Patriots Blasted by NFL Twitter for 'Dumbest' Play Ever in Walk-Off Loss to Raiders

Erin WalshDecember 19, 2022

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - DECEMBER 18: Mac Jones #10 of the New England Patriots looks on after losing to the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium on December 18, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Unger/Getty Images)

Chris Unger/Getty Images

The New England Patriots fell to the Las Vegas Raiders 30-24 on Sunday at Allegiant Stadium and dropped to 7-7 on the season, which is just outside of the AFC playoff picture with three weeks remaining.

But it wasn't the loss alone that sent New England fans into a tizzy, it was the way Bill Belichick's squad lost the game.

After the Raiders managed to tie the game at 24 with 32 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, the Patriots got the ball back with a chance to win the game. On third-and-10 at their own 45-yard line with three seconds remaining, Patriots running back Rhamondre Stevenson rushed to the Las Vegas 32-yard line before lateraling the ball to wide receiver Jakobi Meyers.

Meyers then tried to lateral the ball to quarterback Mac Jones, but his pass was caught by Raiders defensive end Chandler Jones, who bowled over Jones and rushed into the end zone for the winning touchdown.

NFL @NFL
What just happened?? The <a href="https://twitter.com/Raiders?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Raiders</a> win on the final play!! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NEvsLV?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NEvsLV</a> <a href="https://t.co/cmKNUuab1k">pic.twitter.com/cmKNUuab1k</a>

Had Stevenson or Meyers went down, the game would have gone to overtime, where the Patriots would have had more of a chance to win. Instead, NFL Twitter is blasting the Patriots for arguably the "dumbest" play ever:

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Rob Maaddi @RobMaaddi
What were the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Patriots?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Patriots</a> doing there? That may be the worst coaching decision in NFL history.

Chad Graff @ChadGraff
The Patriots, normally one of the best-coached teams in the NFL, just made a completely unnecessary, mind-numbing mistake to cost them a game they should've won.

DAN @danWorthington
The Patriots just did the dumbest thing in NFL History

Harold R. Kuntz @HaroldRKuntz3
That's got to be one of the dumbest plays I've ever seen. At any level.

Cameron Wolfe @CameronWolfe
OMG the Patriots just lost to Raiders on literally the worst way possible.

Yahoo Sports @YahooSports
Patriots fans looking at Jakobi Meyers <a href="https://t.co/XmCG61kLgn">pic.twitter.com/XmCG61kLgn</a>

Rodger Sherman @rodger
THAT'S THE DUMBEST THING I'VE EVER SEEN A TEAM DO

Rodger Sherman @rodger
an underrated part of that is...<br><br>WHY DID HE THINK MAC JONES WAS GOING TO RUN PAST 11 DEFENDERS AND SCORE A 70-YARD TOUCHDOWN BY HIMSELF

Bill Barnwell @billbarnwell
Here's the dots for the Patriots-Raiders ending. The best case scenario for this lateral was Chandler Jones flattening Mac Jones like a pancake. Instead, Jones picked the lateral off and flattened the QB, too. Just one of the worst plays you'll ever see. <a href="https://t.co/7sb5xXSXJU">pic.twitter.com/7sb5xXSXJU</a>

Bobby Thompson @BThomps81
I've never seen a team literally throw the game away like I just say the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Patriots?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Patriots</a> do. Beyond embarrassing. I am so disgusted and furious with what just took place

The Smoking Musket @smokingmusket
congratulations to the new england patriots for doing something so dumb that it shocked me, someone who has watched roughly 90% of all cleveland browns games since 1999

Eric Wilbur @GlobeEricWilbur
The Patriots are dumber than I thought. And trust me, I had them at plenty dumb.

A lot has gone wrong for the Patriots this season, but nothing else has been quite like what we witnessed on Sunday.

That said, the Patriots offense didn't play well the entire game. Jones completed just 13-of-31 passes for 112 yards as he struggled to move the ball downfield. Stevenson was the only bright spot with 172 rushing yards and one touchdown.

Had the Patriots won, they would have locked themselves into a three-way tie with the Los Angeles Chargers and Miami Dolphins at the back end of the AFC playoff picture. Instead, they're a game behind both at eight in the AFC and face an uphill battle to secure a postseason berth over the last three weeks of the season.

New England will face the Cincinnati Bengals (10-4), Dolphins (8-6) and Buffalo Bills (11-3) to close the season.