[elaine95]

The New England Patriots are still on their way to earn a first-round playoff bye Rex Burkhead Jersey , but they did suffer their second loss in a row on Sunday — and their first at home this year: the Kansas City Chiefs visited Gillette Stadium and were able to leave again with a 23-16 victory in their bags. New England, meanwhile, has still not locked up a playoff spot despite being 10-3 and owning the second best record in the AFC after 14 weeks of regular season play.With that being said, let’s take a look at some of the players who stood out on Sunday, without the benefit of a film review.Losers: The non-Julian Edelman wide receivers (Mohamed Sanu, Phillip Dorsett II, N’Keal Harry, Jakobi Meyers)Mohamed Sanu is still only playing a marginal role after his ankle injury. Phillip Dorsett had another miscommunication with Tom Brady and generally was unable to get separation. Jakobi Meyers struggled with drops again. N’Keal Harry played only two snaps. For a second week in a row, the Patriots’ entire wide receiver group with the exception of number one target Julian Edelman played a disappointing game. Yes, they had their moments — from Harry’s catch-and-run that was ruled a 12-yard gain instead of a touchdown to Meyers’ 35-yard catch on a halfback pass from James White — but it was not enough to help New England’s struggling offense get into any consistent rhythm. Winners: WR Julian Edelman & RB James WhiteThe Patriots’ most reliable skill position players had another good outing against the Chiefs. While they also had some miscues, Julian Edelman and James White finished the game responsible for 198 of the team’s 278 yards of offense: Edelman had a team-high eight catches for 95 yards and a touchdown as well as an 8-yard carry; White had five catches for 27 yards and six carries for 33 and also contributed a 35-yard pass to Jakobi Meyers. As productive as the two veterans were on Sunday, New England getting some production elsewhere would certainly also help them and create more favorable matchups.Winner: FS Devin McCourtyDevin McCourty is arguably playing the best football of his career this season Womens Donald Trump Jersey , and he had another solid outing against Kansas City’s talented offense while being involved in two of the biggest plays of the game. In the third quarter, he seemingly stopped wide receiver Sammy Watkins from gaining enough yardage to convert a third-and-four even though the play was upheld after a Bill Belichick challenge. Later on the same series, he also forced a Travis Kelce fumble that was recovered by New England. While the two plays cost the Patriots their two challenges — this would become relevant on the N’Keal Harry no-score — they did show McCourty’s impact on the game.Week 14: Patriots vs ChiefsPhoto by Maddie Meyer/Getty ImagesPatriots vs Chiefs recap: Early errors too much to overcome; New England loses 23-16Instant analysis from Patriots’ 23-16 loss to Chiefs‘We still had a chance in the game’: Patriots share their thoughts on the officiating after losing to ChiefsPatriots defense plays encouraging second half against Chiefs after slow startThe Lane Breakdown: Officiating not the only reason for Patriots’ loss against ChiefsLoser: CB Jonathan JonesJonathan Jones settled down in the second half and made some strong plays against Tyreek Hill, but his slow start contributed to the Patriots falling behind early against Kansas City. Not only did he allow Hill to make some plays on him and also get open for a 21-yard catch on a third-and-19, he was furthermore unable to keep up with Mecole Hardman on a 45-yard touchdown in the second quarter. Kansas City’s offense is too good to let such lapses go unpunished, and Jones had two of them on Sunday.Winner: LB Kyle Van NoyEven though Kansas City had some success against the Patriots in the first half, the defense as a whole played a good game considering the circumstances. One of the unit’s standouts was once again linebacker Kyle Van Noy: while the final stat sheet has the veteran defender down with just five tackles, he was able to consistently set the edge well in the running game and bring pressure from the end of the line — including on a third-and-five that saw Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes get flagged for illegal grabbing the defender’s face mask.Loser: The offensive line (Isaiah Wynn, Joe Thuney, James Ferentz, Shaq Mason, Marcus Cannon http://www.patriotsl...richards-jersey , Marshall Newhouse)Having to play without starting center Ted Karras, who was inactive because of a knee injury, the Patriots’ offensive line had one of its worst games of the season. The unit failed to consistently generate a push in the running game and also struggled to create stable pockets for quarterback Tom Brady to work in — something most obvious on third downs: according to Pro Football Focus, he was under pressure on 69.2 percent of New England’s third down plays. New center James Ferentz played a major part in this, but breakdowns occurred all over the line and disrupted the entire offense from start to finish.They also hurt the kicking game, as Marcus Cannon and Marshall Newhouse failed to stop Tanoh Kpassagnon from getting into the backfield on Nick Folk’s 41-yard field goal attempt in the late first quarter. The kick would have given New England a 10-3 lead, but instead set up Kansas City’s first touchdown of the day.Winner: CB J.C. JacksonWith Jason McCourty severely limited in his return — he was on the field for only four defensive snaps — J.C. Jackson again played a starting role as the outside cornerback opposite Stephon Gilmore. And once more the second-year man showed why he is among the most promising young defensive backs in the NFL: Jackson’s name was rarely mentioned and he also registered an interception to end the Chiefs’s first drive of the day.Loser: RB Sony MichelThe blocking and the Patriots falling behind in the second quarter contributed to his limited workload, but Sony Michel did not inspire much confidence against the Chiefs: finishing the game with only nine snaps and five attempts for eight yards, the former first-round draft pick was unable to find success against what has been a mediocre run defense so far this season. Kansas City deserves credit for clogging the lanes whenever he was on the field, but Michel himself remains an enigma 14 weeks into the season.Winner: SS Nate EbnerWhile the blocked field goal try is a blemish on the Patriots’ special teams record, the unit did make up for it later in the game: in the third quarter, Nate Ebner burst through the line unblocked on a punt and was able to get his hands onto the football for a clean block. The ball ultimately rolled out of bounds at the Chiefs’ 19-yard line Stephon Gilmore Jersey , and the offense scored its second touchdown of the day just two plays later. Ebner’s block was a momentum-changing play that put the Patriots in position again to come back out of a 16-point hole.2018 Week 6 Patriots Power Rankings: New England climbs up the board! The New England Patriots crushed the Indianapolis Colts 38-24 in a game that shouldn’t have even been that close at the final whistle. That means the Patriots have performed at their expected level over the past two weeks.And that means that the Patriots are back to climbing up the charts.The Patriots have their biggest challenge of the year next Sunday as they host the undefeated Kansas City Chiefs, but both the offense and the defense seem to be playing their best football of the year- and there’s always hope when Tom Brady and company are playing at home.Oh, and I just wanted to highlight how Marima predicted that the Patriots would win by 14 points over the Colts. Well done.Around the AFC East:(3-2) New England Patriots vs (5-0) Kansas City Chiefs(3-2) Miami Dolphins vs (3-1) Chicago Bears(2-3) New York Jets vs (1-4) Indianapolis Colts(2-3) Buffalo Bills at (2-3) Houston TexansAFC Matchups:(2-2-1) Pittsburgh Steelers at (4-1) Cincinnati Bengals(3-2) Los Angeles Chargers at (2-2-1) Cleveland Browns(2-3) Seattle Seahawks at (1-4) Oakland Raiders(5-0) Los Angeles Rams at (2-3) Denver Broncos(3-2) Jacksonville Jaguars at (2-3) Dallas Cowboys(3-2) Baltimore Ravens at (3-2) Tennessee Titans************************************************3rd - Frank Schwab (Yahoo! Sports): We’re seeing why Sony Michel was a first-round pick. He has 210 rushing yards and two touchdowns the past two games. If Michel is going to give the Patriots balance on offense, they’ll be very tough to beat.3rd - MMQB Staff (SI): The Patriots seem to have returned to form since we dropped them to No. 11 a couple weeks ago. Now they get Kansas City at home on extra rest.3rd - Experts (ESPN): Rest-of-season SOS ranking: 29th. The Patriots’ toughest remaining game will be in Week 15 in Pittsburgh, where FPI gives them a 45 percent chance to beat the Steelers. Tom Brady is 11-2 in his career against the Steelers, including the playoffs. That is the best record by a starting quarterback against the Steelers in the Super Bowl era (minimum 10 starts).3rd - Joe Giglio (NJ.com): Julian Edelman is back, and the Patriots’ weapons (Rob Gronkowski, Edelman, Josh Gordon, Sony Michel, James White) suddenly looks formidable again.4th - Nate Davis (USA Today): Last time they hosted K.C., New England’s banner-raising ‘17 opener Womens Montee Ball Jersey , they were upset by Alex Smith and Co. What does Mahomes have in store?4th - Expert Consensus (Bleacher Report): So, about the New England Patriots being in trouble.As it turns out, the only folks in trouble may well be the rest of the AFC—again.For the second straight week, the Patriots handled an inferior opponent with relative ease. This week it was a beaten-up Colts team that got a thumping in a game that really wasn’t as close as the score.It was also a game in which New England showcased some new offensive weaponry. Josh Gordon made his first big catch as a Patriot, and rookie tailback Sony Michel piled up 110 total yards. Both had 34-yard touchdowns in the second half that blew this game open.A so-so New England defense will be tested in a big way against the Kansas City Chiefs next week, but for now, it appears the Patriots are back on track after their September stumble.Per Sobleski, we shouldn’t be surprised by any of it.”The Patriots are who we thought they were,” he said, “and we never let them off the hook. Two straight impressive victories over the Miami Dolphins and Indianapolis Colts placed the Pats where they belong atop the AFC East with a 3-2 record. Josh Gordon and Julian Edelman’s additions to the lineup are a legitimate boost to Tom Brady’s surrounding cast.”4th - Joshua Schrock (NESN): New England responded from its Week 3 flop against the Detroit Lions by pummeling the Miami Dolphins and handling the Indianapolis Colts in back-to-back weeks to set up a marquee matchup with the Chiefs. The return of Julian Edelman and emergence of Josh Gordon has made the Patriots’ offense much more dangerous than it was during the first three weeks of the season.4th - Vinnie Iyer (Sporting News): They’re back on track above .500, even with a slew of more defensive issues. Look for their true explosive and balanced offense to be unleashed against the Chiefs.4th - Mike Florio (ProFootballTalk): The Patriots are Back is back.4th - Staff (AP Pro32).6th - Rebecca Toback (SB Nation): The Patriots are also on the rise after a win over the lowly Colts. It seemed like half of the Indianapolis roster was injured, so it’s hard to read too much into the game. Tom Brady had a 341-yard http://www.patriotsl...y-niklas-jersey , three-touchdown, and two-interception performance to help the Patriots to a 38-24 victory.6th - Mark Maske (Washington Post): Remember when the Patriots were facing an early-season crisis? That’s so two weeks ago. They look like themselves again, but their next two games are extremely interesting, starting with a home game against the Chiefs followed by a visit to Chicago.7th - Bryan Fischer (Athlon Sports): It wasn’t long ago that there was concern across the league about this team. Sun rise, sun set and the Patriots are back on top of the division. Things won’t get any easier going forward but the adjustments are being made and the offense looks significantly more dangerous with the receiver corps at full strength.7th - Pete Prisco (CBS Sports): They have righted things the past two weeks, but now comes a real proving game against the Chiefs.AVERAGE RANK: 4.4 (+2.3)*******************************************************************SB NATION SAMPLING:4th - Brandon Lee Gowton (BleedingGreenNation): Surprise, surprise. The Pats are back on top of the AFC East after an early season hiccup.4th - David Fucillo (NinersNation): The New England Patriots are always in the mix.