Their defense took the brunt of the blame for the New England Patriots wasting 21- and 17-point leads against the Buffalo Bills in Week 15, but wide receiver Mack Hollins is also catching heat for a strategy on offense blasted as “shocking.”
Hollins, a former member of the Bills who joined the Pats’ expensive rebuild last offseason, was way too involved at Gillette Stadium. That’s the view of The Ringer’s Steven Ruiz, who lamented “a shocking number of Mack Hollins targets” during the 35-31 setback against the Patriots’ fiercest AFC East rivals.
Ruiz viewed the heavy involvement for Hollins as an indictment of quarterback Drake Maye and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels. Specifically, Ruiz believes “McDaniels’s play calling didn’t give his second-year quarterback much of a chance or create any opportunities for the Pats’ best receivers.”
That flaw was summed up by Hollins leading “the team with eight attempts thrown his way, and those plays produced just 41 yards and lost two expected points, per TruMedia.”
No matter who he was targeting, Maye’s accuracy was also a problem for Ruiz. He entered the game as arguably the most in-form QB1 in the NFL, but “Maye attempted only four passes in the final quarter, so he didn’t have much of a chance to impact the game in crunch time, but he missed the mark the few times he did.”
Ruiz has put a lot on Hollins’ target share, but there was plenty of blame to go around for how New England’s offense faltered after halftime.
Mack Hollins, Drake Maye Fell Flat vs. Bills
Hollins not being able to move the chains as a receiver was one reason the Patriots spent most of the second half going three and out on offense. The trend was called out by a franchise legend as a root cause for the collapse, but there were other issues.
Those problems included the Bills being able to shut down another of their former wideouts, Stefon Diggs. He’s supposed to be the big-play target for Maye, but Diggs suffered a disappearing act at the worst time, despite his best efforts to put a positive spin on the defeat.
Diggs making just three catches for a mere 26 yards showed how the Bills made the Patriots play small ball through the air. It didn’t help Maye became less decisive and inaccurate in key moments.
Two of those moments occurred after rookie running back TreVeyon Henderson scored from 65 yards. Maye “hesitated on an open throw and took a sack on second down before leaving a throw behind tight end Hunter Henry on third down,” per Ruiz.
McDaniels’ offense couldn’t stay on track, but opportunities for his unit were limited by how the Bills ran over New England’s defense.
Patriots Defense Has Fatal Flaw
Head coach Mike Vrabel wasn’t happy with his defense, particularly how the group failed to stand up to the Bills’ running game. That’s a valid criticism after two-time Pro Bowler James Cook consistently produced big gains and helped Buffalo control the clock.
The big problem was how the Patriots couldn’t get off blocks, exemplified by Cook averaging 3.3 yards before contact, per rushing attempt, according to Pro Football Reference.
His 11-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter, the go-ahead score, highlighted how easy it was for Cook to run through the middle practically untouched.
It’s a problem the Pats must get fixed before facing the Baltimore Ravens in Week 16. The Ravens are coming off a 189-yard rushing effort against the Cincinnati Bengals, led by two-time NFL rushing champion Derrick Henry amassing 100 yards on only 11 carries.
Henry’s power, allied with the speed of backup Keaton Mitchell and dual-threat QB Lamar Jackson, means the Ravens can gash defenses in multiple ways on the ground.
Not having $104 million defensive tackle Milton Williams, who’s on injured reserve with an ankle problem, is hurting the Patriots, but they need more creative fixes for a growing and potentially fatal flaw.
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