Patriots
Critical turnovers and another rough night for the O-line loomed large in New England’s loss.
Both the Patriots and 49ers entered Sunday’s matchup at Levi’s Stadium with a banged-up depth chart.
An already laboring New England roster took several hits to their porous offensive line. Vederian Lowe was ruled out for the second straight game, prompting Jerod Mayo to roll with waiver-wire pickup Demontrey Jacobs at left tackle.
A Patriots defense fresh off of giving up 400 yards to the Jets in Week 3 didn’t have its top edge setter in Anfernee Jennings — just a week removed from losing defensive captain Ja’Whaun Bentley for the year due to a torn pectoral muscle.
The 49ers were without star running back Christian McCaffrey, while several key cogs on offense like Deebo Samuel, Trent Williams, and George Kittle were all dealing with injuries throughout the week.
But unlike the Niners, the Patriots don’t have the depth or sizable margin of error needed to overcome the sting of the injury bug — not with this roster currently in place.
As such, a predictable outcome played out between the rebuilding Patriots and the reigning NFC champions on Sunday, with San Francisco handing New England a 30-13 loss.
Here are three reasons why the Patriots dropped to 1-3 in Santa Clara, California:
Critical turnovers
Drake Maye might have a higher ceiling than Jacoby Brissett, but the veteran remains at the top of the depth chart because he’s yet to make plays that have directly hindered his team on offense.
That sentiment changed on Sunday, due in large part to San Francisco star linebacker Fred Warner.
Early in the second quarter, Brissett coughed up his first interception of the season — and it was a complete back-breaker.
In one of the rare occasions where Brissett had a clean pocket and time to throw, Brissett delivered a pass over the middle that was picked off by Warner — with the linebacker returning the ball 45 yards for a touchdown and a 13-0 Niners lead.
While it’s not expected for New England’s offense to torch defenses through the air, the Patriots’ ground game also left a lot to be desired.
Rhamondre Stevenson might be the most dynamic player on New England’s largely punchless offense, but it’s hard to ignore his ball-security woes.
For the fourth time this season, Stevenson fumbled a ball, with the Niners turning the running back’s miscue into three points just five plays later off a Jake Moody field goal.
New England’s offense is already in a rough spot given its O-line woes. So long as this team’s big men up front labor in pass protection, the Patriots’ offense will continue to devolve into a predictable, one-dimensional, and woefully ineffective unit.
Brissett’s pick-six loomed large, but New England struggled to get much of anything going through the air the rest of the night. The Patriots finished with just 168 passing yards, with Antonio Gibson standing as the leading receiver with 67 yards.
Stevenson also struggled to string together dominant runs the rest of the evening, gaining just 43 rushing yards.
New England once again didn’t have the firepower to keep up with the Niners, with San Francisco holding a 431-216 edge in total yardage. But the Patriots aren’t going to win any games if they also turn the ball over at critical junctures.
Offensive line woes
The writing was on the wall for over a week that this was going to be a tough game for New England.
After relinquishing seven sacks and 15 QB hits to the Jets in Week 3, New England had to turn waiver-wire pickup Demontrey Jacobs — who made his NFL debut against the Jets last week — as the team’s starting left tackle.
The backup LT behind Jacobs? Rookie Caedan Wallace, who was shredded in his debut start against the Jets after playing right tackle throughout his collegiate career.
And on the other side of the field? Star pass-rusher Nick Bosa — who has averaged 14.8 sacks over the last three seasons.
Sure enough, the results weren’t surprising.
Even with the Niners playing without impactful defensive tackle Javon Hargrave (torn triceps), San Francisco still feasted against a Patriots O-line that allowed the highest pressure rate of any NFL team (48.5%) entering Week 4.
San Francisco finished with six sacks and 10 QB hits against New England, leading to another painful day for Brissett and New England’s offense.
Granted, Brissett didn’t make things easier on himself when it came to avoiding pressure and the aforementioned interception. But even if Brissett was locked in and crisp on all of his pass attempts, he was once again given limited time to scan the field and throw downfield.
To make matters worse, the Patriots’ offensive line was further decimated by injury on Sunday — with both Wallace (ankle) and starting center David Andrews (shoulder) ruled out during the game.
So long as this offensive line continues to submit performances like this, New England’s offense is doomed to fail — especially when compounded by turnovers.
Defense once again struggles in the passing game
No, McCaffrey? No problem for Brock Purdy and the Niners.
The Patriots’ defense was expected to be one of the few foundations of strength on this roster. But after relinquishing 400 yards to Aaron Rodgers and the Jets in Week 3, New England coughed up 431 yards to Brock Purdy and San Francisco.
Much like New England’s lackluster showing against the Jets in the Meadowlands, the Patriots defense struggled to contain the quarterback at Levi’s Stadium, allowing Purdy to regularly roll out and either gain first downs with his legs or hit one of his several targets downfield.
The Patriots should have strong personnel in their secondary with Christian Gonzalez and Jonathan Jones. But several teams have picked apart New England through the air in the last three weeks, with four Niners averaging over 15 yards per catch in Sunday’s game.
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