2. Brosmer navigates pressure in second half<\/p>\n
Brosmer got the entire second half at quarterback, but the Patriots\u2019 pressure on the undrafted rookie out of Minnesota added some friction to his day. He was sacked four times while completing 15 of his 27 passes. After he threw behind Myles Price on third down while absorbing a hit in the red zone in the fourth quarter, a fourth-down delay of game penalty led the Vikings to bring out the field goal team rather than going for it and trying to get the game within four. <\/p>\n
O\u2019Connell again praised Brosmer\u2019s decisiveness, and Brosmer showed it on his strike to Tim Jones\u2019 outside shoulder against single coverage for a 28-yard gain in the fourth quarter. Brosmer\u2019s 25-yard fourth-down completion to Jeshaun Jones, followed by his 22-yarder to Tim Jones, gave the Vikings a chance to try for the tying score, but he was hit one last time on his throw over the middle that ended with Dugger\u2019s interception. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhat I loved about Max was, there were some breakdowns up front, and maybe he couldn\u2019t progress and read through concepts, but he plays with very fast eyes and very rarely puts the ball in harm\u2019s way when he\u2019s doing it, which is a unique trait,\u201d O\u2019Connell said. \u201cThat was a fourth-down dagger throw to Jeshaun; I mean, that\u2019s about as stacked against it as you can be, and he throws that well before the pattern has declared. Just things like that, he shows consistently, and that\u2019s why he\u2019s getting the reps that he is.\u201d <\/p>\n
3. Fireworks, headaches in the return game<\/p>\n