Patriots-Steelers film review: The silver linings for Drake Maye, Mike Vrabel in another loss

You know what happened The Patriots lost four fumbles and threw a brutal pick yet still had a chance to win Sunday Then they blew that opportunity with another kind of turnover failing to convert on fourth-and- in Pittsburgh territory with barely a minute left By now DeMario Douglas knows he can t move backward with the ball on fourth-and-short Rhamondre Stevenson has surely been described he can t fumble anymore That goes for Antonio Gibson too And Drake Maye continues to wrestle with the risk-reward balance of creating plays outside of structure while not risking turnovers on extended plays that can often take the Patriots out of games That balance may eventually come to define Maye s season and perhaps the Patriots campaign as a whole For now Maye s fumble helped sink them Sunday when his last two sacks straightaway followed effective scrambles for first downs On both plays Maye passed up safer choices taking a sack and a checkdown to scramble chasing the type of extended play that had just rewarded him but ultimately burned his company The Patriots lost the ball on one series then three yards on the next His final sack came on a first-and- snap with under two minutes left That mistake eventually kept the Pats an extra yard short after Hunter Henry gained yards on a third-down completion Again you know what happened next But there s still plenty to learn from the good the bad and the dumbfounding of Sunday s contest Here s what else the film revealed about the Patriots latest loss Drake Maye -of- for yards TDs INT Accurate throw percentage Under pressure -of- for yards sacks rushing yards Against the blitz -of- for yards TD Behind the line -of- for yards - yards downfield -of- for yards TD INT - yards downfield -of- for yards TD yards downfield N A Notes It wasn t the volume of mistakes Maye made so much as their timing and severity He took at least three points off the board with his tipped pick in the end zone moments before halftime On that same series he overshot DeMario Douglas on a deep right-to-left crosser that should have yielded an explosive play The drive before he underthrew a wide-open Douglas in the right flat for a major catch-and-run opportunity Midway through the fourth quarter standing inside field goal range Maye fumbled away a anticipated go-ahead drive And on the Patriots final possession he took a three-yard sack after passing up an easy checkdown which pushed the offense back three yards it sure could have used Because three snaps later Douglas with a mistake of his own came one yard shy of extending the match The strange thing is Maye was largely decisive Sunday He beat the blitz He saw coverage well and hit several first-read throws He ripped a couple tight-window completions and threw with anticipation the majority notably on a deep pass to Kayshon Boutte he threaded over the middle between two zone defenders and later an -yard wheel-route toss to Hunter Henry Maye merely has to rid himself of the impulse to create something out of nothing when the walls are closing in Greater part of his scrambles came off play-action rollouts which put him on the move by design and let him make decisions with time and space That is the time to create not under duress when the exposure soars disproportionately to the rewards The great ones like Maye s childhood hero and counterpart Sunday Aaron Rodgers know A history lesson in his final season Tom Brady threw the ball away at the highest rate of his career to avoid negative plays and keep drives alive with one of the league s worst receiving corps and a linebacker at fullback So how much do you think Maye would give to exchange one of his turnovers for a throwaway right about now Critical areas Turnovers Patriots Steelers Explosive play rate Patriots Steelers Success rate Patriots Steelers Red-zone efficiency Patriots - Steelers - Defensive pressure rate Patriots Steelers Offense Foxboro MA - New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye signals to Hunter Henry during the fourth quarter of the contest at Gillette Stadium Nancy Lane Boston Herald Meeting plan Personnel breakdown of snaps in personnel snaps in personnel snaps in H personnel snaps in F personnel snaps in personnel Personnel production success rate in personnel success rate in personnel success rate in H personnel success rate in F personnel success rate in personnel First-down down play-calls pass success rate run success rate Play-action rate Josh McDaniels might as well have put kick me signs on the backs of the Steelers linebackers Through constant pre-snap motion and misdirection the Patriots were relentless in attacking a group that had struggled against run and pass entering Sunday McDaniels largest part common personnel grouping featured two tight ends an obvious effort to keep Pittsburgh in base personnel That plan led directly to a season-high play-action rate and Hunter Henry s targets almost triple the total of his next closest teammate Mack Hollins had four Several play-action passes had Maye on the move which mirrored the company s Shanahan-esque plan that led to a -point outburst in Miami But because the Patriots success on the run that paired with those play-action rollouts outside zone were not productive and McDaniels lost trust in his backs ability to pass-protect TreVeyon Henderson and or hold onto the ball Rhamondre Stevenson and Antonio Gibson he steered the offense into a more traditional quick passing attack Maye thrived in this setting finding regular holes in Pittsburgh s zone on his initial reads On the ground the Pats hit their longest runs on duo a gap scheme founded on two double-teams up front In critical situations the Patriots ran left to avoid Steelers outside linebacker T J Watt and converted multiple fourth downs this way But aside from those fourth downs McDaniels could not replicate the success Pittsburgh s past opponents had with weak-side runs in that direction six yards per carry for them for the Pats which undercut a pillar of their overall plan A major quibble The Patriots should have targeted another weakness in the Steelers back seven cornerback Brandin Echols Maye and McDaniels targeted him in the red zone but Kayshon Boutte drew a pass interference penalty on his only deep target against Echols They should have fed Boutte more passes and attacked Pittsburgh s man-to-man coverage Member stats Foxboro MA - New England Patriots running back Rhamondre Stevenson fumbles the ball during the first quarter of the event at Gillette Stadium Nancy Lane Boston Herald Broken tackles RB Rhamondre Stevenson RB TreVeyon Henderson QB Drake Maye Pressure allowed LT Will Campbell QB hits hurries LG Jared Wilson hurries RT Morgan Moses sack QB hit QB Drake Maye sack C Garrett Bradbury hurry RG Mike Onwenu hurry Group sacks QB hit hurries Run stuffs allowed WR Mack Hollins Onwenu Drops TE Hunter Henry Notes Rhamondre Stevenson s fumbles came down to sloppy ball shield Stevenson did not hold the ball tight enough in traffic and that cost the Patriots control of the tournament in the first quarter then a touchdown in the third Stevenson played just two offensive snaps after his second fumble when TreVeyon Henderson thanks to an Antonio Gibson fumble soaked up most of of his snaps But Henderson s tape had warts too including a missed blitz pickup and impatience on a limited decently blocked runs Out wide Stefon Diggs again played about half of the offensive snaps Drake Maye continues to favor him in critical situations and his best catch came on a whip highway shortly before halftime that gained seven yards on third-and- Diggs preponderance impactful play however was picking Stevenson s man-coverage defender on a -yard catch-and-run earlier in that same drive the Patriots longest play of the day Diggs missed his assignment on a similar play in Miami which resulted in Stevenson catching a pass for no gain Kayshon Boutte curiously saw just three targets as the Patriots majority of productive receiver He again saw the preponderance snaps among wideouts followed by Mack Hollins who is filling a pseudo-tight end fullback role at times Is it time for DeMario Douglas to hit the bench Not yet considering Maye s inaccuracy when throwing in his direction Sunday But Douglas should have a short leash Failing to get past the sticks on fourth-and- then going backwards were small moves that led to a major mistake and no receiver seems to miss more details than Douglas Hats off to Hunter Henry on an excellent championship where he fought through injury in the second half He ran sharp routes and fought as a run-blocker The run competition was generally a mess Each offensive lineman and the tight ends took turns missing blocks which led to a major drop in success rate In pass protection Will Campbell struggled with Steelers outside linebacker Nate Herbig an underrated pass-rusher with plus athleticism and a scant strong moves Campbell allowed the the greater part quick pressures of any O-lineman including one on an inside move from Herbig the type that beat him the majority often in college Fellow rookie Jared Wilson got overpowered a sparse times not that blocking Cam Heyward a anticipated Pro Football Hall of Famer is any picnic Center Garrett Bradbury allowed his first pressure of the season on the final drive the play where Maye misfired over the short middle for Douglas Bradbury overall though has been excellent Right guard Mike Onwenu disappointed as a run-blocker save for a couple double-teams Right tackle Morgan Moses was the only O-lineman to get beat -on- for a sack He had the unenviable task of neutralizing T J Watt majority of of the afternoon though he received help through chips a rare double-team and regular motion and misdirection Defense Foxboro MA - New England Patriots linebacker Robert Spillane celebrates with teammates after intercepting a pass during the third quarter of the encounter at Gillette Stadium Nancy Lane Boston Herald Match plan Personnel breakdown three-corner nickel package three-safety nickel base defense Coverage breakdown zone man Blitz rate Blitz efficacy offensive success rate and yards per play allowed Recognizing Aaron Rodgers tendency to turtle in the face of pressure and prospective to hurt them deep the Patriots ran a inadequate two-deep coverage shells early around a couple zone blitzes only to get burned themselves But their biggest problems were fundamental missed tackles coverage penalties and lost edges in the run contest That rendered scheme choices useless until the coaching staff benched cornerback Alex Austin and inside linebacker Christian Elliss Trailing - the Patriots defense stabilized with its substitutions and an uptick in single-high coverage calls Combined those shifts loaded the box neutralized Pittsburgh s run battle and hoisted the tournament back on Rodgers shoulders Once there the Pats contained a basic Steelers battle plan that emphasized space plays to stress their tackling nine of Rodgers pass attempts went behind the line of scrimmage including six screens Veteran cornerback Carlton Davis also shadowed Steelers wide receiver D K Metcalf on critical downs and enjoyed middling results his questionable pass interference penalty aside Late in the challenge a couple fundamental breakdowns resurfaced and defensive play-caller Zak Kuhr blitzed Rodgers four times in the fourth quarter to compensate matching his total from the previous three quarters combined That conclusively allowed Rodgers to take another -on- shot deep to Calvin Austin and number Pittsburgh s only touchdown after halftime AKA the game-winner Sportsman stats Interception LB Robert Spillane Forced fumble OLB Harold Landry Pressure OLB K Lavon Chaisson QB hits DL Christian Barmore hurries Landry QB hit Spillane hurry Run stuffs Gang DT Milton Williams DT Joshua Farmer Chaisson Pass deflections N A Missed tackles LB Christian Elliss CB Carlton Davis S Craig Woodson S Kyle Dugger DL Khyris Tonga LB Jack Gibbens CB Charles Woods Barmore Landry Williams Notes It s time to sit Christian Elliss and Alex Austin for good Lucky for the Patriots Christian Gonzalez ought to return this week at outside corner while Jack Gibbens and Marte Mapu again combined to provide replacement-level play in Elliss place Those two more than any other players are responsible for the Steelers consecutive touchdown drives to open the battle Austin s third-down penalties kept each series alive while Elliss missed a couple tackles and had terrible play recognition to open up rushing lanes Lucky for the Pats Robert Spillane returned to form next to Elliss He finished with tackles and wisely recognized Aaron Rodgers would want to attack the seam before his interception Rodgers had done the same thing to convert a third-and- snap in the first half and the Patriots defensive call Cover left the seams open So Spillane took a deeper drop over the middle followed Rodgers eyes and snatched an easy pick The Patriots can win a lot of games with defensive plays like that In the secondary Carlton Davis competed well enough in coverage during his part-time shadow of D K Metcalf who caught one touchdown The Patriots defensive line however needed to give a little more Even accounting for Pittsburgh s quick-trigger passing plan the Pats received minimal pass rush from Milton Williams whose only pressure a first-half strip sack was negated thanks to an Alex Austin penalty Williams best play was a run stuff On the edge Harold Landry s non-stop motor stood out particularly on chase-down tackles and his forced fumble K Lavon Chaisson provided the biggest splash plays by clobbering Rodgers twice and tallying his own run stuff The Patriots defensive front seemed to pick up on one of Pittsburgh s line calls in the second half jumping multiple outside zone runs at the snap to stop them dead in their tracks They did lose a couple edges however one by Landry and another from Anfernee Jennings who came off the bench with Keion White snaps Pats safety Kyle Dugger played a season-high defensive snaps as the staff tried to pivot away from playing more cornerbacks after Austin s breakdowns led to points Explosive plays defined as runs of -plus yards and passes of -plus yards Success rate is an efficiency metric measuring how often an offense stays on schedule A play is flourishing when it gains or more the yards to gain on first or second down and on third or fourth down personnel one running back one tight end personnel one running back two tight ends F personnel one running back one fullback one tight end H two halfbacks one tight end two backs two tight ends Base defense four defensive backs nickel five dime six dollar seven