SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Expectations weren’t high for the Patriots coming into Levi’s Stadium, but the performance on Sunday was still disappointing.
In the first two weeks of the 2024 NFL season, the Patriots looked like a well-coached, hard-fought team with heart. In their Week 3 loss to the New York Jets, Jerod Mayo’s team didn’t look like any of those traits. Following the defeat, it was fair to wonder how much of that performance was due to the team playing on Thursday night.
On Sunday, however, it appeared that the Patriots performance through the first two weeks was a mirage.
Taking on the NFC-favorite San Francisco 49ers, the Patriots looked woefully overmatched. With injuries piling up (the team lost David Andrews, Kyle Dugger, and Caedan Wallace on Sunday), the Patriots struggled to keep up and compete with a talented opponent.
The Patriots offense struggled to block, pass, and move the ball. The defense gave up big plays. The best part of Sunday’s matchup was the Patriots special teams unit.
Predictably, that wasn’t enough as the Patriots suffered a 30-13 loss to the 49ers. Jerod Mayo’s team drops to 1-3.
Here’s what happened:
Patriots first half was disastrous
It didn’t start that bad for the Patriots, but the first half quickly turned into dumpster fire for the offensive unit.
The Patriots picked up two first downs on the opening drive but came away with no points zone. Jacoby Brissett made two nice third-down throws to move the chains and get the group to midfield. However, they stalled at the 41-yard line after Brissett’s pass on third-and-3 fell incomplete.
On that drive, the Patriots lost center David Andrews, who left the game with a shoulder injury.
The Patriots second drive was a disaster. On the first play, at 2:26 of the first, Rhamondre Stevenson fumbled for the fourth game in a row. The ball was forced out by Sam Okuayinonu and recovered by 49ers defensive lineman Maliek Collins at the 30-yard line. The turnover cost the Patriots three points as the 49ers led, 6-0, in the opening quarter.
For the offense, it somehow got worse. On the third drive, Brissett was intercepted by 49ers linebacker Fred Warner, who ran the ball back 35 yards for the touchdown. That marked Brissett’s first interception of the season, and the Patriots trailed 13-0 at 14:01 of the second quarter.
The offense put together a much better drive their next time on the field, but this series ended in disappointment. Brissett rebounded with four completed passes on the drive to get the group 20 yards away from the end zone. On fourth-and-1, however, Stevenson was stuffed for no gain and the Patriots turned the ball over on down.
The Patriots next drive ended with Brissett getting strip sacked on third down. Backup center Nick Leverett recovered the fumble.
Kicker Joey Slye ended the half on a good note as he kicked a 63-yard field goal with time expiring. The Patriots trailed 20-3 as Syle’s kick broke Stephon Gostkowski’s Patriots record (62 yards) for the longest kick in franchise history.
Big plays hurt the Patriots defense
The 49ers took it to the Patriots in their first drive, but the defense made a solid stand in the red zone.
Brock Purdy hit Brandon Aiyuk for a 38-yard gain to push the ball downfield. Next, Purdy hit George Kittle for 15 yards to set up a first-and-goal from the 6-yard line. That’s when the defensive unit stood up. Christian Gonzalez made a nice tackle on Deebo Samuel, stopping the receiver at the 4-yard line. Marcus Jones had solid coverage on Jauan Jennings on third down.
The 49ers settled for a 22-yard field goal from Jake Moody at 2:26 of the field quarter to take a 3-0 lead.
Unfortunately, the defense was on the field soon after following a Patriots turnover. Despite giving up one first down, the red zone defense held its own again. The 49ers extended their lead to 6-0 after a 26-yard field goal at the end of the first quarter.
Following a turnover on downs by the Patriots offense, the defense couldn’t put together another red zone stand. At 3:11 of the second quarter, Purdy hit George Kittle for a 12-yard touchdown. On the play, the tight end was covered by three Patriots defensive backs, but still caught the score. Another big pass play (32 yards to Jennings) hurt the Patriots on this drive.
Team couldn’t follow special teams lead
The Patriots special teams unit did all they could to keep their team in the game.
Punt returner Marcus Jones set up Slye’s 63-yard field goal. Then in the second half, the special teams unit forced a turnover.
On the opening kickoff in the third quarter, Christian Elliss forced a fumble on 49ers returner Isaac Guerendo. Elliss recovered the ball to give the Patriots the ball at the 27-yard line.
Things almost went awry, but on fourth-and-1, Brissett hit Austin Hooper for a 5-yard touchdown. The Patriots trailed, 20-10, at 12:08 of the third quarter.
The 49ers immediately answered, traveling 70 yards in 1:57 to take a 27-10 lead. On the first play of this drive, Purdy hit Deebo Samuel for 53 yards. That was the third pass of over 30 yards allowed by the defense in three quarters.
Three plays later, Jordan Mason scored a 4-yard rushing touchdown at 10:08 of the third quarter.
The defense held San Francisco on the next drive, forcing a punt. The offense tried to get things going with a trick play as Brissett connected with DeMario Douglas, who threw the ball to Stevenson. However, the play on third down was called back due to an illegal block in the back by Tyquan Thornton. That led to a three-and-out for the Patriots.
As they did in the second half, special teams continued to stand out. Marcus Jones returned a punt 15 yards to give the offense solid field position. That return, along with a defensive pass interference call, led to Slye hitting a 54-yard field. The Patriots trailed 27-13 with 13:26 remaining.
With 11:26 left, Jabrill Peppers intercepted Purdy in the end zone. That marked the first interception for the Patriots this season.
The turnover gave the Patriots life, but the moment was fleeting. The offense attempted to get a drive going, but Brissett was hammered by the 49ers defense on three straight plays. He was sacked on the second down and hit on an incomplete third-down pass. With 8:26 left, on fourth-and-5, Brissett was hit as he launched a deep pass to Ja’Lynn Polk. Although the rookie caught the pass in double coverage, he didn’t get both feet down before falling out of bounds.
That led to another turnover on downs for the Patriots. The 49ers turned that into three points off a 41-yard field goal and led 30-13 with 4:58 remaining.
The next time they had the ball, the Patriots got down to the 14-yard line. However, this drive ended with a Nick Bosa strip sack with 2:52 left on the clock. Bosa recovered the fumble.
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