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FOXBORO, Mass. – Some notes and nuggets of a wildly entertaining football night at Gillette Stadium:
– Sony Michel once again escaped the New England Patriots, carrying the ball 24 times for 106 yards and two touchdowns in a 43-40 win over the Kansas City Chiefs, still undefeated before.
After a knee injury early in the season, the rookie has been one of the most productive players in the NFL over the last three weeks. Colts (98 yards) and leaders.
He is the fifth player in Patriots history to run for more than 90 yards three times in his rookie season and the first to do so since Robert Edwards in 1998.
However, Michel, who was dubious for Sunday's game with a knee injury, still sees progress to make.
"Everything was the line-o," he said. "There were holes. It was probably difficult (to see) from your team's point of view, but there were holes there. But, yes, we played some coins, but we left yards outside. I thought some might have been even bigger games, but that's football. "
Michel improved in short distance situations. His touchdowns against KC dipped 4 and 1 yards, and he also converted a 3-and-1 with two minutes left and the score tied.
Four games later, after a 16-yard pass to James White and a 39-yard throw to Rob Gronkowski, Stephen Gostkowski made a 28-yard winning kick.
"Sony runs," said Patriots coach Bill Belichick. "He accumulated a lot of difficult yards for us, so it was a big race. … we managed to do it from the 1 meter line on the goal line and this third and one. These were key situations.
When asked if he was hoping for such success early in his career, the first-round pick in the first round revealed he was thrilled to help the Patriots win.
"I was just expecting that after being drafted into the Patriots to win football games," said Michel. "It's not really about me. It's about this team. It's "What can I do to help this team?" If it's 100 yards, it's 100 yards. If it's 2 yards, it's 2 yards. "
– Gostkowski scored five goals against five and four goals against four, with four more points. The Patriots played the entire game without cashing for the fifth time in the history of the franchise.
The special teams have not all been positive. New England offered an excellent field position in Kansas City, thanks to a set kick ("I'm going to take it," said Gostkowski).
"Brutal," said the captain of the special teams, Matthew Slater, about the return. "I do not know what happened. We have to watch this on film. But it was bad. I think we are much better than we have played there, so we better understand quickly. … We put our team in a difficult position tonight by giving up this return and they saved us.
– Wide receiver Chris Hogan had his best game of the season, scoring four passes on four goals for a total of 78 yards, including a 42-yard touchdown pass in the middle of the fourth quarter.
Hogan could have finished with an even better stats line, as Brady did not see him wide open in the end zone on a third-quarter draw.
"It's only football," Hogan said. "You can not do everything on the ground. I just have to make sure that for 60 minutes I get out of my job, do my job, drive the best way I can, and try to open it up. When opportunities are offered to me, I will try to play. "
Hogan has been exceptionally quiet in the Patriots' first five games this season, having 11 assists for 143 yards and two touchdowns in that period.
– For the sixth time in franchise history, the Patriots did not commit any accepted punishment.
Photo thumbnail via Greg M. Cooper / USA TODAY Sports Images
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