It was a long-awaited Week 1 game for fans of the New England Patriots, and it definitely didn't go the way we fans hoped it would. In a rematch of last season's Super Bowl, the result was the same, with the Seattle Seahawks defeating the Patriots, 13-10. New England's lone touchdown came in the second quarter off a pass to rookie tight end Eli Raridon.
Initially, it seemed like the Patriots caught a break with Sam Darnold leaving the game after Seattle's fifth offensive snap. But the Patriots couldn't take advantage of backup quarterback Drew Lock playing the remainder of the game.
Defensively, the Patriots played well for the most part and look ready to pick up where they left off after a strong playoff run. Offensively, it was a different story, as the offense struggled for the majority of the game. With that being said, I'm not going to count New England out of having a good season.
Most of the Patriots looked solid in the loss
Getting the bad out of the way first, this was the worst game Drake Maye has played, and he needs to be much better for the Patriots to have any chance of being successful this season. His three interceptions were all bad passes that he needs to clean up. Maye wasn't the only bad player offensively, with Romeo Doubs having a crucial drop on a 2nd and long.
While Maye was bad, the offensive line had a solid game (especially compared to how they looked against Seattle in the Super Bowl), with Rhamondre Stevenson having some good runs as well. The Seattle defense is also one of the best in the league, so matchups going forward should be easier.
For fans who remember just last season, New England lost in Week 1 to the Las Vegas Raiders (who finished as the worst team in the league). We all know what happened after that, with New England making it into the Super Bowl. This game felt very similar to Week 3 last year against the Pittsburgh Steelers, where turnovers did you in a very winnable game.
The Patriots will need to find their groove on offense
Between now and then, the biggest thing that the Patriots need to focus on is letting the offense find more cohesion and get on the same page. New England added better pieces to both sides of the ball, but the offense isn't fully clicking yet(maybe they should've played in the preseason a bit). Would also like to see a better game from Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels.
The biggest question mark after this game is easily the health of wide receiver A. J. Brown. Brown left the game during the second half after injuring his ankle.
Given the fact that they played on a Wednesday, New England is getting a small bye week, not playing again until Sunday, September 20, when they host the Pittsburgh Steelers. This should be a great bounce-back opportunity for the Patriots. Should the offense struggle again as they did in the season opener, then things could go south quickly for the Patriots.
Until then though, I'm not going to declare the season over off of the Week 1 loss.
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