Tag: Mike Gesicki

Patriots’ top 10 offensive players in Week 5, per PFF grades

Here are the top-10 Patriots offensive players in Week 5, per PFF grades

Not even the hallowed halls of Gillette Stadium could breathe life into the New England Patriots offense in Sunday’s 34-0 loss to the New Orleans Saints.

The theme heading into Week 6 has been about change, but there might not be enough change possible to save the Patriots this season. They lack explosiveness at the skilled positions, and the offensive line gets beaten like a drum weekly in the trenches.

Fans are even desperately calling for rookie quarterback Malik Cunningham to be given the reins as the new starting signal-caller. By the end of the season, this might end up being the worst offensive team in the Bill Belichick coaching era.

The Patriots currently sit dead last in the NFL in scoring with an average of 11 points per game.

There’s a mountain to climb, but even with all of the offensive struggles, the Patriots won’t go down without a fight. They’ll go kicking and screaming if they have to.

Here’s the top-10 offensive players, per Pro Football Focus grades:

Patriots’ top 10 offensive players in Week 4, per PFF grades

Who were the Patriots’ top-10 offensive players in their ugly Week 4 loss?

An offensive implosion for the ages wrecked any hope the New England Patriots ever had of upsetting an angry Dallas Cowboys team at home in Week 4.

Quarterback Mac Jones was at the center of it all with two interceptions and one lost fumble on a strip sack. The Patriots gifted the Cowboys 14 points with two of the turnovers being returned for touchdowns, while the third flipped field position and set Dallas up near the 50-yard line.

The offensive line was undisciplined and unreliable, while the rushing attack completely stalled after showing some life in Week 3 against the New York Jets.

What followed was the worse loss in NFL history by a Bill Belichick-coached team. It was a nightmare performance by the Patriots offense, and their Pro Football Focus grades reflect it.

Let’s take a look at the top-10 offensive players, per their PFF grades in Week 4.

Best photos of Penn State players in the NFL’s Week 4

Check out the best photos of Penn State players in the NFL in Week 4.

Former Penn State wide receiver [autotag]Jahan Dotson[/autotag] came up clutch for the Washington Commanders when he caught a game-ending touchdown on the final play of regulation, forcing overtime on the road against the Philadelphia Eagles. Unfortunately for Dotson and the Commanders, the result did not go their way in the overtime.

Meanwhile, in Dallas, Micah Parsons and the Dallas Cowboys dominated Mike Gesicki and the New England Patriots. Parsons appeared to injure his ankle during the game but continued to play in the blowout. Parsons and the Cowboys have a major test next week on Sunday night against the San Francisco 49ers. That one should be a good one.

Here are some of the best photos from around the NFL’s Week 4 of former Penn State football players.

Studs and duds in Patriots’ historically bad loss to Cowboys

Who were the studs and duds from Sunday’s game?

The New England Patriots made history for all of the wrong reasons in their shocking 38-3 loss to the Dallas Cowboys.

In coach Bill Belichick’s 29 years as a head coach, he has never lost a game by 35 points—until Sunday. The Patriots got beat like a drum on the road by the Cowboys on both sides of the ball.

On offense, it was another sluggish effort with Mac Jones turning the ball over and struggling to move the ball downfield. On defense, it was all about injuries with Christian Gonzalez, Matthew Judon and Jabrill Peppers all going down.

The wheels finally fell off a Patriots defense that had been resilient up to this point, and the offense looked like it stepped into a time machine to the dreadful 2022 season.

Here are the studs and duds from the Patriots’ third regular season loss:

Patriots’ top 10 offensive players in Week 3, per PFF grades

Which Patriots offensive players had the highest PFF grades in Week 3?

The New England Patriots had just enough of an offensive pulse to squeak out an ugly 15-10 win over the New York Jets.

Make no mistake, Sunday’s game was all about Matthew Judon and the rest of the Patriots defense throwing on the red cape and saving the day. But there were still solid efforts made on the offensive side of the ball as well.

Quarterback Mac Jones was efficient and didn’t turn the ball over. A third tight end emerged as a legitimate offensive threat for New England. And the offensive line put up a better fight than expected against a Jets defensive front that ranks among the best in football.

It wasn’t pretty by any stretch of the imagination, but the Patriots offense hasn’t come close to reaching its full potential. Here are the Patriots’ top-10 offensive players from Week 3, according to their Pro Football Focus grades.

Patriots coach Bill Belichick praises TE Mike Gesicki for lateral pass

Bill Belichick praises Mike Gesicki for making the right decision on the lateral play.

New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick praised tight end Mike Gesicki for trying to make something happen on the final drive of Sunday’s loss to the Miami Dolphins.

After hauling in a pass from quarterback Mac Jones, Gesicki tossed a lateral pass to guard Cole Strange, who made a valiant effort to get a first down in a 4th-and-3 situation. However, after initially ruling the play a first down, the officials concluded his knee was just short and overturned the call.

The lateral was just one of Gesicki’s contributions on Sunday night. He also tallied five catches for 33 yards against his old team. Unfortunately, the Patriots still lost the contest and started the season 0-2 for the first time since 2001.

Belichick appeared on “The Greg Hill Show” on Monday and made sure to credit Gesicki for the near conversion, as transcribed by NESN.com’s Zack Cox.

“He’s a smart player, and that was the right decision on his part,” said Belichick. “I guess we came up a couple inches short.”

Gesicki has found a productive role within the New England offense. There will be other opportunities for the Patriots to pick up wins this season, and the veteran tight end should play a significant role in those games.

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Patriots’ top 10 offensive players in Week 2, per PFF grades

Here’s who topped the Patriots’ offense in Week 2.

The offensive frustrations continued for the New England Patriots in Sunday’s run-in with the division rival Miami Dolphins. Like the season opener, it was a hot-and-cold performance from quarterback Mac Jones and company in Week 2.

The unit got off to a horrific start with two turnovers—an interception thrown by Jones and a drive-killing fumble by rookie wide receiver Demario Douglas.

But then there were moments of hope with Jones stepping up and making big-time throws to keep the team in the game. The biggest issue throughout the matchup was the offensive line struggles and the lack of separation from receivers at certain points.

It’s one of those performances where the Patriots can take the little good away and go back to the drawing board for Week 3. But whatever changes are coming need to happen fast with the team already in a two-game hole to start the season.

Here are the top-10 offensive players in Week 2, per Pro Football Focus grades:

Penn State in the NFL: Best photos from Week 1

Take a look at this photo gallery of former Penn State players in the NFL from Week 1 of the regular season.

The NFL season finally got underway with a full Week 1 slate of football. Scattered throughout the NFL were 33 Penn State football players on active 53-man rosters as the season officially kicked off, and a number of those players were key players in their season openers.

A number of former Nittany Lions started the season with a new team including wide receiver Allen Robinson and running back Miles Sanders. In all, Penn State has 39 players on NFL rosters if you include practice squad players and players appearing on injured reserve to start the 2023 season.

Here is a look at some of the former Nittany Lions in action during Week 1 of the 2023 NFL regular season.

Penn State in the NFL Week 1 roundup: Old faces in new places

Penn State had 39 players on NFL rosters as the NFL season started. Here’s how some of them played in Week 1.

Penn State may have already played two games this season, but the NFL has just gotten its season started. And there are a number of Penn State players scattered around the league. Penn State had 39 players appearing on Week 1 NFL rosters with 33 on the 53-man rosters around the league, four on practice squads, and two additional players on injured reserve to start the season.

A pair of recent standouts took the Sunday night spotlight as [autotag]Micah Parsons[/autotag] and the Dallas Cowboys visited [autotag]Saquon Barkley[/autotag] and the New York Giants. A few more Penn State players will wrap up the first week of the NFL’s regular season when [autotag]Adrian Amos[/autotag] and the New York Jets face Connor McGovern, Ryan Bates, Daquan Jones and the Buffalo Bills on Monday night.

Here is a look at how some former Penn State football players performed in Week 1 of the NFL regular season.

Updated 53-man roster projection ahead of Patriots’ preseason finale

Who made the cut in our final 53-man roster projections?

The dead heat of training camp practices are in the rearview, and the focus now shifts to the preseason finale and the final roster cut for the New England Patriots.

Next Tuesday is the deadline for teams to cut down to a 53-man roster. The Patriots are going to have some tough decisions on their hands in an effort to be in compliance with that deadline.

Not every player can make the roster, and this could be a case where some fan favorites are ultimately left off the list. Keep in mind, the Patriots have the option of signing players that don’t make the cut to the practice squad, assuming another team doesn’t jump at the chance to sign them.

Here is our third and final 53-man roster projection for the 2023 Patriots ahead of the preseason finale.