Patriots

Kelce and Mahomes weren’t at their best, but it was still more than enough to beat the Patriots.

COMMENTARY

FOXBOROUGH — The stars are on the other side now. It’s been that way with the Patriots for a while now, but Sunday’s loss made it painfully clear yet again.

Remember when the Patriots were defending Super Bowl champs with the best quarterback in the league?

Those days are long gone. It’s the Chiefs with the star power now. One could argue that the most interesting thing going on in Foxborough on Sunday was Taylor Swift’s appearance at the game.

Swift once said that Gillette Stadium is the “most joyful place on Earth.” Obviously, the said that within a musical context. But, where is the joy in watching the Patriots’ product that marches onto this field every other week? A 3-11 record with the NFL’s least productive offense seems pretty joyless if you ask me.

The Patriots needed to move the ball just eight yards to score a touchdown after Marte Mapu recorded his first career interception, and they couldn’t do it. They had to settle for a field-goal.

New England’s next five possessions ended in an interception followed by four consecutive punts. The Patriots even punted on 4th-and-3 while down 17 points.

Mahomes, Kelce, and Andy Reid are household NFL names these days. The only one New England has left is Bill Belichick, and who knows how much longer he’ll be here with these kinds of results?

New England was competitive…for about a half. Here are a few postgame final thoughts.

Belichick not ‘fazed’ by rumors, linebacker says

At 3-11, rumors of Belichick’s job status continue to swirl.

Tom E. Curran of NBC Sports Boston reported that the decision has already been made to move on from Belichick. NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport wrote that Belichick’s fate has not yet been decided. ESPN’s Dan Graziano said there’s a “growing belief” around the NFL that Belichick will not return next year.

Linebacker Jahlani Tavai was asked if the reports affect the way the Patriots are approaching the remainder of the season.

“Every day is job security,” Tavai said. “It’s not just him or his job on the line, you know? Going back to character. I don’t think anybody saw Bill fazed on the sideline. He was trying to get some calls for us. He was in the referee’s ears. I appreciate him fighting for us when we can’t fight against the refs.”

“I’m not making excuses,” Tavai added. “it’s on us as a team to know what we’re doing out there and execute to the fullest potential.”

Cole Strange was ‘mad’ he had to be carted off the field

Offensive lineman Cole Strange left the game in the second quarter with a knee injury and did not return. He was taken off the field on a cart.

“Anytime you see a cart come out there, that’s tough,” offensive lineman David Andrews said. “Unfortunately, it’s part of the deal you sign up for to play this game. Cole is a tough kid. He was mad that they were bringing a cart out. He wanted to walk and they told him that wasn’t an option.”

Injuries hit the Patriots hard on Sunday, particularly on the offensive line losing Strange and Conor McDermott who left with a head injury. Tight-end Hunter Henry left the game with a knee injury. Belichick said he didn’t have any updates on Henry.

“It was tough to lose [Strange], it was tough to lose Connor, it was tough to lose Hunter,” Belichick said.

A ‘terrible’ interception doomed the Patriots — again

Bailey Zappe had a strong start for the second week in a row. He completed 17 of his first 19 passes and threw a touchdown to Henry.

He nearly had another to Henry, spinning away from pressure and hitting him in the end zone, but the play was called back because of a holding penalty on McDermott.

But, the interception he threw in the third quarter was an egregious one. He threw the ball well short of Pharaoh Brown and into double coverage. Kansas City’s Wille City caught the ball in stride.

The Patriots were down by a touchdown at the time. The interception gave Kansas City the ball on New England’s seven yard line, and the Chiefs easily punched the ball in for the score after two plays.

“Just simply not good enough,” Zappe said. “Started off hot in the first half again like we did the previous week. Came in here, made adjustments, understood what we wanted to attack. Threw an interception on the first play of the second half which was terrible on my part. Take away seven points and it’s a whole different game.”

Kelce and Mahomes weren’t at their best, and it was still more than enough to win

Mahomes threw a pair of interceptions. Kelce dropped a potential touchdown catch and finished with five catches for 28 yards.

“87 was a big target. I don’t think he did too much,” defensive back Jalen Mills said of Kelce.

But still, already up by double-digits, the Chiefs found themselves with an opportunity to run the score up even more on the final drive of the game. Kansas City received the ball with first and goal on the New England six yard line, but opted to kneel down and run out the clock.

“It was the right thing to do,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said.