Another one bit the dust for the New England Patriots on the road on Sunday, as they dropped their third consecutive loss to the Las Vegas Raiders.
The offense was in it to the very end with quarterback Mac Jones having a chance to put together a game-winning late in the fourth quarter.
But then Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby happened.
When backed into his own end zone, Jones gave up a sack for a safety to put an end to any hopes of a miracle ending for the now 1-5 Patriots. The sack came after offensive tackle Vederian Lowe was beaten badly, again, by a pass-rusher.
This clearly wasn’t one of Jones’ best games on the field, but he did give the team a chance to stay in the game with an absolute dime of a throw to wideout DeVante Parker, who somehow dropped the ball.
Absolutely perfect pass from Mac Jones.
Drop from DeVante Parker.#Patriots pic.twitter.com/MMUDNGu8V4
— Henry McKenna (@henrycmckenna) October 15, 2023
That was easily one of Jones’ best throws of the season, and it still wasn’t enough for the offense to take advantage.
Rookie quarterback Malik Cunningham got in on some package plays in the game, but he wasn’t given many opportunities after replacing Bailey Zappe and Will Grier as the top backup option for Jones under center.
If anything, this game was more proof that the Patriots lack the skilled position talent to compete in the NFL. Parker has barely made a dent as an impactful playmaker, and the JuJu Smith-Schuster signing already looks like a failure, six games into the season.
It’s hard to envision the Patriots turning things around when the roster is at the root of their struggles. They need a hard reset, and they need it as soon as possible.
