The New England Patriots played perhaps the worst game of their season, and they did it at home in a standalone game. The 40-7 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers was an all-around tough defeat, with both the team’s players and coaches being held responsible for the dismal defeat.

Let’s get to our takeaways from the Patriots’ 13th loss of the season.

The spots are likely to get hotter as Pats slide into insignificance

Before this game, it was believed that Jerod Mayo would return next season. After a performance like Saturday’s, especially considering it was a standalone game, his return may not be as certain as it seemed.

The defense, which was supposed to be his specialty, was once again destroyed, and the offense wasn’t much better. This is exactly the kind of game that can force the owner to take action and lead to some changes.

As the Patriots continue to slide toward irrelevance, no one should be safe after an outing like this.

Of course, the Krafts might not be so hasty; They said back in January that they were thinking long-term about promoting Mayo to replace Bill Belichick. Given the way the team has looked in two of their three games since the bye week, drastic measures would certainly be warranted.

Another strange turn of events

Jerod Mayo has made a habit of saying things on the podium and then retracting them later. Usually this all happens after the game. On Saturday, he followed a different schedule.

Speaking to 98.5 The Sports Hub before the game, he revealed that Antonio Gibson would be the starting running back. However, when the offense actually took the field, it was Rhamondre Stevenson who took the lead.

It is unclear how this happened. Maybe offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt wanted to start Stevenson and simply ignored what Mayo said, or maybe there was a miscommunication between the two, or maybe an unexpected problem arose that forced the team to act.

What we do know is that the Patriots planned to use Gibson at some point before the game. Color commentator Ross Tucker confirmed this on NFL Network when discussing Friday’s production meeting with the team.

“That’s what we were told when we met with the team yesterday,” Tucker said during the broadcast. “They said Gibson would go first because they wanted to send a message about accountability and how important ball security is.”

Gibson, meanwhile, claimed he was not involved in any conversation about the start of the game.

“I wasn’t told anything about starting all week,” he said. “So that didn’t even occur to me. I had no feelings about it. We did the same thing we did. Mondre got his snaps, I got my snaps.”

Regardless of what was said or not, it was another strange turn of events – one that Mayo explained after the game by saying it was a “coach’s decision.” Well then.

Cole Strange looks good in the middle

Speaking of “weird,” former first-round draft pick Cole Strange made his first career start at center on Saturday. He looked good in his new role.

Some of the blocking calls seemed to be a problem, and if he was responsible for them, he certainly needs to work on that. The blocking itself was pretty good though. It may not have been good enough to make you feel like a center of the future, but good enough to feel after a game that he can step in and be a serviceable player if you need him.

For a player who has gone more than a full year between starts due to a knee injury, playing at a serviceable level in his comeback is a positive development. The hope is he can build on that next week heading into the offseason.

Time to play with the children

Jerod Mayo has talked a lot about wanting to see more from the Patriots’ young players. Unfortunately, it was all just talk, as he failed to provide any of them with any meaningful snaps for most of the season.

Go Caedan Wallace on the offensive. The third-round pick was injured most of the season, but was finally back on the roster on game day against the Chargers. However, instead of putting him in the starting lineup, the Patriots stuck with Demontrey Jacobs, who has been a weak link at the top all year.

They used Wallace during the garbage break, but there’s an argument to be made that he should be the starter next week. Regardless of how he plays, the Patriots a) can’t do much worse than Jacobs and b) will have to see what they have in Wallace in the offseason.

Rookie receivers Ja’Lynn Polk and Javon Baker also didn’t get much playing time on Saturday or recently in general. As poor as their performance was, they should still take as many snaps as possible in what has been a long-lost season for the Patriots.

Even the aforementioned Cole Strange didn’t get any reps at center until Ben Brown was out for the game.

Would Mayo want to see what they’re made of before the end of the season? It’s now or never.

Another complete no-show on defense

The Patriots entered the season with a clear plan: play good defense and control the ball on offense during the ground game. They did neither on Saturday, with their defensive contribution being a major problem.

In fact, this may have been the Patriots’ worst defensive game in years. The Chargers had the ball for over 40 minutes, ran 77 plays and were 10 of 17 on third down. They gained 7.4 yards per pass and averaged 4.0 yards per carry. Long story short: LA moved the ball at will all day.

Some of the players, including Keion White, have been vocal about the need for change, and it’s hard to argue with them. Watching the entire unit take a big step backwards this year makes you think that talent is only part of the problem; A lot of the blame also has to lie with the coaching staff.

A prime example is the number of horse collar tackles. White was cited for the violation late in the third quarter on Saturday, the fourth time a Patriot has been penalized for such a play. The team leads the NFL in this category and is responsible for 27 percent of all horse collar calls in the league so far this season.

It goes without saying that something needs to change in defensive training. What the Patriots got out of their players was nowhere near acceptable.

Ladd McConkey makes it seem personal

By now everyone knows that the Patriots traded back from 34th to 37th in this year’s draft, passing up an opportunity to select Ladd McConkey and instead selecting Ja’Lynn Polk three picks later. McConkey was one of the better receivers in the NFL – rookie status or not – and looked like a future cornerstone receiver, while Polk did next to nothing all season.

It’s hard to make a decision much worse than this, and on Saturday it looked like McConkey and the Chargers made it personally. He made eight catches for 94 yards and two touchdowns and was clearly the best receiver on the field for both teams.

“No extra motivation or anything like that,” McConkey said in the locker room after the game. “When I got drafted, I was excited to get drafted. I didn’t care about (the trade) or whatever. I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be, so it’s a cool moment.”

“We just went out and did our business. There’s probably no hard feelings,” Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert added. “He is a very talented player. We are grateful to have him on our team. He definitely made my job easier. Just go through your reading. He’s open, he’s open and you give him the ball.”

This certainly isn’t the first time the Patriots have missed a receiver in the draft. And while I won’t cover all of them, this one might be right up there with the worst failures in recent memory.

Injury concerns are increasing

The Patriots’ two best players were out for a while with head injuries. Drake Maye was evaluated and eventually returned early in the second quarter. Christian Gonzalez, on the other hand, was evaluated and did not return.

With only one game left in the season and considering how important Gonzalez is to the defense in the long run, there is an argument that he shouldn’t play next week. The Patriots don’t have many bright spots, but he and Maye were two of them. With both dealing with injury concerns, the Patriots will only become harder to keep an eye on.

Kyle Dugger’s best isn’t enough

“Dugger is obviously enforcing something and we all appreciate that,” Jerod Mayo said of the Patriots’ starting safety earlier this week. “From our perspective, that’s what football is all about at this time of year. There are many people who are dealing with nagging injuries that may or may not require treatment at the end of the season. He’s doing his best and we appreciate that.”

On Saturday, Dugger’s best performance was far from enough. He allowed a touchdown in zone coverage on Saturday and didn’t start running until the receiver passed him.

The Patriots made it a priority to re-sign Dugger this offseason, retaining him to a four-year extension worth $58 million. Since that deal, however, he has become one of the worst cover safeties in the league.

This regression could be due to the ankle and quadriceps injuries he’s been dealing with, but it’s still alarming given his price tag. Dugger’s play is something worth watching in the future.

Top 5 selection confirmed

With Saturday’s loss and assuming there is no tie between the Tennessee Titans and Jacksonville Jaguars this weekend, the Patriots have all but secured a top-five pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. Even if they won next week’s meaningless game against the Buffalo Bills, they would have their worst finish with pick No. 5.

In a season where there has been almost no good news, knowing they have a chance at a real top player in April is a much-needed reprieve.

An AFC East game to conclude

The Patriots will finish their 2024 season next weekend at home against the Buffalo Bills. Assuming the Bills beat the hapless New York Jets on Sunday, they’ve secured second place in the AFC and have nothing left to play for. If so, there’s a good chance Buffalo won’t have its starters on the field for all four quarters.

If that happens, the Patriots should be able to keep up with the Bills’ backups, especially given the way they played against the Bills last week. On the other hand, if they play like they did against the Chargers on Saturday, they won’t beat anyone.