The New England Patriots offense has been downright horrendous for yet another season. They put up the second fewest points per game in the NFL at 13.5 — the New York Giants are the only team with a worse average — and they have scored just two touchdowns combined in their last two games. All […]
The New England Patriots offense has been downright horrendous for yet another season.
They put up the second fewest points per game in the NFL at 13.5 — the New York Giants are the only team with a worse average — and they have scored just two touchdowns combined in their last two games.
All signs point to the Patriots turning to Bailey Zappe, and perhaps even Malik Cunningham, to take over the quarterback duties for Mac Jones on Sunday against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Perhaps that will create a spark and give the Patriots a semblance of a functional NFL offense. But how much of a jolt could Zappe or Cunningham provide? It figures to be minimal given New England’s complete lack of offensive weapons.
But crazier things have happened and WEEI’s Mike Kadlick joked Friday that the Patriots could be in for an offensive breakthrough when the video board at Gillette Stadium displayed the Patriots leading 42-21 with 5:06 left in the fourth quarter.
It was obviously just a test run for the stadium operators, but that didn’t stop former Chargers standout linebacker Shawne Merriman from chiming in and taking a comical dig at the Patriots and their anemic offense.
“Yall haven’t scored 42 points since Paul Revere said the red coats are coming,” Merriman posted on the X platform.
While it’s hilarious to think of the founding fathers playing football, it actually hasn’t been too long since the Patriots offense could hang over 40 points on an opponent. The last time the Patriots accomplished that feat came in Mac Jones’ rookie season when they piled up 50 points on the Jacksonville Jaguars in a late-season matchup. New England went over the 40-point mark three times that season as they were still capable of beating inferior opponents then.
The Patriots this year haven’t even scored 30 points in game, with their best offensive output coming in Week 7 in a 29-25 win over the Buffalo Bills.
The best chance for them to top that mark and cross the 30-point plateau could come this week, though. The Chargers allow a league-worst 390.6 yards per game, opening up an opportunity for the Patriots to do what they haven’t done during their miserable season.
The Patriots and Chargers kickoff from Gillette Stadium on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET.
