Cleaning out the notebook from New England’s 27-17 defeat on Sunday.

The New England Patriots made things interesting on Sunday against the visiting Kansas City Chiefs, but ultimately could not pull out the victory at home. Despite hanging with the reigning Super Bowl champs in the first half, they ended up running out of steam in the second to lose with a final score of 27-17l

We will have in-depth analysis throughout the day and week, but for now here are some quick-hit thoughts on the Patriots’ 11th loss of the year.

1. The Patriots haven’t quit: There has been a lot of talk about the Patriots moving on from Bill Belichick at the end of the season, and a good amount of it is justified when looking at the results this year. However, one thing is clear as well: this team has not quit on its head coach.

Now, that doesn’t necessarily mean that Belichick should be back next year, but it is telling that they have been playing hard for him, even though the results haven’t been there. They all have to play and put good tape together for next year, so of course guys aren’t going to tank on purpose. But you can see the fight from them, even in a losing effort.

“Proud of the way the team competed, proud of the way the team fought until the last minute,” center David Andrews said after the game. “Things are not always going to go your way, you’re not always going to succeed but the way we are competing and stuff, I appreciate from those guys in the locker room.”

Again, is it enough for Belichick to keep his job next year? Nobody except Robert Kraft knows the answer to that, and there is a chance he doesn’t know yet either. However, it seems clear to me that the coach has not lost the room, and that he still enjoys the respect of the players. At the very least, you like to see that, even in a lost season.

2. A tale of two halves for Bailey Zappe, again: The Patriots’ quarterback started out on fire, completing 17 of his first 19 pass attempts for 141 yards, and throwing a touchdown to Hunter Henry. You could make an argument that his first 30 minutes were the best of his career so far.

Something happened at half time, however, because Zappe turned back into a pumpkin over the final two quarters. He threw a terrible interception right at the beginning of the second half, and had a few more passes that probably could have been intercepted as well, like an ill-fated crosser to Demario Douglas.

It was the second week in a row that Zappe started strongly and then faded in the second half.

“I think you’re going to look back at film tomorrow, there’s going to be a lot of things that maybe if I just do this a little bit different, it’s a bigger play,” he said in his postgame presser. “Instead of throwing it one way, maybe I hit [Ezekiel Elliott] in the flat. Maybe he gets 10, 15 yards.

“Maybe the first play of the second half, I throw it out of bounds, or I just scramble and get five yards. It’s not an interception, they don’t get the ball on the 5-yard line, they don’t score a touchdown. Just things like that. It directly reflects on me because it’s my fault, I’ve just got to get better at it.”

Zappe probably still has done enough that the Patriots should keep him as a backup next season, but he has also shown that he should not be competing for the starting job in 2024.

3. Marte Mapu should stay at linebacker: I have been screaming all season that the Patriots should be playing Marte Mapu at linebacker. Well, they finally did it, and he rewarded them by ripping the ball away from Chiefs tight end Blake Bell for an interception in the second quarter to give the offense a short field that was turned into a field goal.

An argument can be made that the Patriots have been wasting his athleticism by playing him so far off the ball at times this season. On Sunday, he showed not only his awareness and ball skills on the interception but also his play strength to rip that contested ball away from Bell — some skills that would come in handy at any position, but especially at linebacker.

4. Christian Barmore and Mack Wilson make a case for prominent roles in 2024: Christian Barmore might have had his best game of the season on Sunday. He’s been solid all year, but he was in the backfield consistently against the Chiefs — not just rushing the passer (he did finish with a sack) but also on multiple stuffed runs. The Patriots need to make locking him long-term up a top priority this offseason.

Meanwhile, Mack Wilson has turned into a reliable player for the team. After a challenging 2022 season that saw him get benched down the stretch, he has put enough on tape to make a solid argument to be a part of the 2024 team. His from-behind tackle on a screen pass to Jerick McKinnon stands out as an impressive hustle play, but it was not the only positive one he had on the day.

5. Hunter Henry balls out: Hunter Henry hasn’t been as involved in the offense as he would like this season, but that has changed with Bailey Zappe under center. He had two touchdowns last week in a win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, and almost had two more Sunday. Even though one was taken back because of a holding penalty, he still finished with seven receptions for 66 yards and one TD.

Henry is on an expiring contract, but the Patriots need to make it a priority to bring him back. He’s not as explosive as he might have been before, but he is reliable, a team captain, and has been Bailey Zappe’s favorite target. They are going to have to bring in a tight end to upgrade Mike Gesicki’s spot in the lineup, but Henry should be part of next year’s group as well.

6. More kicking issues: The Patriots might have an issue at kicker. Chad Ryland missed another makable field goal kick on Sunday, and is now 12-of-18 on the season, putting his kicking percentage at 66.7 percent — not what you are looking for from your rookie fourth-round kicker. Now, there have been plenty of kickers that have started their careers slowly; even Adam Vinatieri, the greatest of all time, struggled in his first few seasons.

That does not change the fact that Ryland needs to turn it around. He has a very good leg, but that doesn’t matter if he cannot kick the ball through the uprights. The Patriots probably should stick it out with the kid, but he is going to have to show a lot more consistency.

And bringing in a rookie free agent to compete with him in camp next year might not be the worst thing either, regardless of the investment made in him this spring.

7. Some real questionable officiating, again: The NFL season has been filled with bad calls from officials, and Sunday in Foxborough was no different. There was a defensive holding call that negated a fumble by the Chiefs, which looked ticky-tacky at best. There was an offensive face mask on Demario Douglas in the red zone that appeared to make little sense as well. There also were multiple spot issues on both sides all game.

The officials have consistently made, and missed, questionable calls all season. At some point, the NFL has to take some accountability for it, or they are going to have to make calls reviewable. You can’t have big games like Super Bowls decided because of bad calls, and yet the league is setting itself up for that.

Maybe paying officials full-time would be a first step to turning things around.

8. That Patrick Mahomes fella is pretty good: For the first half, Patrick Mahomes looked human. Then the second half came and he made ridiculous throw after ridiculous throw to help the Chiefs take a commanding lead, and hold on to beat the Patriots. He threw two interceptions, but one was wrestled away from his receiver and the other was a clean drop from Kadarius Toney that resulted in a Jahlani Tavai pick.

When Mahomes rolls to his left and just flicks the ball across his body 20 yards down field, you cannot help but be left impressed. I can’t imagine being a Chiefs fan and seeing that, but then again, I saw Tom Brady for 20 years, so maybe I can.

There are other great quarterbacks in the league, and I know that Mahomes has been average overall this season, but I don’t believe there is a better quarterback in the NFL right now. He showed that on Sunday.

9. Taylor Swift is good for the NFL: Taylor Swift was back at Gillette Stadium on Sunday; not to perform at the hottest tour of the decade, where it was next to impossible to get seats, but to watch her boyfriend Travis Kelce play the Patriots in front of a 75 percent crowd. Swift has been one of the most polarizing figures in sports this year, as people have complained about the broadcasts talking about her too much, and focusing on her when they should be talking about the game. You saw some of that in the parking lots and in the stands on Sunday as well.

Personally, I think her presence is a great thing for the league and the game. A whole new group of fans have started watching, and is getting into it. She seems genuinely interested in the game, and her yelling at the referee after he did not give Kelce a call was one of the most relatable things you will see from a pop star (even though the non-flag looked like the right call).

Whether you think it’s a good or a bad thing, it’s undeniable that she has had an impact on the NFL this season. I think it’s been for the better.

10. Santa? I know him!: The Patriots travel to Denver next Sunday night for a Christmas Eve date with the Denver Broncos.

Denver looked like they were going to be a terrible team, but have really turned it around as of late. They are fighting for a playoff spot, and their defense has been playing well. They are coming off a bad beatdown courtesy of the Lions, and are currently outside of the playoff picture, but if they want to keep their hopes alive are going to have to beat the Patriots. So, I would expect a tough game for New England.

Whatever happens, let’s all just hope that the game doesn’t go into overtime. We need to be in bed early so Santa can come.