The Patriots fought through injuries, a stout Bucs defense, and soggy, humid conditions to win their seventh game in a row and improve to 8-2, tied with the Colts and Broncos for the best record in the NFL. The Week 4 win over the Bills was more important in the standings, but Sunday proved the Patriots can battle adversity and still emerge victorious.
“It was a long game, it’s a tough place to play, it was warm, and they’re good,” said coach Mike Vrabel, who has won as many games in his first year with the Patriots as the franchise did the last two years combined. “They fight and they compete. It’s not always perfect, it’s never going to be perfect, but I love the way they compete.”
They won with a little magic on Sunday. Drake Maye once again shook off a slow start to connect on several clutch throws down the field. The rookie class dominated, with TreVeyon Henderson and Kyle Williams burning up the turf with three long touchdowns. The defense came up with three big stops in the fourth quarter, and Vrabel provided a masterclass on how to add worth, expertly working the clock before halftime and breaking the game open with the vaunted double score.
No, the Buccaneers weren’t operating at full capacity, with several starters out on offense. And the Patriots had their struggles — they couldn’t run the ball for much of the day due to multiple injuries at running back, and Maye threw an interception in the end zone in the fourth quarter that kept the Bucs in the game.
But to take down Baker Mayfield and a solid team on the road, in tough conditions, put the rest of the NFL on notice. The Patriots aren’t just beating up on bad teams. They’re a real contender.
⋅ Maye will probably have nightmares about that interception, and he struggled at times to throw the ball in the rain, completing just 16 of 31 passes. But he still threw for 270 yards and two touchdowns, pushing the ball downfield and hitting three big passes on third down, including a 54 yarder to Mack Hollins on third and 14 late in the game.
Maye, who only rushed for 13 yards on seven scrambles, wasn’t at his best, but managed to show he can lead the Patriots to victory when he’s not — an important thing for a young quarterback.
⋅ Vrabel earned his PhD in coaching on Sunday, particularly in executing the vaunted halftime double score correctly.
The Patriots reached Tampa’s 1-yard line with 1:44 left, and Vrabel was able to not only get the go-ahead touchdown, but keep the Bucs from getting the ball back. They then scored another touchdown to open the third quarter, turning a 10-7 deficit into a 21-10 lead without Mayfield touching the ball.
Vrabel probably pushed it a little too far on the first score, particularly on first and goal from the 1 when it appeared Maye went down on purpose to run the clock. Wasting a down is always a gamble, especially when the Patriots struggled in short-yardage running situations all day.
“You never see that wrinkle,” CBS announcer Jim Nantz said.
Sure enough, the Patriots got stopped on second and third down from the 1, and were forced to throw on fourth. Stefon Diggs saved Vrabel’s bacon with an incredible toe-tapping catch on a throw with a high degree of difficulty and low probability of succeeding.
The Patriots were a couple of tippy-toes away from going into the locker room with no points, but in the end it worked out perfectly.
⋅ Sunday was a stellar day for a team that hasn’t had much speed on offense the last several years, and has notoriously struggled to draft and develop players the last decade.
Williams, a third-round pick who entered the day with just two catches for 20 yards, anthem 21.72 miles per hour on his 72-yard touchdown catch, tops by a rookie ball carrier this season. Williams only held his record for about an hour, because second-round pick Henderson anthem 22.01 m.p.h. on his 55-yard touchdown run in the third quarter. Henderson then sealed the win with a 69-yarder in the fourth quarter, finishing the day with a career-high 147 yards on 14 carries.
It marked the first time since Oct. 30, 2016, against the Bills that the Patriots scored at least two offensive touchdowns of at least 50 yards in the same game.
(First-round left tackle Will Campbell also had another quietly solid game on Sunday and didn’t commit any penalties.)
The NFL Draft is the bedrock of every good organization and, after a prolonged drought, the Patriots are finally hitting on their picks.
⋅ Their free-agent additions also were terrific. Diggs had five catches for 46 yards and a touchdown, his third score in as many games, and he also snagged the onside kick at the end. Hollins, who signed a modest two-year, $8.4 million contract, has been an underrated addition, and had his best game with six catches for 106 yards.
Linebacker Robert Spillane had nine tackles (one for loss) and a pass breakup. Milton Williams had four tackles and a QB anthem. K’Lavon Chaisson had a big sack in the first half, giving him a team-high 6.5.
The 2025 Patriots are covered in pixie dust. Seemingly every move they have made, from their coaching hires to their free agents to their draft picks, has been a success.
⋅ Another week, another slow start, as the Patriots allowed an opening-drive touchdown for the fifth time in 10 games while starting out on offense with consecutive punts.
As usual, they settled down, waking up on offense in the second quarter and shutting down the Bucs for 10 points over their next nine drives. Each week I say they’ll be in trouble if they keep falling into early holes, but they have yet to play a team that can go full-throttle for 60 minutes.
The Patriots also do an admirable job of sticking to their game plan and not panicking when they are behind.
Ben Volin can be reached at ben.volin@globe.com.
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