Best & Worst of yesterday’s game
WORST WHIFF: Rams safety Maurice Alexander was deked by LeGarrette Blount, then made a half-hearted effort to take down the Patriots running back as he went 43 yards for a touchdown on the opening drive. WORST CASE OF THE RECURRING DROPSIES: Cyrus Jones continued to give the Patriots reason for concern as he fumbled yet another punt. Fortunately for Jones, he was spared a seat in the dog house as teammate Patrick Chung recovered the loose ball. BEST EARLY CHRISTMAS GIFT: Jared Goff's pass, intended for a wideopen Lance Kendricks, bounced off the tight end's hands and into the waiting mitts of Malcolm Butler. He returned the interception to the Rams' 30-yard line and four plays later, the Pats were in the end zone. BEST BIT OF NOSTALGIA: Shortly after catching a 14-yard touchdown pass from Tom Brady, wide receiver Chris Hogan was serenaded with the theme song from the classic 1960s TV series “Hogan's Heroes.” BEST REMINDER THIS ISN’T THE PAC-12: Goff dropped back to pass and was greeted immediately by a blitzing Logan Ryan. Goff had no chance to escape and was dropped for a 10-yard loss. WORST DISPLAY OF PASS COVERAGE: We hate to keep banging on Alexander, but his defensive effort on Julian Edelman's long completion was lame at best. Brady danced around in the pocket, bought himself some extra time and fired a long, looping pass toward the right sideline. Alexander offered little resistance as Edelman came down with the ball. BEST CONFIDENCE BOOST: Beleaguered Patriots kicker Stephen Gostkowski earned a bit of a reprise as he connected on field goals of 28, 48, 45 and 45 yards. WORST SHOW OF CONFIDENCE: The Rams management team for extending the contract of head coach Jeff Fisher. He is on his way to a sixth straight losing season and closing in on the all-time record for most losses by a coach. Dan Reeves holds the current mark of 165 and Fisher is now at 164 after losing to the Patriots. BEST DAVID ORTIZ MOMENT: During the halftime ceremony honoring the 2001 Super Bowl champions, Troy Brown took the opportunity to rehash Ortiz' X-rated moment at Fenway Park in the days following the Marathon bombing. He called his 2001 band of Patriots the “Greatest Team on (expletive) Earth” for beating a Rams team better known as the “Greatest Show on Turf.” BEST WAY TO RUB IT IN: It's clear that Fisher is not on the Patriots' Christmas card list. That was never more evident than late in the fourth quarter when the Patriots kept their starters in the game and continued throwing with a 26-3 lead.