NFL

It was a no-show performance considering Thornton, JuJu Smith-Schuster and Jalen Reagor were the Patriots’ only three healthy wideouts. With just 11 catches for 68 yards all season, Thornton’s 53-man roster spot is beginning to look in danger for 2024.

It will surprise no one that Smith-Schuster’s 90 yards were by far his most as a Patriot. They were badly needed with the Pats down to three healthy wideouts. The biggest play was a 37-yard gain on the Patriots’ opening drive where Smith-Schuster made a tough grab in traffic. Like the rest of the Pats’ offense, Smith-Schuster did essentially nothing after the break — one grab for eight yards — but he did enough in quarters one and two to help eke out the victory. Regardless of DeVante Parker and Demario Douglas’ Week 15 health, Smith-Schuster won’t be a viable WR4 for his second straight “revenge game,” this one against the Chiefs.

Out there for the first play, Harris seemed unbothered by his knee issue as he out-snapped and out-touched Jaylen Warren (again). Unfortunately, neither back could get anything going vs. a Patriots defense that knew the play was to put the game on Mitch Trubisky’s shoulders. The backup quarterback responded by playing horrendously. Despite his continued grip on 1A duties, Harris isn’t scoring enough or catching enough passes to move the needle as an RB2 heading into Week 15 vs. Indianapolis.

Freiermuth did manage to draw a DPI penalty in the end zone to set the Steelers up at the Pats’ one-yard line for a touchdown, but he now has just six grabs for 47 yards on 12 targets in two games since his random 9/120 blowup against the Bengals. It’s not surprising the bulk of Freiermuth’s non-production has come with inept backup Mitch Trubisky under center. With all 32 teams active for Week 15, Freiermuth will be out of the TE1 mix vs. the Colts.

The good news: Pickens’ five catches were his most in seven weeks. The bad news, as you can see, was the 19 yards in a pathetically-conservative game plan with “try not to lose” all-star Mitch Trubisky under center. This, after Pickens drew only one target in Trubisky’s one half of play in Week 13. It’s safe to say Pickens has somehow found a downgrade from Kenny Pickett. He will be a barely-there WR4 for Week 15 in Indianapolis.

Trubisky’s rushing touchdown meant it wasn’t the worst fantasy effort, but nobody was streaming him, anyways, for a real-life contest where he was getting wildly booed for most of the first half. An interception where he was goaded into the miscue by Jabrill Peppers was the catalyst, while Trubisky was lucky to escape with only one giveaway after a second was called back by penalty. Trubisky had a little more moxie after the break, but that’s not surprising since the Steelers were chasing a two-score deficit. Afraid to pull the trigger on tight-window throws, Trubisky might as well have not even been out there for George Pickens’ purposes. With the Steelers spiraling hard, Trubisky is going to be a Week 15 liability in Indianapolis.

The three-touchdown outing was a career-first for a player who entered the proceedings with five lifetime scores. It was the tale of two halves for Zappe, who entered the break with 196 yards and all three of his TDs before managing only 44 yards in quarters three and four. Zappe was making plays early, none prettier than his second of two scores to Hunter Henry. Zappe executed a pump fake then delivered a frozen rope over Damontae Kazee’s coverage. The second half was more the “real Zappe,” where he was lucky to escape with only one giveaway. This was a better fantasy effort than Mac Jones ever managed in 2023, but we certainly would not be hitting on 17 with Zappe against the Chiefs in Week 15.

The Patriots had only three active receivers and Gesicki still couldn’t command even a single look for the second straight game. He has zero catches over his past three appearances. Gesicki is going to have trouble landing guaranteed money on the open market when he heads back to free agency in March.

The two-TD performance was Henry’s first in nearly two years, on Dec. 18, 2021. All of his production came before halftime as Bailey Zappe imploded after the break. For score No. 1, Henry and Zappe split the safeties for a nice touch pass. For No. 2, Henry caught a frozen rope after an excellent Zappe pump fake. A nice night. Also one that has zero chance of repeating for Week 15 against the Chiefs.

So much for Najee Harris’ knee injury. Harris started and out-touched Warren 15-11. Neither back was effective against a Patriots defense that was content to let Mitch Trubisky try to beat it. Trubisky, of course, failed. Warren and Harris continue to split snaps almost evenly, but Harris keeps coming out a little bit ahead in the touch — and touchdown — department. The Colts are a more forgiving Week 15 matchup, though with all 32 teams active, Warren won’t be as appealing of a FLEX option as he’s been in recent weeks.