Mike Vrabel is not holding back, calling his New England Patriots’ turnover rate “ridiculous” and “embarrassing” after another game plagued by gifting the ball away. Despite reeling off three straight wins to hit 4-2 on the season, the coach knows his squad is shooting itself in the foot with a historic inability to hold onto the ball. He made his frustration clear on WEEI’s The Greg Hill Show Monday morning, leaving no doubt about where the team’s focus needs to be.
Gifting Points to the Jets. Seriously?
Talk about a gut punch. Sunday’s game against the New York Jets added two more turnovers to the Patriots’ already staggering tally. You just can’t make this stuff up. In the third quarter, running back TreVeyon Henderson coughed up a fumble on his team’s side of the field, completely squashing a potential scoring drive. Then, in the fourth, wide receiver DeMario Douglas had the ball punched out while he was trying to squeeze out extra yards on a monster 39-yard catch-and-run. Both plays weren’t just missed chances for New England, though. They were basically handing the Jets a scoring opportunity on a silver platter. New York capitalized, turning both takeaways into field goals and scoring six of their 19 total points directly off those gifted possessions. It’s tough to win in this league when you’re giving away free points.
The Numbers Don’t Lie: A Historic Problem
The individual plays sting, but the season-long stats are truly alarming. Vrabel’s team has now turned the ball over 13 times this season, which is the second most in the entire league, behind only the Chargers’ 15. Quarterback Drake Maye has thrown seven interceptions, though it’s worth noting he hasn’t tossed one in the last two games, which is a positive sign. But the fumbles are a killer, with the team losing six of their 11 total fumbles so far. The Patriots’ turnover rate per drive is sitting at a cringe-worthy 21.2%, making it the worst in the league right now. If they keep this up, it wouldn’t just be bad; it would be the highest turnover rate for any single NFL team since the 2006 Oakland Raiders, who hit 25.0%. That’s a statistic no one wants to be associated with.
Vrabel summed it up perfectly himself, “It’s tough to win, and there are also things that we have to clean up.” He’s looking for improvement, and he’s right that in this league, you have to play well every single week to even give yourself a shot. If you don’t, winning is just flat-out hard. For a team that’s trying to sustain success and get back to competing for a championship, cleaning up these ridiculous, embarrassing turnovers has to be priority number one. No excuses, just gotta secure the ball.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Pats Pulpit.
Leave a Reply