For whatever it’s worth, Jabrill Peppers was the 9th-highest graded safety with at least 400 snaps in coverage last year by PFF. Dugger was 54th. Both allowed two catches against the Bengals according to PFF, Dugger for 18 yards, Peppers for 11 yards. I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that both of them are best when they’re closer to the line of scrimmage rather than playing in the deep half. It’s also a fair concern against some of the better tight ends in the league that are coming down the highway. With subpar pressure, there could be a spotlight on opponents targeting their tight ends and backs in coverage against the Patriots safeties and linebackers. It’s hard to engineer matchups all the time, but it’s been a concern with this group post Devin McCourty and, as you said, a couple of near touchdown plays almost brought those concerns to the forefront. We’ll see how it goes and how Jaylinn Hawkins might factor in. -Mike Dussault
Yes, I think Brissett is hurt from that last pre-season game his one throw to Thornton over 30 yards was a blooper and nothing over ten after that in the air. When he got hit and went to the ground he was in pain wasn’t a big hit .. do you think there’s an injury there? – @CheyenneSulli14
There hasn’t been anything mentioned so far and Brissett was not asked about it in the post-game so I believe this is more on managing chances than it is an injury. Perhaps the near endzone interception was also a factor that worried the coaches about taking shots outside and deep. Either way, as discussed above, finding a way to bring the intermediate and deep passing game to life will be a critical next step for this offense. It’s fair to wonder to what level can the offense get it to, especially when Brissett was under pressure nearly 50 percent of his dropbacks. Maye’s willingness and ability to chuck the ball downfield will be an appealing shift at some point but there are some steps to be taken before making that change. -Mike Dussault
Nothing that has to do with the game but I’m really curious to what all of you on PU think about what Belichick said about Maye during his talk with Lombardi. Did you all discuss yet? – @gmaria8
You can check out Coach’s comments here https://x.com/UnderdogFantasy/status/1832531856027259241). Personally I thought they were dead on and echo what both Tom Brady and the current Patriots coaching staff have indicated. Maye’s got a ton of talent and it’s not a surprise that it only took a couple of big throws for people to start salivating over him. But if there’s one thing I’ve learned from Brady, it’s that plays are more often won or lost before the snap. Brady made the most of sitting as a rookie and slowly piled up more and more knowledge so that he knew what to do simply by deciphering the defense as he got ready for the snap. Maye at the very least needs some games to understand how NFL games go from the QB perspective. I agree with the decision not to start him right away and I think BB does a great job pointing out how raw he is. It’s important to note that Maye is right now in some ways the anti-Brady… all the physical talent and not enough refinement. But it’s not too much to think as he better understands the game he’ll truly be able to put his God-given talents to full use. Patience is hard, but so is quarterbacking in the NFL. -Mike Dussault
Pats used Caedan Wallace as a swing tackle quite a bit yesterday, do you see this being a recurring trend to help with our OL issues through the season? Also last year we had 1/17 games with net positive EPA on O; this year we’re already 1/1, here’s to more! – @HitchikersPie
Loved seeing how they got Wallace’s feet wet in the first game, it was a perfect way to get him snaps, let him impact the game but not put any of the pressure on him to be a pass protector. I hope he can use this experience to continue getting more and more play time, perhaps eventually ascending to a starting right tackle role. Could Lowe-Robinson-Andrews-Onwenu-Wallace be where this offensive line eventually ends up? It would be a great sign if two rookies can win starting jobs, solidifying at least four-fifth’s of the OL. -Mike Dussault
Hi Deuce. Happy Monday! So, there was plenty of 85 and 81 on the field for the Pats last night. Do you think, perhaps, I have a season of two tight end sets to enjoy with this new offense? – @clazzyclare
I think you might not see too much more of the 12 personnel this year, Clare. They ran 12 plays of 12 and 13 plays of 12 with a tackle eligible for about 40%. 11 personnel (1 TE, 3 WR) remains the go-to with 53 percent of the snaps. Along those lines, they stuck with four wide receivers and the two tight ends as their primary packages. The offense needs to be more productive in the passing game and it seems like they know exactly which six “weapons” they way to do it with. On the bright side, Austin Hooper continues to look like the best complementary TE we’ve had for Henry since he arrived. And remember, both were banged up in camp. We’re just scratching the surface with them. -Mike Dussault
Kudos to Mayo and Pats, but the pregame vibe from Bengals was how unprepared that team was for the opener and still could have won it if not for very sloppy football. So can Pats keep relying on their D and ground game going forward? -Stan C.
This is the bottom line for me, Stan. This is a narrow road to victory and for all the good vibes coming off the win, it’s a road they’ve walked too much in recent seasons. You can’t lose the turnover battle. You must get an early lead. Special teams has to maximize field possession. And most importantly, you’ve got to make the clutch plays at the end. And even then it is likely to be a hotly-contested one-score game where one play will swing the result. They checked all of those boxes against the Bengals but how many times a year can you play perfectly like that? You need some explosiveness to overcome when you aren’t able to walk that narrow road. As for the defense, they’ve given us no reason to think they’ll be very far off from where they’ve been in recent seasons as one of the toughest defenses in the league. But with that said, the pass rush will have to be better against the better fully-manned teams. A good defense and an effective run game are worth a lot but I think everyone realizes that if you’re going to really compete for championships you’ve got to be able to get after the opposing quarterback consistently and throw the ball around the yard a bit more than they did in Week 1. -Mike Dussault