The New England Patriots’ season is over as far as the postseason is concerned. However, there are still eight more games left on their 2023 schedule.
So the rest of this season is more of a see what you have and what you don’t kind of situation.
The Patriots will take on the Indianapolis Colts in Germany on Sunday morning. They will be facing a team that has had a better season than them, even with all of the turmoil surrounding star running back Jonathan Taylor. The Colts also lost their starting quarterback, rookie Anthony Richardson, for the season with a shoulder injury.
New England has a chance to improve to 3-7 if they do these three things in the upcoming matchup. Let’s get into this week’s keys to victory for the Patriots.
1. Play turnover-free football
Watching the Patriots’ sluggish offense at work has been brutal this season. One thing is for certain: If they want to give themselves a better chance to win football games, they must stop turning the ball over.
It sounds simple enough, but the fact that it needs to keep being mentioned means it’s a weekly issue for this team. They haven’t been good enough to overcome turnovers, and that isn’t going to change against a struggling Colts team in Frankfurt.
This game should be about holding onto the ball and trying to keep the Colts defense on the field for as long as possible. They need to play keep-away and tire Indy’s defenders out.
2. Shut down Michael Pittman Jr.
Michael Pittman Jr. is blossoming into one of the game’s top receivers. He has remained quietly productive regardless of who is playing under center. So he clearly deserves way more credit than many give him.
If the Patriots have shown a true strength in 2023, it is containing the opponent’s No. 1 options. With that said, Patriots cornerback J.C. Jackson did not travel, and Jack Jones has not played well since returning from injury.
Frankly, Jonathan Jones hasn’t been the same either since returning. The Patriots have been trying to battle lack of talent and injuries across their roster all season. If the Patriots want to win this game, they’ll need to find a way to shut down Pittman as the Colts lack other healthy options at this point.
3. Run the ball
The Colts have a good front-seven anchored by DeForest Buckner, aided by Kwity Paye and overseen by Shaquille Leonard. The Patriots’ offensive line has been playing better, but it has not been able to consistently control the game like they used to in the past.
If the Patriots want to win this game, it won’t be on the back of Mac Jones throwing 40 times, as the team lacks the weaponry to do so. They have two good running backs who should get a heavy workload against the Colts’ front.
Bill O’Brien is known for pass-heavy offensive schemes, but they may need to turn back the clock to the Josh McDaniels offense and run, run, run.
