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Gresh & Zo: Suspect Red Zone, Short Yardage Play Calling Also Problematic For Patriots

BOSTON (CBS) - Despite the Patriots walking off with a 16-9 victory over the Raiders on Sunday and standing 2-1, the offense continues to struggle.

The Patriots were only able to score one touchdown despite being inside the 3-yard line on three different occasions. Blame the offensive line all you want, but play calling was also an issue against Oakland.

They were only able to score one touchdown against Oakland despite getting inside the 3-yard line on three separate occasions. One series in particular, the drive at the end of the first half, was a topic of discussion for 98.5 The Sports Hub's Andy Gresh and Scott Zolak on Monday.

Brutal play calling to say the least.

Possessing just one timeout with 46 seconds left, the Patriots handed off to pick up a first down on third-and-1 at the Oakland 3-yard line. That set up a first-and-goal. The ball was set with 30 seconds left in the half, and they didn't snap the ball until there were just 12 seconds left on the clock. They ran a running play with Vereen rushing for no gain, forcing the Pats to burn their final timeout. With no timeouts left the Patriots then had to pass, but an errant shotgun snap by Dan Connolly went straight into the ground by Brady's feet. Brady eventually grabbed the ball and threw it out of harm's way to stop the clock, only to salvage three points.

"After the timeout, inside a minute you cannot run the ball -- you must throw the ball. If it's a touchdown, it's the end of the half and you're OK. If it's incomplete, the clock stops. Now you're at second down, and you have two options to either run or pass because you have a timeout in your hands," argued Gresh.

"We were freaking out the way they handled the end of the first half," said Zo. "They [Patriots] still don't have the ability to punch it in. You give the ball to 31 other NFL teams, first-and-goal on the 2-yard line, you've got to think they are coming away with touchdowns. They still haven't found that inside-the-five identity and it's frustrating."

Listen below!

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