After two days of mediocre at best joint practices in Las Vegas, Mac Jones and the Patriots first-team offense struggled once again to close out the preseason with the 23-6 loss to the Raiders Friday night at Allegiant Stadium.
Facing mostly backups, Jones and Co. played four lackluster series to open the final exhibition game of the summer, mustering just a field goal in their action as New England trailed 13-3 at halftime. Meanwhile former Patriots backup Jarrett Stidham moved the ball on each of his three possessions to build the lead for Josh McDaniels’ home squad.
“It wasn’t one of our better halves of football,” Bill Belichick told the local TV broadcast.
The backups on both sides of the ball played a relatively competitive second half with a couple field goals to show for it before the Raiders added a late rushing touchdown to get to the final score.
Before turning the page to next Tuesday’s NFL-mandated cutdown to 53-man rosters and then preparations for the Sept. 11 season opener in Miami, here’s a look at some of the highs and lows from the final preseason game of the summer in Las Vegas.
Thumbs up
Kendrick Bourne – A week after being unavailable against the Panthers a week earlier and in the midst of a strange summer, Bourne made his preseason debut in Las Vegas. He only caught two passes for 16 yards, but one was a nice route on a fourth-down play to move the chains. After the catch he showed his trademark energy as he returned to the huddle for an emphatic hand-slap celebration with Jones. Bourne faces higher expectations in his second season in New England even after a slow summer, but Friday night seemed like a small step in the right direction.
Nick Folk – The veteran kicker was one of the best players on the team a year ago and has been easing his way into the action this summer. He nailed his 35-yard attempt against the Raiders after a would-be touchdown was wiped out by an offensive pass interference call on DeVante Parker on the catch. He then hit again from 22 yards in the third quarter. Folk has been perfect on the summer and few if any other Patriots can make that claim.
J.J. Taylor – The depth roles at running back may still be undecided, but Taylor made a nice run at a roster spot in Las Vegas. The diminutive veteran had two catches for 22 yards to go along with three runs for 7 yards. His best play of the night was a heady, aggressive effort to dive on and recover a loose ball after a Brian Hoyer strip sack in the second quarter.
It may or may not be enough to win a roster spot, but Taylor did what he could to try to show his worth.
Jack Jones – The rookie cornerback continues to show athleticism and physicality. He’s far from perfect in coverage, but he’s feisty. Jones had a couple big hits against the Raiders on Friday night, finishing with two tackles, a pass defense and a forced fumble. He continues to look like a guy with significant developmental upside at a cornerback position that’s very much unsettled at this point, with opportunities for any cover man who can seize them. Jones looks like a guy who’ll make a bid at doing that as a rookie.
Jake Bailey – After a down 2021 season, the former All-Pro looks back in form this summer. Bailey booted the ball six times for a 54.2 avg. with a 65-yard long in Las Vegas, including two downed inside the 20. Bailey looks ready for another big season with his newly-minted contract extension in his back pocket.
Thumbs down
Mac Jones – New England’s second-year franchise QB has talked about focusing on the process rather than the results this summer as he works out the kinks in the new offense under new coaching. The results for Jones weren’t good in Vegas, with a pair of three-and-outs sandwiched around an interception before he led the unit to a field goal early in the second quarter. The interception came with Jones rolling to his right and throwing over the middle, right to waiting Raiders undrafted rookie linebacker Luke Masterson. Jones felt the pressure at times and never looked too comfortable finishing completing 9 of 13 passes for 71 yards with the one interception and a pair of sacks. In many ways it was more of the same of what’s been seen most of the summer in Foxborough.
Offensive line – New England’s first offensive line was back together against Las Vegas but the results weren’t much to write home about. Pressure came from both sides at times. Run stuffs remained an issue.
Mike Onwenu was flagged for holding to stunt a possession. Trent Brown, Cole Strange, David Andrews, Mike Onwenu and Isaiah Wynn just haven’t been good enough from left to right this summer and that continued against the Raiders, a big part of why the first offense struggled.
Ty Montgomery – The veteran running back has been impressive on both the practice field and game field this summer, looking poised for a relatively significant role in the offense in his first year in New England. Unfortunately he left the game in Las Vegas with an ankle injury that required him to be carted to the locker room in the first quarter. He was officially ruled out in the third quarter. The first goal of preseason is to stay healthy. Montgomery couldn’t do that and it may alter his availability to open the season and could adjust the depth chart at running back.
Defense -- Fielding its best players, New England's first defense was diced up by Stidham (4 of 6 for 72 yards) and McDaniels' offense on the first few drives. The unit gave up chunk plays on the ground and through the air against the Raiders backups. Sure there are personnel questions at linebacker and cornerback, but the supposed strengths of the team at safety and along the defensive line weren't great in this one either. The defensive execution against the Raiders just wasn't good enough.
