Andy Borregales missed a 38-yard field goal last week. He'd made kicks from 35 and 40 yards in the same game. That's not a range issue. That's a pattern issue, and now special teams coordinator Jeremy Springer has to figure out what's actually broken.
The inconsistency is the red flag here. In football, you want your kicker to be a dependable asset or a liability you know how to manage. Borregales is neither right now. He's a mystery — someone capable of hitting the distances that should matter most, then inexplicably missing one in between. That's the kind of variance that costs you tight games in December.
Springer's job just got harder. You can't scheme your way around a kicker's confidence issues or mechanical breakdowns. What you can do is diagnose whether this is a one-week fluke or the beginning of a deeper problem. The coordinator will need film study, working sessions, and honest conversations with Borregales about what changed between the makes and the miss. Is it approach? Footwork? Leg fatigue? The answers matter more than the single miss.
For Mike Vrabel's offense, this is exactly the kind of detail that separates playoff teams from also-rans. Three points left on the board — the difference between 27-24 and 24-27 — can define a season. The Patriots can't afford to ignore inconsistent execution in the kicking game, especially when the sample size starts suggesting a trend rather than noise.
Springer gets paid to solve problems like this. We'll find out soon enough whether Borregales' 38-yarder was a blip or a warning sign.