The New England Patriots beat the Philadelphia Eagles 17-10 in Sunday's Week 11 matchup at Lincoln Financial Field, but you would have thought they lost based solely on the postgame commentary.
Patriots quarterback Tom Brady had a rough outing, completing 26 of 47 pass attempts for 216 yards with zero touchdowns and no interceptions. Julian Edelman had New England's only touchdown pass of the day -- a 15-yard strike to Phillip Dorsett in the third quarter.
The Patriots finished with 298 total yards of offense and scored one touchdown on four trips to the red zone. The lack of explosive plays was apparent, and former NFL head coach and current ESPN NFL analyst Rex Ryan didn't hold back in critiquing New England's lackluster offense during Monday's episode of "Get Up."
"They don't have any speed, there's no threats," Ryan said. "Their two best receivers are both slot receivers. In other words, they need to be off the ball to be effective, and that's Edelman and (Mohamed) Sanu. Where's the other guys? Where's the speed? That left tackle, is that me blocking? They gotta get Isaiah Wynn back in a hurry. If they don’t, they’re in trouble, and (Tom Brady) knows it. Why’d they bring in Antonio Brown with a laundry list of things? Why? Because they needed a weapon. Why did they draft a guy in the first round? This team is short of talent, and he knows it. Normally, he’s the guy that carries this team, but right now, they’re being carried by that defense.”
Ryan said later in the segment, "I'm telling you right now ... I would've killed to defend this (Patriots offense)."
Wynn is eligible to return to game action Sunday in Week 12 versus the Dallas Cowboys, but it would be unfair (and unwise) to expect his return to cure all the issues ailing the Patriots offense. Make no mistake, the 2017 first-round draft pick is a huge upgrade over Marshall Newhouse at left tackle, but his injury history is a concern. Wynn missed his entire rookie campaign because of a torn Achilles, and he's missed all but two games this season due to a foot injury.
New England Patriots
Two of the biggest problems for the Patriots offense is its inability to run the football and a lack of execution in the red zone. The Patriots didn't even give the run game much attention in their four red zone trips versus the Eagles, and that says a lot.
The Patriots were able to win a shootout on the road against the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game last season, but based on the last few weeks, it doesn't look like New England would be able to accomplish that in this year's playoffs. Offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels has his work cut out for him over the next month as the Patriots try to find some sort of rhythm entering the postseason.
Updated NFL playoff picture entering Week 12>>>
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