The New England Patriots couldn’t overcome several self-inflicted wounds in a 35-6 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars. We react on today’s episode of the Patriots Roundtable Podcast.
The New England Patriots (1-2) were unable to overcome several self-inflicted wounds in their 35-6 loss at the hands of the Jacksonville Jaguars (2-1) on Sunday afternoon.
On today’s “instant reaction” edition of the Patriots Roundtable Podcast, hosts Eddie Marotta and Tyler Geis dissect what went wrong for New England in their trip to Jacksonville. From costly turnovers to an inability to force the Jaguars off-schedule, Jacksonville was able to control the pace of the game’s action and keep the Patriots at bay throughout.
Offensively, Drake Maye continued a rough stretch to open the 2026 regular season. Maye turned the football over twice in the first half: once on a fumble when the ball slipped out of his hands as he began his throwing motion, and again on an interception to cornerback Travis Hunter when New England was knocking on the door inside the five yard-line near the end of the first half.
Maye’s struggles continued through the second half, tossing his second interception to cornerback Jarrian Jones late and setting up a Jaguars’ touchdown to take a 28-3 lead. Maye finished his day 14-of-25 with 199 passing yards, no touchdowns, two interceptions, one lost fumble, was sacked three times, and registered a passer rating of 48.6. He was pulled in favor of backup quarterback Tommy DeVito and the rest of the reserves with eight minutes remaining and the Patriots facing a 35-6 deficit that would be the game’s final tally.
On defense, the Patriots were able to force their own mishaps from Jacksonville early, as Marcus Jones intercepted Trevor Lawrence in the first half, but a higher percentage of zone coverages and lower pressure rate allowed the quarterback to keep his offense on-schedule for the vast majority of the afternoon. By air or by land, Lawrence controlled the flow of the game and completed his day 19-of-29 with 182 passing yards, three touchdowns, one interception, one sack, and a passer rating of 102.9.
Aside from Jones’ interception in the first half, Jacksonville forced several mental errors and costly mistakes on defense, including nine penalties for 68 yards. The Jaguars were extremely efficient with those extra opportunities, converting 8-of-12 third downs and all five trips to the red zone in the game, pulling away in the second half to win in blowout fashion.
Everything that could go wrong for New England did go wrong, and they’ll have to rebound quickly. The Patriots will be back on the road in Week 4, with an AFC East showdown against the Buffalo Bills on the horizon.
What did you see from the Patriots in their loss to the Jaguars today? How do you think they’ll be able to rebound from a difficult loss next week in Buffalo? Drop your thoughts in the comments below and join the conversation on Patriots Roundtable.
–
Follow the Patriots Roundtable Podcast!
