Patriots v.s. Panthers Recap

This was easily not the Patriots best showing of the preseason so far. It was a surprising plethora of mistakes and dumb moves that cost them this one. They did not seem like they were firing on all cylinders, and the Panthers took full advantage. There are plenty of things I’m sure they will look back and look to fix heading into the season.

There are so many more negatives, so we can start with the positives. Brady had the offense moving in the second quarter. They looked smooth and like they’ve been doing it all year. Hogan was making catches and Edelman looked shifty on a screen. What was more promising is how Cordarrelle Patterson and Phillip Dorsett looked. Dorsett looked very solid, making some good catches in open space. Patterson proved that he is worthy of a roster spot with his new found route running ability, and his speed after catching the ball. Not much positive came from the defensive side of the ball, but I thought Eric Rowe looked solid. Aside from this, there really was not much to write home about.

The defense looked atrocious. Gilmore looked silly to the likes of Funchess and Curtis Samuel, which is not promising for a number 1. The tackling was very poor all around, and Keion Crossen still looked bad. Cyrus Jones was back, and that in itself seemed negative. He really made a minimal impact. The pass rush was almost non existent after a week with 8 sacks. Linebackers were letting runs go for almost 5 yards a pop. They had a lot of bend but don’t break moments early, which is better than giving up TDs, but is not something you can win games off of. Dumb mistakes like late hits by LaAdrian Waddle brought great drives to a halt. The difference in protection of Brady was significant when he was benched after that, but those are things that ruin great drives. Eric Decker was still a minimal impact on the game, and did nothing impressive. The running game seemed to struggle no matter who was carrying the rock too.

The defense really looked poor and seems to always have flaws against the Panthers. This is a team that most likely will not go far enough to give the Pats issues, but it is clear there are some issues that need to be addressed. One being players that Brady has to throw to, and the other being the entire defense. It will be interesting to see who may get cut in the upcoming week after this game.

-Jake Kobierski (@TheRealKobe83)

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