Halftime struggles cost Patriots points
The New England Patriots are trying to fix their execution right before halftime. Coach Mike Vrabel and quarterback Drake Maye did well in this area last season, but the first two games of the 2026 season have shown a drop in performance. The Patriots are preparing for back-to-back road games against the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Buffalo Bills, where points will be hard to find.
In their recent 20-3 win over the Steelers, Maye and the offense had the ball on their own 20-yard line with 1:48 left in the second quarter. They led 10-0 and had all three timeouts, but Maye was sacked on a first down. The Patriots had to punt, and the Steelers ended up scoring a field goal before the half ended. Maye admitted he needs to know the time and place to get the ball forward or throw an incomplete pass.
Coaching mistakes add to the problem
Coach Mike Vrabel also made errors in game management. Against the Steelers, Vrabel called a timeout and got penalized for delay of game. This happened because cornerback Marcus Jones was injured on the previous play, which forced an automatic timeout under league rules. Vrabel could not call another timeout. He explained that he was distracted by talking to officials about a decision. "I blew it," Vrabel said.
In the first game against the Seahawks, Vrabel also made a questionable decision. The defense stopped Seattle with 12 seconds left. Even though New England had a timeout, Vrabel chose to let the clock run out instead of forcing a punt. He later explained he did not think the punter would give returner Marcus Jones a chance to return the ball.
Looking to regain last year's form
Last season, the Patriots were highly effective late in the second quarter. Their success started with a Week 5 win against the Bills, where they drove from their own 30-yard line to the Bills' 1-yard line to kick a field goal just before halftime. They also had a strong drive against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, which ended in a 1-yard touchdown pass to Stefon Diggs with two seconds left in the half.
Maye is not overly worried about the recent struggles. He noted that the team wants to play good football and double up by scoring and getting the ball back in the second half.
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