The New England Patriots almost had us believing in Christmas miracles, but couldn't fully mount the comeback over the Cincinnati Bengals, who held on to earn the 22-18 victory.
For the first half of this game, it looked like it was going to be an easy victory for Zac Taylor's club, which raced out to a 22-0 lead at the break thanks to a scoring barrage out of the gate. Joe Burrow led back-to-back touchdown drives to begin the game, while New England went three-and-out to start its afternoon and it felt like this game was going to be over quickly. However, a pick six off Burrow by rookie corner Marcus Jones gave the Patriots a spark and started an 18-0 run that nearly had them pull off the upset.
After a remarkable tip-drill touchdown reception by Jakobi Meyers, the Patriots found themselves down by just four with over six minutes to play in regulation. The comeback then seemed to be on, especially when the defense forced a Ja'Marr Chase fumble on the ensuing possession to give the offense the ball back in Cincinnati territory. But Rhamondre Stevenson -- who infamously started the botched lateral during last week's loss to Las Vegas -- fumbled the ball at the 5-yard line to eliminate New England's best chance at a victory.
Burrow completed 40 of 52 passes for 375 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions in the win. Tee Higgins was his go-to target on the day, catching eight of his nine targets for 128 yards and a score. On the other side, Mac Jones went 21 of 33 for 240 yards and two touchdowns in the loss. Kendrick Bourne had himself a breakout performance, catching six passes for 100 yards and a touchdown.
For a more detailed breakdown of how this game unfolded, check out our takeaways below.
Why the Bengals won
Joe Burrow picked apart the Patriots secondary throughout the first half and was particularly sharp out of the gate. The Bengals QB was 13 of 15 for 165 yards and two touchdowns in the first quarter and completed his first 11 passes of the game, which is a career high. That helped Cincinnati get out to a 15-0 lead as it scored on all three of its drives to begin the game, including back-to-back touchdowns on the first two possessions. That barrage of scoring in the first half helped the Bengals get out to a 22-0 lead at halftime. While most assumed they were en route to a blowout victory, that 22-point outburst through the first two quarters was just enough of a cushion to fend off New England's second-half comeback attempt.
Specifically, the connect between Burrow and wideout Tee Higgins came up clutch in this game. The duo connected on a 39-yard pass on the second play of the game and then hooked up again for a 9-yard touchdown to wrap up a swift five-play, 78-yard touchdown drive. The also hit a 31-yard completion that was eerily similar to that 39-yard reception in the fourth quarter which helped flip the field and kill clock as the Patriots made their move toward mounting a comeback.
Defensively, Cincinnati didn't have to do too much to slow down the Patriots offense in the first half, but came up clutch in the second half, particularly when its backs were against the wall with New England on the 5-yard line and threatening to take the lead with under a minute left in regulation. It was at that point when Vonn Bell forced a fumble off of Patriots running back Rhamondre Stevenson that erased the comeback hopes and helped bring Cincy to victory.
Why the Patriots lost
Through the first half, the Patriots offense again looked lifeless. As the Bengals scored back-to-back touchdowns to begin the day, New England's unit went three-and-out on its first two possessions. That sluggish start lasted through the opening two quarters as they punted on each of their possessions outside of a kneel down before departing to the locker room. Over that same stretch, Cincinnati was jumping up to a 22-0 lead, which was just enough to make the impressive comeback attempt in the second half fall just short.
At one point, the Bengals had as many first downs (10) as the Patriots did total yards. At halftime, Cincinnati had 303 yards of total offense while New England had 70. When you put yourself in a hole that big, it's going to be nearly impossible to pull yourself out of it more often than not. However, New England nearly did it as it ripped off an 18-0 run in the second half sparked by a Marcus Jones interception returned for a touchdown. After back-to-back touchdown drives by the offense to pull within four, it seemed like the Patriots were destined to take the lead, especially as they brought the ball inside the 10-yard line with less than a minute to go. But, Rhamondre Stevenson fumbled the ball away and dashed their dreams of a Christmas Eve miracle.
On top of that Stevenson turnover and sluggish start to begin the day, New England also had poor execution on special teams in this loss. Nick Folk missed two extra point attempts, which would have eliminated the Patriots need to score a touchdown on that drive Stevenson fumbled entirely. Earlier in the game, punter Michael Palardy fumbled a punt attempt in the first quarter that gave the Bengals the ball midfield. On that same play, New England was penalized for an ineligible defender downfield, which moved Cincinnati even further toward what would be an eventual field goal drive. Those miscues on special teams either directly resulted in points going on the board for Cincinnati or taking them away from New England.
Turning point
There were two pivotal shifts in this game that swung momentum in each team's favor. Of course, the Marcus Jones interception returned for a touchdown helped spark the 18-0 run by New England in the second half and nearly propelled them to mount the comeback.
However, the key series of events that truly determined the winner of this game came right before the half when Cincinnati scored a touchdown after a 12-play drive. That pushed the Bengals to 22 points on the day, which was just enough to absorb the Patriots comeback attempt in the second half.
After a lifeless start, New England showed brief sign of life just before that scoring drive as Devin McCourty was able to pick off Burrow to prevent a scoring opportunity by the Bengals and gave the offense the ball back with just over four minutes to play in the second quarter and trailing by 15. For a second, it looked like they were going to put together a scoring drive, especially after Kendrick Bourne ripped off a 29-yard run to get the offense to midfield. However, the unit punted just three plays later after Mac Jones was sacked on third down.
It was at that point when the Bengals methodically moved 80 yards down the field and converted three third downs to go up 22-0. At the time, that was though to merely be the cherry on top of an eventual blowout, but ultimately proved to be a much-needed score that prevented the Patriots will pulling out the win.
Play of the game
Given how many twists and turns this game had, there were a number of notable plays but the most jaw-dropping was the tip-drill touchdown catch by Jakobi Meyers midway through the fourth quarter. New England was still trailing by 10 points when faced with a third-and-29 situation from the Cincinnati 48. At that point a first down felt like a pipe dream let alone a score, especially as it appeared the Bengals were about to sack Mac Jones for a loss. The second-year quarterback somehow managed to escape the pressure, however, and heave a prayer to the goal line where the ball initially deflected off the hands of Scotty Washington and was then hauled in by Meyers, who juked into the end zone for the touchdown.
What's next
From here, the Bengals head back to Cincinnati and gear up for a massive "Monday Night Football" showdown with the Buffalo Bills. As for the Patriots, they'll stick around Foxborough and prepare for an AFC East matchup with the Miami Dolphins.