Tyler Hetu: Curtain closes on Pats' auditions with loss to Titans in preseason finale (copy)

Patriots quarterback Bailey Zappe has the ball stripped by Tennessee Titans defensive end Denico Autry Friday night in Nashville, Tenn.

Friday night marked the end of the New England Patriots’ preseason schedule, and for many on the team, the end of their brief NFL careers.

The Patriots finished the preseason 1-2 after a lackluster 23-7 road loss to the Tennessee Titans, but the final score was irrelevant. The main focus of the game was that those Patriots still on the bubble to make next Tuesday’s cutdown to the official 53-man roster for the regular season opener against the Philadelphia Eagles had one last chance to make their case to stick.

In what head coach Bill Belichick usually calls a “dress rehearsal,” a bulk of the starting lineup did not see action against the Titans. Notably, quarterback Mac Jones did not play, along with his main receiving corps, the running backs and a number of projected starters on defense.

The Pats gave the ball to Bailey Zappe, who struggled in his opening drives. Through the first 10 minutes, and 11 total plays, the Patriots tallied just 7 yards before the defense stepped in at the end of the quarter. By halftime, Zappe had 42 yards on 4 of 6 passing, taking two sacks. In total, the offense moved 41 yards on 20 plays in two quarters of action.

Defense remained a strong point for the Patriots this preseason. An interception by Calvin Munson off a deflection at the end of the first quarter set up the Patriots on Tennessee’s 34-yard line, leading to a short-yardage punch-in score by running back Kevin Harris to make it 7-6 with just over 13 minutes to halftime. The Patriots allowed a red zone touchdown before the half to enter the break down 13-7 after two field goals from the Titans near the midway point of the first quarter.

From there, the second half was pretty much a steady stream of dead men walking for both squads.

Regardless, it’s again becoming progressively clear the defense is the calling card of the Patriots, letting nothing easy get by them through the preseason despite the record. It’ll undoubtedly be the determining factor whether the Patriots can compete for a wildcard position, and this is only if the offense can figure itself out through the first weeks of the season.

None of New England’s three preseason games mattered aside from evaluating individual talent, which the Patriots have had a lot of good and bad of to sift through. Pretenders will be sorted out quickly, but what many were calling for appears to have finally arrived — an offense with some weapons for Jones, and a bona fide offensive coordinator in Bill O’Brien to lead the way.

The Patriots should be in form entering the home opener against the Eagles on Sept. 10. The game will not only be their off-season return to Foxboro to welcome the 2023 NFL season, but is also a welcome home party for Tom Brady.

With Brady in the house against a Super Bowl favorite, the Patriots will need to be at their best to prove the post-Brady era is on track to bounce back from his departure. Expectations in the Jones era have yet to meet the high standard Brady set for nearly two decades, but a turning point could come in the opener in what would be a massive statement win for the Patriots this season.

It seems increasingly unlikely Trace McSorely will crack the Patriots roster as a quarterback with undrafted free agent Malik Cunningham making a case as a depth piece. But the Patriots have gone the two-quarterbacks route before, and it’s possible both get cut and clear waivers. One of the two, if they clear waivers, would likely get a chance on the Pats’ practice squad. I lean towards Cunningham as a practice squad option.

Ty Montgomery feels like the odd man out of the running back room now that Elliott is in town. A trio of Rhamondre Stevenson, Elliott and Pierre Strong is a good room to have, but Montgomery is well-liked by Patriots brass and could be given a spot deep on the depth chart despite not having practiced since the first week of camp due to injury. This leaves three clear names — Kevin Harris, JJ Taylor and CJ Marable — as the guys to go.

Signs are pointing to a six-man group at receiver, with Kayshon Boutte and Demario Douglas being rookies that have impressed. But the names of Tre Nixon, Raleigh Webb and Thyrick Pitts just haven’t shown enough in preseason to be worthy of the chance behind DeVante Parker, Juju Smith-Shuster, Kendrick Bourne and and Tyquan Thornton. Boutte and Douglas should battle it out as upside rookies as the last men in.

Offensive line is the biggest up in the air part of roster cuts due to, frankly, there not being much room to let anyone go. The Patriots’ offensive line was a mess last year, but most of the faces from a year ago should be back. On their way out should be James Ferentz, Bill Murray, Andrew Steuber, Connor McDermott, Kody Russey and Chasen Hines.

The defensive line should remain much of the same from last year, with one addition being Keion White. Sam Roberts and Justus Tavai should be odd men out of a solid line on defense. At outside linebacker, Ronnie Perkins and Carson Wells will get the axe, along with Diego Fagot and Calvin Musion at interior linebacker.

At corner, there is no getting past the top billing of Christian Gonzalez, Myles Bryant, Jack Jones and Jonathan Jones. Everyone else is battling for depth. Rodney Randle and Shaun Wade will likely fall short of the mark at cut time. Safety is a similar situation, along with corner and defensive line, where everything is shored up with Joshuah Bledsoe and Brad Hawkins missing the mark.

For the kicking unit, Bryce Baringer has been a solid punter and should be steady in a spot that was unspectacular last season. That means Corliss Waitman is out. At kicker, Nick Folk’s time is likely over in New England with Chad Ryland now in. Both Baringer and Ryland were draft picks in the 2023 draft and it feels unlikely they’d be cut for veteran experience.

Tyler Hetu can be reached at 508-236-0375 or on Twitter @thetylerhetu.