myers to drill a game-winning 31-yard field goal.
“This is NFL football. It’s one play here, one play there,” head coach Jerod Mayo said after the game. “You just never know which play it is. It’s easy to try to pick out some plays here and there, but it’s all of us. We have to get better as a team and look forward to getting back on the practice field and getting better.”
The Patriots received the ball to start the game but went three-and-out on their first drive. Their defense came out hot, forcing a punt after standout plays from Kyle Dugger, who stopped Lockett for a negative gain, defensive end Keion White, who forced a sack split by Jabrill Peppers and Anfernee Jennings when he got his hand on Smith, and safety Jaylinn Hawkins, who broke up a pass intended for wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba on third down.
Patriots quarterback Jacoby Brissett then orchestrated an impressive eight-play, 60-yard scoring drive that culminated with a 5-yard touchdown pass to rookie wide receiver Ja’Lynn Polk — the first score of his NFL career. Tight end Hunter Henry, who finished with eight catches for a career-high 109 yards, caught three passes for 37 yards on the drive.
The Seahawks responded quickly with a touchdown of their own when Dugger and cornerback Christian Gonzalez had a coverage breakdown on a 56-yard touchdown pass from Smith to wide receiver DK Metcalf.
The scoring continued when the Patriots got the ball back. The Patriots ultimately stalled on the drive, leading kicker Joey Slye to knock through a 29-yard field goal but not before Brissett led the offense down the field on a marathon 15-play, 59-yard drive. Henry once again was heavily involved with three catches for 26 yards.
The Seahawks took a 14-10 lead on their next drive. Smith was efficient, hitting Smith-Njigba for big gains of 19 and 16 yards. Patriots cornerback Marco Wilson, rotating in for Jonathan Jones, put the Seahawks 1 yard out from the end zone after being called for a 12-yard defensive pass interference penalty on third-and-5. Charbonnet charged forward for the 1-yard TD.
The Patriots cut the Seahawks’ lead to 14-13 with a nine-play, 60-yard drive before again stalling in the red zone. Henry ripped off a 35-yard gain after catching a well-designed screen from Brissett. Slye hit a 28-yard field goal for the score.
Both teams were forced to punt on their next drives, but the Seahawks did get on the board once more to extend their lead to 17-13 before the half after some questionable clock management by the Patriots. The Seahawks got the ball back with 35 seconds and three timeouts and went 26 yards down the field on six plays before Jason Myers kicked a 44-yard field goal before the half.
After the Patriots’ Super Bowl XLIX championship team was honored at halftime, the Seahawks received the second-half kickoff. Kyle Dugger made a key run stuff on fourth-and-2 to force a turnover on downs. The Patriots couldn’t get anything going on their ensuing drive and got conservative, electing to punt on fourth-and-1 from their own 34-yard line, eliciting boos from the Gillette Stadium crowd.
The two teams then exchanged three straight three-and-outs.
The Patriots ate 6:20 off the clock with their own marathon 11-play, 66-yard drive dominated by the running game to take a 20-17 lead. Running backs Rhamondre Stevenson and Antonio Gibson combined for 47 yards, including a 1-yard touchdown run by Stevenson. Brissett also completed an impressive 11-yard pass to Henry despite four Seahawks defenders bringing pressure in his face.
After forcing another Seahawks punt, the Patriots looked primed to put more points on the board. Gibson gashed the Seahawks defense for 55 yards on four carries to start the series. Then Brissett took a sack on third down, losing nine yards before Slye’s 48-yard field goal attempt was blocked.
Up
TE Hunter Henry: The starting tight end finished with 97 more yards than the Patriots’ next-best receiver. Henry set a career-high with 109 yards on eight receptions. It was his second-career 100-yard performance.
S Kyle Dugger: Yes, Dugger was involved in Metcalf’s 56-yard touchdown, but it’s unclear who was at fault. Gonzalez believed he was passing Metcalf off to Dugger, who didn’t seem aware of the switch. Otherwise, Dugger made two key run stuffs and sacked Smith on a blitz. He led the team with eight tackles.
RB Antonio Gibson: Gibson provided some much-needed relief for Stevenson, leading the team with 96 rushing yards on 11 carries. It was unsustainable for Stevenson to touch the ball upwards of 28 times per game, as he did in Week 1.
Down
CB Marco Wilson: The Patriots might want to consider playing Alex Austin when rotating cornerbacks. Wilson has been flagged for defensive pass interference penalties in consecutive weeks to start the season.
Patriots offensive line: Brissett was constantly under siege. He made the most of the situation by going 13-of-23 for 135 yards with a touchdown, but the line simply needs to protect him better.
Patriots wide receivers: The Patriots dressed five wide receivers, and they combined for 19 yards on three catches.
