Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images Notes and thoughts on the Patriots’ snap counts from their 27-17 loss to the Chiefs. When the New England Patriots announced the inactive players for their Week 15 matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, Shaun Wade was the only cornerback listed. Four others, meanwhile, were all seemingly ready to play in the game: Jonathan Jones, Myles Bryant, Alex Austin and J.C. Jackson. The latter, however, ended up playing zero snaps and was not spotted on the sideline either. According to his agent, he was unable to participate in the contest due to “mental health issues.” With the projected starting outside cornerback unavailable, the Patriots had to quickly change their plans. This process included making rookie Alex Austin a surprise No. 1 option at the position: the seventh-round rookie, who arrived in New England in early November after stints in Buffalo and Houston, ended up playing all 65 defensive snaps primarily as a perimeter cornerback. It was trial by fire for the 22-year-old against one of the NFL’s best offenses. According to Pro Football Focus, he ended the game giving up five catches on seven targets for 35 yards and one touchdown. “I thought he played competitively,” said head coach Bill Belichick on Monday while also disputing the notion that the Chiefs specifically targeted him in coverage. With all that said, here is our weekly snap count report from the Patriots’ 27-17 loss to the Chiefs. Offense Total snaps: 53 | Time on the field: 27:33 QB Bailey Zappe* (53; 100%), C David Andrews* (53; 100%), RG Sidy Sow* (53; 100%), RT Michael Onwenu* (53; 100%), WR DeVante Parker* (48; 91%), RB Ezekiel Elliott* (46; 87%), LT Conor McDermott* (40; 75%), WR Demario Douglas* (38; 72%), TE Hunter Henry (38; 72%), LG Atonio Mafi (33; 62%), TE Pharaoh Brown* (31; 58%), WR Jalen Reagor (29; 55%), TE Mike Gesicki* (21; 40%), LG Cole Strange* (20; 38%), LT Vederian Lowe (13; 25%), WR Tyquan Thornton (7; 13%), RB Kevin Harris (7; 13%) *denotes starter With game-ending injuries suffered by starting offensive linemen Cole Strange (knee) and Conor McDermott (head), the Patriots had only four players go wire-to-wire against the Chiefs. They also were forced to insert Atonio Mafi and Vederian Lowe into the lineup again — two players who had struggled earlier this season in extended action. Mafi ended up playing 33 snaps at left guard, with Lowe chipping in 13 at left tackle. Injuries also shaped the personnel usage at the skill positions, starting at wide receiver. DeVante Parker and Demario Douglas did return after recently missing time, but JuJu Smith-Schuster was unavailable. The Patriots turned to Jalen Reagor as their new No. 3 at the position, but he did not catch any of his two targets. Tyquan Thornton, who served as the No. 2 the previous week against Pittsburgh, was limited to just seven snaps all day. At tight end, Hunter Henry was the clear top option again. When he went down with a knee injury in the fourth quarter, however, Mike Gesicki in particular received some increased snaps: the offseason signing played 21 snaps, his biggest output since Week 10. The running back position, meanwhile, was again headlined by workhorse Ezekiel Elliott replacing an injured Rhamondre Stevenson. Second-year man Kevin Harris also received a handful of snaps, and actually performed well in his limited opportunities: he carried the ball four times for 25 yards and one touchdown. Defense Total snaps: 65 | Time on the field: 30:13 S Kyle Dugger* (65; 100%), CB Alex Austin* (65; 100%), LB Ja’Whaun Bentley* (61; 94%), S Jabrill Peppers* (59; 91%), CB Myles Bryant (52; 80%), CB Jonathan Jones* (49; 75%), LB/ED Jahlani Tavai* (46; 71%), DT Christian Barmore (42; 65%), DT Davon Godchaux* (40; 62%), ED Anfernee Jennings (39; 60%), CB Jalen Mills* (39; 60%), DE Deatrich Wise Jr.* (33; 51%), DE Keion White (32; 49%), ED Josh Uche (26; 40%), ED/LB Mack Wilson Sr. (23; 35%), DT Lawrence Guy* (23; 35%), LB/S Marte Mapu (15; 23%), DT Jeremiah Pharms Jr. (6; 9%) *denotes starter Besides the aforementioned Alex Austin, safety Kyle Dugger was the only Patriots defender on the field for all 65 snaps on Sunday. The other starter-level defensive backs all missed time, either because they were shaken up themselves (Jabrill Peppers, Jonathan Jones) or due to personnel usage and defensive packages (Myles Bryant, Jalen Mills). At the second level, New England again relied heavily on Ja’Whaun Bentley with Jahlani Tavai and Mack Wilson moving between on- and off-ball alignments. Third-round rookie Marte Mapu, meanwhile, had his most active day since Week 8 — spending a significant time in the box as opposed to back deep in a safety alignment. That role seems to suit him well, not just because he caught his first career interception. With Tavai and Wilson again playing rotational roles on the edge alongside Anfernee Jennings and Josh Uche, the Patriots used Keion White more on the inside again. The second-round draft pick ended the day ranked fourth along interior linemen behind veterans Christian Barmore, Davon Godchaux and Deatrich Wise Jr. Special teams Total snaps: 30 | Time on the field: 2:14 LB Chris Board (26; 87%), S Brenden Schooler (26; 87%), WR Matthew Slater (24; 80%), LB Jahlani Tavai (23; 77%), S Adrian Phillips (20; 67%), ED Mack Wilson Sr. (19; 63%), LB Christian Elliss (19; 63%), TE Pharaoh Brown (16; 53%), ED Anfernee Jennings (13; 43%), S Cody Davis (13; 43%), DT Lawrence Guy (11; 37%), DE Keion White (10; 33%), P/H Bryce Baringer (10; 33%), LS Joe Cardona (10; 33%), CB/PR Myles Bryant (9; 30%), ED Josh Uche (8; 27%), K Chad Ryland (8; 27%), S Kyle Dugger (7; 23%), DE Deatrich Wise Jr. (7; 23%), WR/KR Jalen Reagor (6; 20%), LB Ja’Whaun Bentley (5; 17%), OT Michael Onwenu (4; 13%), G Sidy Sow (4; 13%), G Atonio Mafi (4; 13%), S Jabrill Peppers (4; 13%), RB Ja’Mycal Hasty (4; 13%), C Jake Andrews (4; 13%), OT Conor McDermott (3; 10%), OT Vederian Lowe (3; 10%), CB Alex Austin (3; 10%), LB Marte Mapu (3; 10%), CB Jonathan Jones (2; 7%), G Cole Strange (1; 3%), CB Jalen Mills (1; 3%) New England’s special teams group saw a few changes compared to the previous week’s game in Pittsburgh. The usual cast of characters was playing prominent roles in the game’s third phase with Chris Board and Brenden Schooler leading the group ahead of Matthew Slater, who missed two of his usual snaps after getting banged up in the late third quarter. Interestingly enough, Cody Davis is not near the top of the list this time around. While an undisclosed injury might be to blame, it appears New England simply decided to change his role as part of a larger shakeup on the kickoff return squad: new arrival Christian Elliss, who was used on all four return and coverage squads, seems to have taken over his job in that area. As a result, Davis played only 13 snaps — his lowest output since returning from the physically unable to perform list in mid-October. In addition, Jalen Reagor served as kickoff returner following the release of Ty Montgomery. Even though one 46-yard runback was called back by penalty, he still averaged 28 yards per return with a long of 40. Also worth mentioning is Adrian Phillips. The former starting safety was used exclusively on special teams for the second time in the last three games. Did not play QB Mac Jones, CB J.C. Jackson With Bailey Zappe playing all 53 offensive snaps, former starter Mac Jones remained on the sidelines throughout the contest. As noted above, J.C. Jackson did not join him: the in-season trade (re-)acquisition was not spotted at all on Sunday despite being active. Inactive WR JuJu Smith-Schuster, CB Shaun Wade, RB Rhamondre Stevenson, OT Trent Brown, WR Kayshon Boutte, DE Sam Roberts Three of the Patriots’ inactives were listed on the injury report on Friday before the game: JuJu Smith-Schuster (ankle), Rhamondre Stevenson (ankle) and Trent Brown (hand, ankle, illness) all had to sit out the contest due to medical reasons. The other three players listed here, meanwhile, were healthy scratches. Source: https://www.patspulpit.com/2023/12/19/2 ... er-douglas
