Bill Belichick spikes phone; Cam Newton gets yanked: 10 things we learned from Patriots blowout loss to Bills - MassLive.com

So this is what it’s looked like from the other side for the past 20 years.

The New England Patriots had nothing to play for Monday night against the Buffalo Bills -- and sure played like it in an embarrassing blowout to the Buffalo Bills on national television.

Cam Newton got benched. Bill Belichick threw a phone. J.C. Jackson got torched by Stefon Diggs (and got benched as well). The defense couldn’t tackle or cover or prevent Josh Allen from looking like an MVP candidate as the Bills drove their playoff wagon up and down the field at Gillette Stadium.

After so many years of dominance of the Bills with Tom Brady at the helm, the new-look Patriots looked helpless as all eyes turn to 2021 to see how Belichick can rebuild this team -- or if they can beat the New York Jets last week.

Here’s what we learned from Monday night’s loss.

1. The Patriots’ 2020 season, summed up in one play

The 2020 Patriots could have gone in myriad directions this year. But ultimately, it finished as a mediocre mess with flashes of brilliance.

Perhaps no play sums up the season better than this first-drive double pass from Sony Michel to Newton to Damiere Byrd’s facemask to the ground.

Like they have at many points this season, the Patriots had a good thing going. Then, at the worst possible moment, it all came crumbling down, leaving the team to scrape together mediocre results. In this play, it was a wide-open Byrd letting a ball bounce off his facemask instead of his hands, resulting in an incompletion instead of a potential touchdown.

This play had everything: an ambitious plan, a Patriots receiver making a mistake and the blame in the box score going to Newton (incompletion).

This play, like the whole season, had great potential and expectations. Instead, it was a field goal -- and a flop of a record.

2. Belichick finally pulled Cam Newton for Jarrett Stidham

Heading into Monday night’s game, there was speculation that the Patriots may bench Newton in favor of second-year quarterback Jarrett Stidham. Much of that stemmed from Belichick declining to make a firm “Cam is our quarterback” statement this week.

The prevalent thinking was that, since the Patriots had no postseason to play for, Belichick might put the kid out there and see what he had in a full game situation. Instead, Belichick stuck with his guy -- for a while.

But with the Patriots getting their doors blown off on the scoreboard, Belichick finally had Stidham come off the bench for Newton.

It didn’t really change things. Stidham started slow on offense, spiking some passes low (like Newton has tended to do) and failing to provide a spark for the passing attack.

3. Belichick has moved on from taking out his anger on tablets to phones

Belichick is famous for his disdain of Microsoft Surface tablets on the sideline, culminating in the timeless clip of him spiking the device on the sidelines in frustration.

On Monday night, we got a new entry into the Belichick Sideline Reaction Hall of Fame when the coach was spotted slamming a phone out of frustration.

The phone spike came after the Patriots wasted a challenge flag on a sideline catch that was easily upheld on review. Challenge calls typically come from long-time Belichick assistant Ernie Adams up in the booth. Clearly, Belichick wasn’t happy with this call.

4. J.C. Jackson vs. Stefon Diggs started as a big battle - and ended with Jackson on the sidelines

With Stephon Gilmore done for the season, the Patriots turned to third-year cornerback J.C. Jackson as their No. 1 man in coverage to shadow Stefon Diggs throughout the game.

Right out of the gate, the Patriots had Jackson following Diggs all over the field and appeared to have the upper hand early on, getting physical with the Bills’ top receiver and chirping with him down the field. Through the first 19 minutes of the game, Allen was 0-2 when targeting Diggs.

Then, Diggs flipped the script in one play, toasting Jackson on a crossing route before breaking away for a 50-yard score.

Soon after, Allen hit Diggs on a slant in the red zone, resulting in both Jackson and safety Terrence Brooks bouncing off the receiver, who ran in for the score.

By the time the game hit the fourth quarter, Jackson was spotted standing on the sidelines as second-year cornerback Joejuan Williams entered the game.

This was a rough ride for Jackson as the No. 1 guy.

5. The Patriots are going to hear about sloppy tackling this week

Going back to that second touchdown to Diggs: This is an example of some seriously spotty tackling.

It’s been a recurring theme throughout the season. In a year with a limited training camp and fewer practices due to COVID-19, the Patriots have taken a noticeable step back in their tackling skills.

The play above is a microcosm of the problems the Patriots have had on the defensive side of the ball. It’s not just a talent thing. It’s been a fundamental problem for which there is no easy fix.

6. The ESPN broadcast subjected audiences to this nightmare “Love, Actually” animation

You’d be hard-pressed to find anything scarier to witness this year than the Patriots’ passing game. Still, ESPN managed to pull it off with this holiday-themed animation inspired by the scene from “Love Actually” where Andrew Lincoln professes his love for Kiera Knightley.

In this version, ESPN depicts Belichick going to Brady’s doorstep and showcasing all the negative statistics for New England this season.

This is probably not how fans in New England wanted to wind down the holidays.

7. Cam Newton’s supposed morning schedule is wild

The ESPN broadcast featured a fascinating little graphic depicting the Patriots quarterback’s typical morning schedule. Per ESPN, Newton goes to bed at 11:30 p.m. After that, Newton’s morning supposedly goes as follows:

4:20 a.m. - Wakes up.

4:30 a.m. - Leaves his house.

8 a.m. - Has his first sip of coffee.

OK, there are a couple of things to discuss here. First, the suggestion that Newton gets from his bed to out the door within 10 minutes. The only way that’s possible is if he has some sort of automatic wake-up contraption like Wallace & Gromit.

Second, Newton only gets four hours, 50 minutes of sleep? That’s not good for you.

Third, if we’re talking about quarterbacks not drinking coffee, Tom Brady went 20 years without drinking coffee in New England.

8. The Patriots got burned by a fake punt for the second week in a row

Last week, the Patriots were bailed out when the Dolphins ran a fake punt and had it called back because a receiver didn’t report eligible.

This time, the Bills took advantage of some aggressive play by the Patriots to steal a first down. New England stacked the box on this play in an attempt to block the punt. That meant bringing in their defenders over the opposing gunners.

Well, the Bills turned those gunners into receivers by snapping the ball right to upback Jaquan Johnson, who flipped it for an easy first down to Siran Neal.

9. Devin Asiasi may never catch a pass

The Patriots third-round pick has had a rough rookie season. He spent some time on IR and had to leave the team at one point for personal reasons.

On the field, he’s still trying to get an actual catch.

Asiasi entered the game with two targets over seven games this season, both of which resulted in incompletions.

On Monday, he got another pair of targets, both of which resulted in incompletions.

The first one was high and bounced off Asiasi’s fingertips. The second was drilled into a tight window with Asiasi taking contact and failing to hold onto the ball.

Ryan Izzo wasn’t lighting up the scoreboard when he was playing. But since he landed on IR, the tight end position has been a non-factor for the Patriots.

10. Injuries remain a major factor

The Patriots finished out Monday night’s game with a number of their most important players out with injury. McCourty is the glue on the defense. Andrews is a vital centerpiece for the offensive line. Mason is generally regarded as the team’s best overall offensive linemen.

That’s on top of the roughly 20 players the Patriots had limited in practice this week on top of players already on injured reserve, like Julian Edelman and Stephon Gilmore.

Injuries aren’t an excuse for the bad results Monday night. But they are a heck of a reason to explain why things went south so quickly.

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