For a moment, it looked like the New England Patriots had righted the ship, bouncing back from a team-wide flu bug to assert their dominance over the AFC.
Then the illusion collapsed. The initial touchdown was all trickery and penalties. Before long, the Kansas City Chiefs pulled the curtain back to reveal to stark reality of a very flawed Patriots offense that not even Tom Brady could prove himself wizard enough to fix.
Speaking of illusions, the Patriots defense is still good. But the idea that this is a historically dominant unit is starting to fade as they face some real teams.
The Chiefs had the NFL’s reigning MVP. They’re very much for real. But is this 10-3 Patriots team in its current form? They’ll have to prove otherwise after back-to-back lackluster losses to good teams.
On the bright side, there is one group that Patriots fans are angrier at than anyone: the refs.
1. Referee Jerome Boger got a lot of face time - and a lot of hate from the crowd
It’s never a good sign when you come out of a game and can easily recall the name of the referee. That was the case Sunday as Boger’s crew painted the field yellow. It certainly didn’t help that Chiefs safety Tyrann Mathieu was wearing bright yellow gloves that looked like flags.
It wasn’t even just called penalties. Three times in the first half, an official from Boger’s crew threw a flag, only for the head ref to turn on his mic and announce that, never mind, there wasn’t actually a penalty on the play.
The rain of boos turned into an outright storm after the officials ruled Travis Kelce down after a strip by Devin McCourty. Had the play not been blown dead, Stephon Gilmore had a real chance for a scoop-and-score.
It just kept getting worse, too. Officials ruled N’Keal Harry stepped out of bounds just short of the pylon -- despite replays showing that he may have stayed in. A couple plays later, a touchdown catch by Jakobi Meyers was ruled incomplete, turning what had looked like a touchdown into a field goal attempt.
2. The Patriots will have to wait at least another week before locking up a playoff spot
This is the second straight week where a win could have helped the Patriots clinch a postseason berth. It’s the second time they swung and missed.
After a dominant start to the regular season, the Patriots are started to fade back into the pack (and worse) as other contenders in the AFC start to prove themselves.
The Chiefs are still dynamic. The Baltimore Ravens are probably the best team in the league. Even so, the Buffalo Bills gave Baltimore a run for its money Sunday.
The Patriots still have 10 wins and can clinch a bye if they turn it around. But if they don’t, Buffalo and Kansas City could make January look very different.
3. The defense is starting to look mortal
This isn’t to say the defense is bad. It’s very talented, fast and can make some plays.
But there’s a limit to how much they can carry this team, especially against Patrick Mahomes & Co.
Early on, the Patriots matched speed-for-speed against the Chiefs, putting Stephon Gilmore on Sammy Watkins while throwing defenders at Travis Kelce and Tyreek Hill.
But after a while, cracks started to form. The Patriots kept the Chiefs from going deep. So instead, Mahomes picked apart the linebackers underneath as Hill, Kelce and Mecole Hardman zoomed horizontally rather than vertically.
4. Once again, the offense reawakens late after a slow start
The Patriots’ opening drive looked exciting, finishing it off with a 37-yard strike from Tom Brady to Julian Edelman off a flea flicker. But in reality, that trick play was their only offensive play that gained over three yards. The only reason they were in that position was a pair of pass interference calls.
The Chiefs then went on to score 23 unanswered points while the Patriots floundered in the passing game and failed to get any consistent running.
But just like last week in Houston, the Patriots found their groove later -- thanks again in large part to James White.
The weirdest part? White didn’t get his first touch of the game until 9 minutes left in the second quarter.
5. Sony Michel isn’t working out on offense right now
The Patriots opened things up with a heavy dose of Michel, giving him five carries and a reception in the first quarter. He gained a total of nine yards, and didn’t have much success after that.
Meanwhile, the Patriots managed to pop big plays with their other backs, namely James White, who gashed the Chiefs on the ground in spots. Then Brandon Bolden got in on the fun with a 10-yard touchdown on a jet sweep.
6. Bill Belichick challenged his first pass interference (non) call; he lost
The ability to challenge pass interference plays has been a big talking point so far this year. But between the preseason and regular season, Belichick had refrained from trying it out -- until Sunday.
Belichick appeared furious on the sideline after Gilmore appeared to be obstructed by tight end Travis Kelce (specifically his rear end) on a play. The officials, despite Belichick’s ire, kept the play as-is.
The lost challenge wound up being key, as it prevented the Patriots from challenging whether Harry got into the end zone later in the game.
7. The Patriots’ best unit might be their punt block
The Patriots extended their franchise record Sunday night by blocking their fourth punt of the season. Let’s put that number in context: The rest of the NFL has five blocks combined on the year.
In a game where the offense was stifled and the defense was showing cracks, the punt block unit provided a rare spark, sending the ball bouncing out of bounds at the Chiefs’ 20-yard line. Shortly after, the Patriots scored their first touchdown since the opening drive of the game, giving new line to the team’s chances to get back into this game.
The defense has gotten plenty of attention this year -- deservedly so. But don’t overlook how dynamic the special teams units have been.
8. Julian Edelman is now the fourth-leading receiver in Patriots history
While the Patriots offense may be struggling in the present, it still hasn’t stopped Julian Edelman’s march through the Patriots history books.
On Sunday, he passed Troy Brown to take hold of the No. 4 spot in receiving yards in Patriots history.
9. N’Keal Harry just isn’t playing
This is the third game in which the Patriots’ first-round pick has been healthy and active. He was essentially a no-show, with his first snap not coming until halfway through the second quarter.
It’s a curious development for a Patriots offense that’s struggling to get any receivers going. It’s also notable that Harry has been a ghost on offense since he was beaten inside by a defender, who wound up picking off Brady.
10. The Chiefs got an assist from the Massachusetts State Police
The big story heading into Sunday’s game was the bizarre report that the Chiefs had accidentally had a good portion of equipment shipped to New Jersey instead of Foxboro. As a result, there was a legitimate concern that the Chiefs wouldn’t have enough equipment to play the game. In such a case, the Chiefs would have to forfeit.
However, the equipment made it to Gillette Stadium a little after 2:30 p.m. The Chiefs avoided disaster on Sunday, but apparently they got some help from some Massachusetts state troopers.
The NFL is likely happy that the game took place as normal. However, there are certainly a number of Patriots fans who would have been plenty happy if Kansas City forfeited.
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Patriots lay another dud vs. Chiefs; only thing fans booed more than the offense were the refs (10 things we - MassLive.com
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