Jarrett Stidham’s night was emblematic of the New England Patriots’ offensive performance in Week 4. He had moments of excellence, of bad luck and of truly awful execution.
His touchdown was a beaut. After Stidham replaced Brian Hoyer in the third quarter, the second-year quarterback lofted the ball into a part of the end zone where only receiver N’Keal Harry could make a play on the ball for a 4-yard catch in the end zone. But what followed sunk the Patriots.
Stidham threw a pair of interceptions, one to receiver Julian Edelman and one to receiver Damiere Byrd. The Edelman interception bounced off the veteran’s hands before Chiefs safety Tyrann Mathieu was lucky enough to grab the ball out of the air and return it for a touchdown. Bad luck (and poor execution on Edelman’s part). On Stidham’s misfire to Byrd, the quarterback had his man open, but Stidham didn’t put enough arm strength into the throw. The weak toss led to poor accuracy which produced an easy play for the cornerback.
“Those were both on me,” Stidham said after the game. “Just got to place the ball better to Juless.”
That’s a generous assessment. If Edelman catches a ball that hit him in the hands, then there’s no pick-six.
“The one to Damiere (Byrd) over the top, just trying to give him a chance. I’ve just got to do a better job of laying it out there and letting him go get it,” Stidham said. “Just trying to do my best to go out there and execute the plays that were called. Unfortunately, you know, I ended up throwing two interceptions.”
Tom Brady had a propensity to air out deep balls at the end of games when New England was trailing. Stidham’s second interception felt reminiscent of those plays, which Brady would explain away as aggressive decision-making in an effort to get his team back in the game. But Stidham rejected the idea that he was trying to do more to help the Patriots mount a comeback.
“I wouldn’t necessarily say that there’s a different decision-making process in that sort of situation because at the end of the day, I’m trying to move the chains, trying to get our offense down the field to score some points,” Stidham said. “If a read tells me to throw it down the field like that, then that’s what I’ll take. If not, then I’ll go somewhere else. Just trying to follow my reads and give us an opportunity to score some points.”
Byrd was open. If Stidham had hit his receiver, it likely would have gone for a touchdown. It was a bold decision — and probably even the right one. But he didn’t execute at a high enough level to complete the play and, in turn, the Patriots could not compete with Kansas City.
It’s unclear whether Stidham or Hoyer will play in Week 5 against the Denver Broncos at Gillette Stadium.
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