By hook or by crook the Patriots are 9-4, top of the AFC East, and top of the AFC with the number one seed heading into their bye-week. A massive win in treacherous conditions last night, here are your Ups & Downs from Week 13!
Ups ⬆️
Damien Harris
Without his huge 64-yard touchdown run, the Patriots would have struggled to get the win last night, but Damien Harris came through for the team once again, with the support of his running mate, Rhamondre Stevenson.
Harris was dealing with a hamstring injury throughout the game, he returned a couple of times before being declared out, not before amassing 111 yards on the ground, along with the Pats’ only touchdown. Here’s hoping the bye week will allow him to recover and that the injury he suffered isn’t all that serious.
Rhamondre Stevenson
Boy can this kid run. One thing that sticks out to me when watching Stevenson every week is his ability to force through tackles and find yards out of absolutely nowhere. Another solid game for him last night as he helped the team rush for over 200 yards. Stevenson has shown the ability to have that rotational back role behind Harris, but also the skills to lead the running offense, something which he may need to do down the line as Harris battles injuries.
Nick Folk
I didn’t expect Folk to even attempt a kick last night, but he did, in fact, they were both field goals which he went 2/2 on, once again helping the Pats towards a close victory, this time in really testing conditions. He’s been brilliant all season, at minimum he’s the special team’s MVP.
Jakob Johnson
The German Warhammer was brilliant last night and really stood out for me in the almost all-run offensive game. Johnson has had a steady emergence as a useful piece in this offense since taking over from James Develin as the team’s lead fullback.
Downs ⬇️
N’Keal Harry
Without this mistake, the Patriots could have had a much easier route to victory last night, but it did happen and I still can’t quite figure out how the coaches put themselves in that position. Firstly, what is Harry doing out there, he doesn’t go to field the ball or call a fair catch. Instead, he lets it bounce, bends over towards the ball, and stumbles into the area the ball is moving, allowing it to graze his facemask before being recovered by the Bills.
The mistake is entirely on Harry, but I have no idea why he was back there, let alone sent back out for additional return plays after the turnover. I didn’t buy Bill’s explanation in the press conference either, I think he probably just wants to move on from what was a completely nonsensical decision, I mean, they have an all-pro punt returner on the roster, right?
