Daily news and links for Monday
TEAM TALK
- Evan Lazar’s After Further Review: Breaking down QB Drake Maye and the Patriots defense in Saturday’s loss to the Chargers. What’s next for the Patriots after struggling in a 40-7 loss in Week 17?
- Post Game Notes: Chargers at Patriots. Drake Maye sets Patriots rookie record with a TD pass in 8 straight games; LB Jahlani Tavai reached 100 total tackles for the second straight season; More.
- Evan Lazar’s Game Observations: Eight takeaways from the loss to the Chargers in Week 17. After a competitive effort in Buffalo last week, the Patriots took a step back. “This is what I told the players, there’s really nothing good to take out of that game today,” Coach Mayo told reporters after the game. “Just the lack of execution…”
- Post Game Quotes: Patriots and Chargers.
LOCAL LINKS
- Mark Daniels lays out how Patriots ownership deserves blame for way this season has unfolded.
- Chris Mason says the fact that we’ve reached Week 17 and can’t point to a single thing the Patriots do well is an indictment on the coaching staff.
- Taylor Kyles details how the Patriots took another huge step back in the 40-7 blowout.
- Jerry Thornton shares his knee-jerk reactions to Pats-Chargers. “This column will be a little shorter than most when it comes to the Xs and Os. Because if you watched this one, you already know the Xs were dreadful and the Os were gruesome. … There’s no strategy to speak of, and not enough talent to make one work if they had one.”
- Alex Barth gives us 5 takeaways as the Pats regress again in Week 17. How big will the fallout be from the loss?
- Tom E. Curran determines the Pats looked ‘unprofessional’ in Saturday’s embarrassing loss.
- Justin Leger’s post-game stock watch: Stock down across the board in blowout loss.
- Nick O’Malley tells us what they’re saying nationally after the embarrassing loss to the Chargers. /Summary: Nothing good.
- Phil Perry reports the coaches and players alike weren’t on the same page Saturday, and it showed.
- Karen Guregian relays Keion White standing by his controversial comments, and adding more context.
- Nick O’Malley highlights Kendrick Bourne acknowledging things are bad, and asking fans to be patient.
- Chris Mason notes Davon Godchaux was not a fan of the “Fire Mayo” chants.
- Nick O’Malley reports Jerod Mayo heard the fans calling for him to be fired and responds.
- Nick O’Malley wonders why the Patriots kept playing Drake Maye after he got his ‘bell rung’ in the blowout?
- Karen Guregian finds it hard to see Jerod Mayo recovering from the latest fiasco.
- Mark Daniels says that when asked if he’s received assurance from ownership that he will be back, Jerod Mayo sounded like a man planning on returning in 2025. “I’m always in constant communication with ownership,” Mayo said. “I feel like we’re still on the same page.”
NATIONAL NEWS
- Dan Parr (NFL.com) 2025 NFL Draft order: Patriots vault to No. 1 overall after Giants upset Colts
- Albert Breer (SI) Week 17 NFL takeaways: The Vikings are very confident; Plus, Jayden Daniels is not playing like a rookie, several teams clinch, Phil Simms remembers Greg Gumbel and much more.
- Gilberto Manzano (SI) What we learned in Week 17: Vikings capable of earning NFC’s No. 1 seed; Plus, Saquon Barkley shouldn’t chase Eric Dickerson’s rushing record and the Colts opened themselves up to drastic changes.
- Gilberto Manzano (SI) NFL Week 17 recap: Who’s up, who’s down, what’s next for every team; Plus, the Vikings set up a winner-take-all game against the Lions by holding off the Packers.
- Around the NFL (NFL.com) What we learned from Saturday’s triple-header and Sunday’s games. Patriots: Lack of support for Maye continues. Boos cascaded down Gillette Stadium late in the fourth quarter as New England headed toward its 13th loss of the season. Those jeers were warranted after the Patriots generated just 181 yards of total offense, 11 first downs and three turnovers on downs against the Chargers, but it wasn’t exactly the result of Drake Maye‘s play.
- John Breech (CBS Sports) Week 17 grades. Chargers: A+, Patriots: F. “The Patriots had the chance to play spoiler in this game, but instead, they ended up spoiling the day for every Patriots fan that showed up for this game. …”
- Judy Battista (NFL.com) Week 17 winners and losers: Eagles, Bills lock up No. 2 seeds; Who’s alive in playoff race?
- Jeff Kerr (CBS Sports) Week 17 overreactions: Eagles let Saquon Barkley get rushing record? Chiefs should keep Bengals out?
- Brian Giuffra (SI) NFL MVP odds: Josh Allen extends lead as Lamar Jackson and Saquon Barkley lurk.
- Tom Pelissero & Ian Rapoport (NFL.com) NFL coaching cycle: Examining league hot seats, current openings with two weeks left in 2024 regular season. Patriots included.
- Blake Silverman (SI) Rex Ryan says New York Jets have interest in his return as head coach.
- Staff (NFL.com) Pro Football Hall of Fame announces 15 modern-era finalists for Class of 2025. Adam Vinatieri included. Rodney Harrison gets another stiff-arm.