Patch Patriots Roundup: Backup Quarterback Extravaganza On Thursday Night Football

FOXBOROUGH, MA — This year's version of the New England Patriots and the Pittsburgh Steelers were destined to play each other on Thursday Night Football.

The Thursday game has long been clowned for being one that even diehard NFL fans could skip. This week's matchup certainly fits the mold.

Pittsburgh broke a depressing streak of games under 400 yards of total offense earlier this year, and, unfortunately for fans in New England, the Pats now hold a disheartening place in bad offensive lore themselves. (More on that later.)

As for Thursday, both teams likely will play a quarterback who began the year as a backup in Bailey Zappe and Mitchell Trubisky. For the Steelers, the move comes after injury to Kenny Pickett. For the Patriots it comes after Mac Jones failed to allow the team to be competitive.

Zappe started last week and led the team to a ... zero-point outing. Yikes.

If praying is your thing, pray for Al Michaels.

Here's what else to know around the team:

Defense Still Cooking

The Patriots are a major outlier this year when it comes to defensive success vs. wins and losses. Ben Solak of The Ringer shared a stat on the "Extra Point Taken" podcast this week that shows the defense is still a major upside despite the horrid record of this year's Patriots.

In the last three games, the Patriots have held the opposing offense to under 10 points. The team is 0-3 in those games.

During the 2023 season, teams are 51-3 when allowing 1o points or less to opposing offenses. Yes, you read that right. The Patriots offense is so terrible that they are the only team in the NFL this year to lose a game when allowing 10 points or less.

Solak mentions that, in the Super Bowl era, no team has lost three consecutive games in which they allowed 10 points or less.

So sure, the team is unusually bad for a Bill Belichick-led outfit in New England. Just don't blame the defense.

Gillette Hosting Army-Navy

While the Patriots play on Thursday, there will be anticipated football action in Foxborough this weekend.

ESPN's Week 15 "College Gameday" show at the Army-Navy game will be live from Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, marking the first time the home of the New England Patriots hosts "America’s Game."

This year marks the 124th playing of the game as the Black Knights face the Midshipmen for the coveted Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy. The game will be hosted in the Boston area in conjunction with the 250th anniversary of the Boston Tea Party and the 225th anniversary of the USS Constitution’s maiden voyage.

It will be the first time the game has been played in New England and Navy will serve as the home team.

How To Watch, Listen

Kickoff: 8:20 p.m.

Network: Fox (local)

Streaming: Amazon Prime

Radio: 98.5 The Sports Hub