After a five-turnover defeat in front of their home crowd, the Patriots have a chance to rebound against a confident but injury-plagued Panthers team.<\/p>\n
“It was one of those games that you just look back and feel like, \u2018Man, we hurt ourselves,'” Drake Maye<\/strong> said. “It’s one of those things where [you] just get back to focusing on us and a new opponent. We\u2019ve got to know how to not lose the game on ourselves before we go win it.”<\/p>\n Despite an excellent game plan, Josh McDaniels<\/strong>‘ offense took a big step back after a strong showing in Miami. Giveaways were the main culprit, but missed opportunities prevented what should\u2019ve been a comfortable win.<\/p>\n On the other end of the spectrum, interim coordinator Zak Kuhr’s<\/strong> defense looks to build on an impressive performance. Red zone defense remains an area for improvement, but Aaron Rodgers was held to just 139 passing yards, and Jaylen Warren averaged 2.6 yards on 18 carries.<\/p>\n “I know what we can do, and I still feel like we haven’t played our best football,” Maye said. “That’s what’s promising ahead… You see glimpses of it, but that’s the challenging part of this league, and that’s what’s the fun part about it, of getting to that level and hoping to get to that level when the games matter, really matter, and trying to get a push to the postseason or things like that. So, that’s what we’re trying to build toward and just keep going at it every week.”<\/span><\/p>\n The Panthers enter Foxborough at 1-2 following a 30-0 blowout loss to the Falcons. Outside of two low red zone scores, it was a modest performance from Bryce Young<\/strong> and company, as the defense put the team on its back.\u00a0 Carolina held Michael Penix Jr.<\/strong> under 180 passing yards and picked him off twice, returning one for a touchdown. That said, the Falcons also ran for 131 yards, and Carolina’s pass rush has been one of the worst in the league.<\/p>\n The Panthers may have momentum, but the Patriots have coaching and talent advantages in this matchup. The key will be staying out of their own way.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople lose games more than they win games,\u201d Stefon Diggs<\/strong> told reporters this week. \u201cYou learn how to lose by experience, sadly enough\u2026 I feel like you have to take these Ls with a lesson. We were in all of them, competitive, right there. So we could easily be sitting at 3-0 but we\u2019re 1-2, and we have a lot to look forward to.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n This is also a big week for special teams, as Carolina kicker Ryan Fitzgerald<\/strong> is sending returners into frenzies with his “dirty” kickoffs.<\/p>\n Mike Vrabel shared he spent two hours last night watching the Panthers kickoff unit, who are one of the few teams in the league to use a \u201cdirty\u201d knuckleball style kick.<\/p>\n Opponents have the worst starting field position in the league at their own 21-yard line on average. pic.twitter.com\/p1E2NzpNRu<\/a><\/p>\n — Brian Hines (@iambrianhines) September 24, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n