Winners and Losers of New England Patriots' Week 3 Performance
The New England Patriots didn't have a perfect game against the Houston Texans in Week 3. In fact, it was a downright ugly game at times, and New England was forced to mount a fourth-quarter comeback to pull out a 36-33 win.
This wasn't the type of game Patriots fans are used to seeing from New England—especially when playing at home and against a rookie quarterback. While it's important the Patriots got the win, there were plenty of concerning things during the game. The defense again looked suspect—it surrendered 417 total yards—and the run game remains a work in progress.
There were good things gleaned from the game too. Brandin Cooks finally looked like the explosive addition he is expected to be, and Rob Gronkowski delivered his second big game in a row.
We know New England holds a 2-1 record. What we don't know is what kind of 2-1 team the Patriots are overall. Are they good, great or just a mirage? In an effort to pinpoint where some of the team's strengths and weaknesses reside, let's dig into the biggest individual winners and losers from Week 3.
Winner: Brandin Cooks
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We mentioned Cooks finally had his breakout game with the Patriots. It couldn't have come at a better time. One of his two touchdowns proved to be the game-winner and came with under 30 seconds left on the game clock.
Cooks didn't know the ball was coming his way, but he was in perfect position to make the grab just before falling out of bounds.
"It's just one of the things you know playing with [quarterback] Tom [Brady]—run the best route you can on every snap, because you never know when it's coming to you," Cooks said, per Peter King of SI.com.
Balls came to Cooks often against Houston. He finished the game with five receptions, 131 yards and two touchdowns.
Loser: Mike Gillislee
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Mike Gillislee has had his fair share of ups and downs since joining the Patriots during the offseason. He missed much of the preseason with a hamstring issue but returned in time to take over the team's primary rushing duties. He averaged under four yards per carry in his first two regular-season games, but he also rushed for four touchdowns.
On Sunday, Gillislee was completely bottled up. He carried the ball 12 times but only produced 31 yards with his opportunities. He had a long run of eight yards, and he failed to find the end zone for the first time this season.
Gillislee still appears to be the team's best rushing option, but he isn't used much in the passing game. In fact, he has yet to make a reception this year. That's a problem because when Gillislee can't get going on the ground, he has virtually no value to the offense—other than to keep the defense honest, perhaps.
Winner: Tom Brady
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The Patriots don't want to play ugly games, but they can feel good about winning them because they have a guy named Tom Brady under center. If New England is going to find itself in a shootout, there's no one better to have pulling the trigger than Brady.
The Super Bowl champions needed him on Sunday. Thanks to some heroics from rookie quarterback Deshaun Watson and an aggressive Houston defense, the Patriots found themselves down five points with two-and-a-half minutes remaining.
Brady took the team 75 yards and capped the drive with the game-winning strike to Cooks. He also connected with Cooks on the ensuing two-point conversion.
"Yes, I've seen it before," Texans coach Bill O'Brien told the Lawrence Eagle-Tribune and Boston Herald (h/t Mike Reiss of ESPN.com). "He's the best football player that has ever played the game."
Brady finished the game 25-of-35 for 378 yards and five touchdowns. More importantly, he ensured the team didn't slip to 1-2.
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Loser: Nate Solder
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Brady's heroics didn't come easy. He was consistently hassled and battered by the Texans defense. He was also sacked five times for 41 yards. A lot of the pressure he faced came at the expense of starting left tackle Nate Solder.
Solder was regularly dominated by both J.J. Watt and Jadeveon Clowney. He was also beaten by Whitney Mercilus on a play that resulted in a sack-fumble. Not only did Brady lose the ball on the play, but he was forced to watch as it popped into the hands of Clowney and was returned for a touchdown.
This isn't the first game in which Brady has faced immense pressure. He has already been sacked 10 times in 2017. That's five fewer times than he was sacked in 12 games last season.
Solder is in the final year of his contract. If he doesn't improve his play, the Patriots may be looking for his replacement sooner rather than later.
Winner: Chris Hogan
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Brady and Cooks may have hooked up for the late-game heroics, but they weren't the only players instrumental in New England's win. Wideout Chris Hogan also played a big part.
Hogan shook loose of coverage with frequency, often getting so wide open it was shocking. He finished the game with four catches for 68 yards and two touchdowns. He was inexplicably open on each of his scoring plays.
It's important for Hogan to step up early in the season because the Patriots are going to be without favorite target Julian Edelman for the rest of it. If he can become a reliable third target behind Cooks and Gronkowski, New England's offense should remain dangerous despite Edelman's absence.
Loser: Dion Lewis
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Running back Dion Lewis continues to be more of an afterthought than a centerpiece for the Patriots. Even with Rex Burkhead out with a rib injury, we didn't see a large role for Lewis.
The Pittsburgh product caught three passes and carried the ball twice, but he only covered 17 yards on his five touches. He had fewer rushing yards than Brady, who scrambled once for six yards.
Lewis doesn't have a major role on special teams, either. He returns kicks—he returned two for an average of 22 yards per return on Sunday—but he doesn't return punts. Danny Amendola now handles those duties, and he averaged more yards on his punt returns (26) than Lewis averaged on kickoffs.
According to Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald, teams have looked into trading for Lewis. If the Patriots aren't going to utilize him, even when weapons like Gillislee and Edelman are out, perhaps they should take an offer and move him.
Winner: Deatrich Wise
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Lewis might not be a big part of New England's game plan anymore, but rookie edge-rusher Deatrich Wise is quickly becoming one. He earned a sack in limited playing time in the season opener against the Kansas City Chiefs and has steadily progressed since.
"So Week 1 was Week 1 and then Week 2 was Week 2," Wise explained before Sunday's game, per Rich Garven of the Worcester Telegram. "So I'm trying to build from those and not make the same mistakes in practice, not make the same mistakes in games. Just build from there."
Wise produced a sack in his second game too. While he didn't get one against Houston, he frequently pressured Watson and pushed him out of the pocket. He was closing on Watson when he forced a throw that was picked off by cornerback Stephon Gilmore.
Through three games, Wise has five tackles, 2.0 sacks and a pass defended.
Loser: Stephon Gilmore
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To be fair, Gilmore didn't have an entirely awful day. He did get the one interception after all. However, he was often matched up on DeAndre Hopkins and was often victimized by Watson's new favorite target.
Hopkins finished the game with seven receptions and 76 yards. It wasn't just the yards Gilmore surrendered that hurt the Patriots, though. He also gave up 49 penalty yards. He had one unnecessary roughness penalty plus a 34-yards pass-interference call against him.
Both penalties came in the first half. Then, in the third quarter, Gilmore was forced to leave the game because of dehydration. While he was out, Watson and the Texans mounted a touchdown drive.
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