The New England Patriots just wrapped up their preseason with a brutally boring and just plain bad 37-13 loss to the Cleveland Browns on Thursday. This wasn’t some nail-biter. They got absolutely crushed from start to finish. What’s worse? The Browns are a team that could honestly be one of the worst in football this year. Ouch.
Patriots’ Depth Is a Disaster Class
Nobody’s expecting starters to shine in the preseason finale, right? But the Patriots didn’t even play many backups against Cleveland, and the lack of depth was seriously alarming. They were outmatched everywhere on the field. The Browns didn’t roll out anyone of consequence either, so it’s not like New England was facing a stacked opponent. This game laid bare exactly what head coach Mike Vrabel pointed out last week: the Patriots’ starter-level talent has gotten better, but as soon as you look further down the depth chart, things fall apart fast. It’s tough to watch, and it means they desperately need to keep finding good draft picks and competent undrafted free agents to plug these holes. Seriously, it was a rough watch.
RB3 Race: One Guy Sits While Others Scramble
The competition for the third running back spot is definitely heating up, or at least, it was for everyone *not* named Jam Miller. Hassan Haskins showed some real grit, running tough and picking up yards even when he was hit behind the line. He might not be returning kicks anytime soon, but he looked good carrying the ball. On the flip side, Lan Larison had two straight drops, which is a major red flag. JaMichael Hasty had a few decent runs, but he doesn’t seem like the guy the Patriots want at RB3 either. Here’s the kicker though: Jam Miller didn’t even get a single carry! That might be the biggest hint of all, signaling the Patriots already know he’s their RB3 and didn’t need to see anything else from him. If I had to bet on it, Miller’s the pick.
Gabe Jacas Is a Broken Record of Mistakes
We all knew Gabe Jacas missed time in the spring and at the start of camp, so maybe he wasn’t going to be at his best right away. But wow, nobody could have expected him to look *this* bad in game action. It’s not just a lack of sacks or run stops that’s concerning. It’s the constant repetition of the same blunders. He’s consistently burned on bootleg, RPO, and option plays, flying in instead of holding the outside edge, giving up the critical outside integrity. This has happened in every single game he’s played. At some point, you just have to wonder what’s going on.
The good news for Patriots fans is the preseason is finally over. The big question for the team coming out of this? Who lands that RB3 spot, with a decision likely coming this weekend. Let’s just hope the regular season brings a lot more to look forward to than *that* performance.
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.
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