JuJu Smith-Schuster took accountability for an interception at the end of the New England Patriots’ 20-17 loss to the Washington Commanders.
New England had the ball at Washington’s 41 with less than a minute left in regulation. Mac Jones threw a pass in fairly tight coverage to Smith-Schuster, who still had a chance to make the play.
However, the ball deflected off his hands. Commanders cornerback Jartavius Martin secured a game-sealing takeaway.
Here’s a good angle of what happened on the Mac Jones interception.
You can argue that the QB shouldn’t have thrown it. But it hit his WR in the hands. That should’ve been a catch. JuJu Smith-Schuster dropped it. pic.twitter.com/mX7Hl0nTG7
— Henry McKenna (@henrycmckenna) November 5, 2023
“It was a good ball. Went right through my hands,” Smith-Schuster told reporters after the game, via ESPN’s Mike Reiss.
JuJu Smith-Schuster: Final INT is on me. pic.twitter.com/uRfRCE5E8m
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) November 5, 2023
Smith-Schuster didn’t want any of the blame going to Jones.
“It’s all on me,” Smith-Schuster continued. “He put the ball in a good position. I just got to make the catch, secure it, and now we’re in field-goal range. Obviously, I didn’t do that.”
Smith-Schuster caught all of his other six targets, but this miscue took away an opportunity for New England to attempt a game-tying field goal. Instead, the Patriots fell to an AFC-worst 2-7 record.
Even if Jones isn’t at fault for the pick, his rough season continued with another rocky outing. The 25-year-old completed 24 of 44 passes for 220 yards and a touchdown.
Fans can’t point all their fingers at New England’s offense for this loss. Sam Howell tallied 325 passing yards and a touchdown pass to Jahan Dotson that evened the score in the final quarter. The Commanders also rushed for 124 yards and a touchdown.
Meanwhile, onlookers such as MassLive’s Mark Daniels are blaming Bill Belichick’s front office for letting Jakobi Meyers leave after leading the Pats in receiving for three straight seasons.
There’s plenty of fault to go around, but the Patriots will be more focused on getting back into the win column when facing the Indianapolis Colts in Germany next Sunday.