FOXBOROUGH – The New England Patriots fell to 7-8 on the season as their last-minute comeback attempt against the Cincinnati Bengals turned into a devastating loss, 22-18.

Here are the five Patriots players most to blame for what happened on Saturday.

Rhamondre Stevenson

This is likely the first time that the stud second-year running back has ever been on a list like this. But, when you make a blunder like he did on Saturday, it’s hard to avoid it.

The Patriots were just five yards away from pulling off a 22-0 comeback victory until Stevenson coughed up the ball at the 5-yard line down 22-18 with a minute left. Stevenson appeared to be trying to do too much on the play. He was looking to break tackles in a situation where he was already being wrapped up.

To Stevenson’s credit, his ability to play through the whistle has helped the Patriots far more than it’s hurt them this season. He also took responsibility for the play after the game too, saying he was “trying to do too much.” His head coach also said he wasn’t going to question him after the lone mistake.

https://twitter.com/lowdarkhell/status/1606760114567905280

Stevenson still struggled though for much of Saturday’s game outside of the fumble. He ran for 30 yards on 13 carries as he failed to get consistent positive yardage on most of his touches. Sure, the offensive line has some blame for that, but it’s hard to put all the blame on them when you make a game-costing mistake.

Tyquan Thornton

It looked like the Patriots finally let the fastest receiver from the 2022 NFL Draft class use his speed to make a play. Unfortunately for them, they weren't rewarded.

On the opening drive of the second half, Thornton got open on a go route down the field. Mac Jones threw the ball as well as anyone could've hoped as he was throwing from the Patriots' 39-yard. It looked like he hit Thornton in stride near the Bengals' 15-yard line.

https://twitter.com/FTBeard7/status/1606738875191537665

But the rookie wasn't able to haul in the grab. Thornton lost possession of the ball as he fell to the ground, turning a prime opportunity for the Patriots to a wasted one. They ended up punting a couple plays later and still searching for their first points of the game.

That wasn't Thornton's only miscue in Saturday's game. In the first half, Jones appeared to be signaling for some sort of audible or hot route. Thornton wasn't looking at the quarterback's direction though, leading to the play being blown up on a third-and-6 and forcing the Patriots to punt.

Thornton finished with just one catch on three targets for eight yards in Saturday's game.

Cole Strange

Article Continues Below
More Patriots News
New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye (10) holds a press conference after minicamp at Gillette Stadium.
Patriots send message to Drake Maye, wife after life-changing eventColin Loughran ·
Rob Gronkowski Camile Kostek
Rob Gronkowski’s girlfriend Camille Kostek reveals why WAGS judged herAutumn Hawkins ·
Boston Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens before their game against the Cleveland Cavaliers at TD Garden.
Patriots rookie reveals Brad Stevens, Joe Mazzulla messageJaren Kawada ·
New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski (87) and New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (12) celebrate a touchdown in the second quarter at Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens
Tom Brady, Rob Gronkowski recreate Lombardi Trophy boat moment with a twistGuillermo Guajardo ·
New England Patriots wide receiver Jakobi Meyers (16) warms up before the start of the game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Gillette Stadium.
Raiders’ Jakobi Meyers earns prestigious tag that’ll leave Patriots fans screamingJaren Kawada ·
New England Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs (8) walks to the podium to speak to the media after minicamp held in the WIN Field House at Gillette Stadium.
Josh Allen sends Patriots’ Drake Maye an inspiring Stefon Diggs messageBenedetto Vitale ·

The Patriots' first-round pick's up-and-down season continued on Saturday.

After a solid performance against the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 15, Strange went in the wrong direction against the Bengals. He allowed four pressures and a sack in pass protection, struggling against defensive tackle D.J. Reader and the Bengals' interior defensive line.

The sack Strange allowed came on another pivotal third-down play in the first half. Jones was sacked by Cam Sample as the Bengals defensive end beat Strange right at the snap, leaving the Patriots quarterback helpless.

In addition to having a hard time in pass protection, Strange was also the blocker responsible for Reader on what ended up being the most pivotal play of the game. Reader got a good push on Strange right as the ball was snapped on the play Stevenson fumbled. That allowed the defensive tackle to get into the backfield and get contact on the running back and pressured him into fumbling the ball.

As we mentioned earlier, Stevenson deserves the blunt of the blame for that play, but he wasn't really helped out by his offensive line either.

Myles Bryant/Shaun Wade

Defensively, the Patriots didn't play a terrible game considering the opponent and the fact that they held them scoreless in the second half.

But New England didn't get good enough of play from its slot corners on Sunday. First, Myles Bryant either got beat or had a miscommunication that allowed Trenton Irwin to make a 23-yard touchdown grab over the middle of the field in the first quarter. Right before halftime, Irwin made another touchdown grab when he created enough separation from Shaun Wade in the end zone to score six points.

Stopping the Bengals is already tough enough when you're dealing with Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd. But if their No. 4 receiver is making plays, it's tough to come back from that.