New England Patriots links 10/18/21 - Great start, exciting end to regulation; Pats run out of gas in OT

TEAM TALK

• Post Game Notes: Patriots-Cowboys. Patriots play first regular-season overtime game since 2015
• Gamebook: Full Patriots vs. Cowboys stats.
• Mike Dussault gives us five 5 keys from the overtime loss. 1. Finally, a great start.
• Erik Scalavino’s Game Observations: Gritty Patriots outdone by Big D. Jones only had six incomplete passes Sunday night, and he’s getting more opportunities to push the ball downfield in critical spots.
• Post Game Quotes: Patriots and Cowboys.
• Press Conference Transcript: Bill Belichick.
• Post Game Pressers: Bill Belichick - Mac Jones - Damien Harris - Ja’Whaun Bentley - Devin McCourty - David Andrews - Kendrick Bourne - Matthew Judon.
• What Went Wrong: Patriots come up short in overtime. (1.33 min. video)

LOCAL LINKS

• Mike D’Abate (PatriotMaven) Dallas-Downer: Patriots fall to Cowboys 35-29 in overtime thriller.
• Henry McKenna (PatriotsWire) 8 takeaways from the Patriots’ heartbreaking OT loss to the Cowboys.
• Nick Goss gives us his Pats-Cowboys takeaways: 1. Patriots pass defense got roasted again.
• Evan Lazar tells us ten things we learned from the OT loss. 1. The Patriots were a few plays away from pulling off the upset.
• Steve Balestrieri (PatsFans) Prescott, Cowboys carve up Patriots, win in OT; Observations. ‘In the end, the more talented team won but they left the game wide open for a steal.’
• Khari Thompson writes the Patriots drop a heartbreaker at home in overtime.
• Clare Cooper (PatsPropaganda) The Cowboys rode into Foxborough and caught themselves a win. ‘It’s still early in the season, technically. ... but as they stretch out these “almost wins” the stats don’t look good, and the chances of being a playoff team are beginning to look not very feasible.’
• Bob George (PatsFans) Cowboys nip Patriots in overtime thriller.
• Ian Logue (PatsFans) Dallas loss is a reminder Patriots need to figure out how to stop beating themselves.
• Chad Finn writes the Patriots had to have Sunday, and per usual, they couldn’t quite get it; The story of the season so far.
• Mark Daniels says bad teams find ways to lose; Here’s the harsh truth about the 2021 Patriots. 1. This is who the Patriots are—a sometimes sloppy team that finds a way to lose.
• Michael Hurley points to a couple of coaching decisions by Bill Belichick that stood out in the loss, including his decision not to challenge the play before the blocked punt and the conservative play-calling before halftime.
• Ryan Hannable highlights WEEI guest Bill Belichick, saying he didn’t consider going for it on fourth down in OT.
• Logan Mullen notes Dak Prescott joins a long list of folks liking what they are seeing from Mac Jones.
• Justin Leger tells us how Mac Jones fared yesterday.
• CBS Boston notes elite special teams play has always been a staple of Bill Belichick’s Patriots. But the two blocked punts over the last three weeks is not sitting well with him.
• CBS Boston picks some Ups & Downs from Sunday: Bad day for pair of New England’s big free agent signings.
• CBS Boston considers if there is any chance the Pats could still make the playoffs despite their 2-4 start.
• Evan Lazar’s Patriots Mailbag: Anemic rushing attack wasn’t part of the plan for Patriots’ offense.

NATIONAL NEWS

• NFL GameCenter (NFL.com) Cowboys at Patriots: Drives, stats, highlights.
• Michael Hull (PFF) NFL Week 6 Game Recap: Dallas Cowboys 35, New England Patriots 29. ‘New England was relatively strong in run defense, finishing the evening with a 70.7 run defense grade after tallying 20 defensive snaps, five missed tackles and nine tackles for loss/no gain on 30 run defense snaps.’
• Conor Orr (SI) The Patriots lost, but are they on the verge of breaking out? /Oh, Yes! Yes! Yes!
• Tyler Sullivan (CBS Sports) Overtime loss shows Patriots defense still needs to prove it can get off the field in crunch time.
• Eric Edholm (Yahoo! Sports) Dak Prescott’s heroics bail out Cowboys in OT win over Patriots.
• Kyle Hightower (AP) In a roller-coaster game at Gillette, Patriots lose in OT to Cowboys 35-29: The Patriots dropped to 0-4 at home for the first time in Belichick’s 22 years as coach.
• Josh Alper (ProFootballTalk) Mac Jones “learning the hard way” how the NFL works.
• Albert Breer (SI) Monday Morning QB: Cardinals secure 6–0 status despite unusual 48 hours; Plus, how the Jaguars avoided their 20th consecutive loss with late-game decision-making, an interesting Ravens defense that’s gaining steam and more.
• Gary Gramling (SI) Week 6 Takeaways: Cowboys walk it off in spite of everything, Ravens on a special run, Cards keep stacking wins; Plus, Kirk Cousins does it again (twice!), not the same ol’ Bengals, kicking heroics in London, the ugly tanking aftermath, a Giants collapse, and much more!
• Peter King (ProFootballTalk) FMIA Week 6: Confident Cowboys, dangerous Dak, and the top 12 quarterbacks in the NFL right now.
• Around the NFL (NFL.com) 2021 NFL season, Week 6: What we learned from Sunday’s games. ‘New England’s defensive play in short-yardage situations demands due mention.’
• John Breech (CBS Sports) NFL Week 6 grades. Patriots C+, Cowboys B+. ‘The Patriots moved the ball well to begin the game, logging back-to-back touchdown drives. However, the offense then went silent for the middle part of the game, scoring zero points in the second and third quarter.’
• Rodger Sherman (The Ringer) The winners and losers of NFL Week 6.
• Josh Alper (ProFootballTalk) Brian Flores: I’m not doing a good enough job. /Sounds almost Belichickian.
• Conor Orr (SI) With hope waning, who can the Dolphins blame?
• Nick Selbe (SI) Cam Newton says he still wants to play in NFL, has received offers.
• Kevin Clark (The Ringer) The cult of the coach is losing its power. Good riddance.
• Jason La Canfora (CBS Sports) NFL could play as many as 5 international games a year moving forward; sustained push coming for Germany.