Patriots have an underdog mentality heading into 49ers game ESPN

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- Quick-hit thoughts and notes around the New England Patriots and NFL:

1. Underdog mentality: Belief was abundant in the Patriots' locker room over the past week, and perhaps nowhere was that more evident than with eight-year veteran defensive tackle Davon Godchaux.

The Patriots, who visit the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday (4:05 p.m. ET, Fox), are the NFL's biggest underdog of Week 4. They have a 23% chance to win, according to ESPN Analytics.

Tell that to the 6-foot-3, 330-pound Godchaux and he respectfully rejects the premise.

"Carolina came into Vegas last week and everybody was saying 'Vegas is going to win this game easily.' Same thing with Cincinnati against Washington on 'Monday Night Football' -- everybody thought Washington was going to be smoked. So what happened? Jayden Daniels put a whipping on Cincinnati. Andy Dalton did the same thing to the Raiders. This is the NFL," Godchaux said.

"The game still has to be played in between the lines. I get it, people have to make the lines, the bets and all that. But it doesn't matter what someone else says. It matters what the team believes in -- the three phases, and the 11 guys that are on the field at that moment."

Godchaux, 29, says the Patriots are closer to the team that beat the Cincinnati Bengals 16-10 in Week 1, and narrowly lost to the Seattle Seahawks 23-20 in overtime in Week 2. He points to holding the Bengals to 70 rushing yards and the Seahawks to 46 as an example of what the unit is capable of producing.

What unfolded last week in a 24-3 lackluster loss to the New York Jets on Thursday night was not reflective of the team -- and specifically, the defense -- he says he believes the Patriots truly are. The Jets totaled 133 rushing yards, and 281 through the air.

"We had a lot of missed tackles. Too many missed tackles. Uncharacteristic by us," he said. "The [touchdown] pass [Aaron] Rodgers threw near the goal line to Allen Lazard, we missed the tackle at corner. Those are things that we have to be better. And we are better than that.

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"Not making an excuse for a short week. But we had 6-7 [tackles for a loss] where we just missed the tackle on the running back or the receiver. We have to be better at fundamentals first of all. I think once we do that, we'll be OK."

The 49ers are a challenging team to face for a defense -- who blew seven edges and allowed Rodgers to escape the pocket last week -- looking to return to its fundamental roots. "San Fran wants you to be undisciplined so then they can hit the home run. Get out of your rush lanes. Get you to not be disciplined in your pass rush," Godchaux said.

"Brock Purdy is a really good scrambler; doesn't get a lot of credit but he is really athletic. So we just have to stay home, set the edge of the defense, make them cut the ball back. And when they cut it back, we have to make the tackle. Last week against the Jets, we missed so many tackles. It was so frustrating because we were like, 'Why are we on the field so much?'"

That most recent performance is why few give the Patriots a chance to upset the 49ers, and perhaps also explains why coach Jerod Mayo discussed unexpected results across the league with players when they returned from three days off on Monday.

"I tried to put some things in perspective," Mayo said. "You have a team that's picked to win the Super Bowl and gets blown out the next week. Right now it's about who can get better the quickest. That's what we have to do -- get back to the fundamentals."

Godchaux said the Patriots responded with two of their best practices of the year -- first on Monday and then in full pads on what defensive coordinator DeMarcus Covington called "a work day Wednesday" when they "brought their hard hat" and focused on run defense -- which is why his belief remains high.

2. No Brady in Week 5: Barring an unexpected change in the coming days, Tom Brady isn't scheduled to work the Patriots' Week 5 home game against the Dolphins, which will be broadcast on Fox. A source familiar with his schedule expects he will call the Cardinals-49ers game.

With Fox not having the doubleheader in Week 5, the possibility of Brady returning to his longtime home at Gillette Stadium to call the Patriots-Dolphins game might have been a consideration a few weeks ago. But once the Dolphins lost quarterback Tua Tagovailoa to a concussion, and the Patriots struggled in a nationally televised Week 3 loss to the Jets, it took some national luster off the matchup.

The Patriots have ruled out starting LT Vederian Lowe (knee), reserve-turned-starting LG Michael Jordan (ankle) and reserve CB Alex Austin (ankle).

4 questionable: CB Jonathan Jones (shoulder), OLB Anfernee Jennings (shoulder), OT Caedan Wallace (knee), LG Sidy Sow (ankle).

— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) September 27, 2024

3. Maye update: One lingering question is how close rookie quarterback Drake Maye, who is getting 30% of the first-team repetitions in practice in addition to playing on the scout team, might be to taking over as QB1.

Mayo reiterated this week that the team has no plans to bring in a veteran quarterback, which reinforces that he and executive director of player personnel Eliot Wolf would be comfortable turning to Maye now in the event of an injury to veteran Jacoby Brissett.

To this point, Brissett has done nothing to lose the job and is a team captain. He has taken a pounding behind shaky offensive line play and blitz pickup from running backs. But Maye, who Mayo said was making a charge by the end of the preseason, continues to progress behind the scenes.

"Really good," offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt said when asked how Maye has looked in practice. "I think the game experience [in Week 3] will only help him moving forward. The plan is in place and I think we're seeing him starting to grow on the practice field as well."

Outside linebackers coach Drew Wilkins also noted Maye's work with the scout team.

"The thing that's impressive, when we have those scout-team meetings, he wants to know every detail and how that quarterback operates," he said. "He has such a good understanding of different schemes, and what people are doing, it's like he's been around a long time and seen a lot of offenses and quarterbacks. I think he's unique in that way. That is not something that is very common in the league, guys that are conscientious who want to know about protection rules for the [scout] team. These are rare traits."

4. Keion's motivation: The 49ers have turned to third-year running back Jordan Mason with Christian McCaffrey on injured reserve. Second-year Patriots defensive lineman Keion White knows him well from their time together at Georgia Tech and has said he keeps in touch with Mason.

Mason went undrafted in 2022, in part because he was splitting time with Jahmyr Gibbs in college, and he has been up to the challenge with his first NFL opportunity as a starter totaling 67 carries, 324 yards and 2 TDs this season. "He's always had the ability. It's the opportunity," White said. "He knows I'm going to try to tackle him extra hard, but it's all love."

5. Barmore's presence: Defensive lineman Christian Barmore, who is on injured reserve after being diagnosed with blood clots in July, has been spending more time around the team of late. Center David Andrews called him the funniest player in the locker room, and that might explain why Mayo has put him in charge of "Friday Funny."

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"It's like a 30-second [or] one-minute clip just to get the guys laughing," Mayo explained, while adding: "I think it's important for him to be in the building. The idle mind, sitting at home all the time, that's nothing but trouble."

Mayo said Barmore isn't cleared by doctors at this time, and made it sound like he wasn't expecting that to change in the near future.

6. Strange's status: Third-year offensive lineman Cole Strange, who tore the patellar tendon in his left knee last December and is on the physically unable to perform list, was a consistent presence in the locker room this past week during the time reporters had access.

While Strange is eligible to begin practicing next week, my observation is that isn't currently on the radar. A more likely scenario is that others on the PUP list -- receiver Kendrick Bourne, linebacker Sione Takitaki and possibly safety/linebacker Marte Mapu -- begin practicing.

7. They said it: "It's like yelling at your child. You love the guy and he does the right thing the majority of the time, but it's an issue and you have to sit down and address it. He's more embarrassed about it than anybody else. He's a prideful guy." -- Van Pelt, on running back Rhamondre Stevenson having a fumble in each of the first three games

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8. Ximines update: Reserve outside linebacker and core special-teamer Oshane Ximines, whom veteran cornerback Jonathan Jones had predicted would be a surprise performer this season, was diagnosed with a torn ACL after he was injured on a Week 2 play in punt coverage, according to a team source.

Thus, Ximines' timeline for recovery won't have him returning to the team this season. The current plan is to wait for swelling to subside before scheduling surgery.

9. Did you know, Part I: Through Week 3 games, Joe Cardona leads all NFL long snappers with three tackles. His career high for an entire season is four (in 2017). Since 2000, the most tackles by a long snapper in a season is 12 -- by Zak DeOssie of the Giants in 2008.

10. Did you know, Part II: If the Patriots lose to the 49ers and drop to 1-3, it will mark the fourth consecutive season that the team has a losing record through the first four games -- the longest streak in franchise history.