When Darrelle Revis signed with the Jets over the summer, many were prepared to push the panic button on the New England secondary. Despite a depleted secondary, specifically the cornerback position, New England’s defense has been succeeding as much as their 2014 defense. This is primarily due to the quick and athletic front seven that has generated 19 sacks through only five games on the season. Last season, the strength of the New England defense was the secondary which boasted depth and talent throughout the position groups. Now the Patriots defense has transitioned into a defense that relies on the front seven to protect the secondary.
Although being tied for 13th in league in total sacks is not abysmal, the strongest aspect of the Patriots defense in 2014 was undoubtedly the secondary. The gluttony of talent at the corner positon allowed New England to consistently play tight man coverage with Devin McCourty helping over the top of the defense. Now although the Patriots defense still possesses Devin McCourty, one of the best free safety’s in the game, they aren’t even using him the same way as last year. McCourty can been seen this year taking on more of a role of covering TE’s and occasionally outside wide receivers. Duron Harmon’s development has been a great asset to the Patriots this season as he allows McCourty to wear many different hats and excel in places the Patriots defense was struggling. McCourty’s versatility was most evident when New England matched up McCourty on future hall of famer Jason Witten. McCourty held Witten to 5 catches for 33 yards. The following week McCourty could be seen matching up with Philip Dorsett occasionally. Last year Revis, Browner and McCourty worked in unison to create one of the best secondary’s in the league, now McCourty is the glue that holds the inexperienced Patriots pass defense together.
It cannot be overlooked how much the New England front seven has improved relative to the 2014 unit. In five games the Patriots front seven the Patriots front seven has generated 19 sacks, almost half of what the 2014 pass rush did in 16 games. So why has there been such a vast improvement in this statistic? First, the defensive line depth has been greatly improved as the coaching staff can now rotate players and keep a consistent rush on the field. Second, the health of Dominique Easley and Chandler Jones plus the addition of Jabaal Sheard have paid dividends along the defensive line. Then another huge reason for the success of the front seven has been Jamie Collins and Donta Hightower’s blitzing ability. Both linebackers can be seen stunting on blitzes or blitzing the A gap every game. Collins and Hightower’s athleticism and strength allow them to overwhelm running backs who are forced to step up in pass protection to block a blitzing player. Collins in particular has been outstanding thus far forcing 3 fumbles and notching 3.5 sacks. Last year Collins had 4 forced fumbles and 4 sacks.
Overall, the Patriots defense has been playing well, but
succeeding in different ways than the 2014 team. It's a testament to Belichecks
ability to scheme around players strengths instead of trying to fit square pegs
into circular holes. Additionally it is a showing of how mainstays from the 2014
team have improved dramatically. Malcolm Butler, while still very raw and young,
has been playing fairly well as the number one corner. Patrick Chung, who was
thought of as a in the box safety who struggled in coverage, last week covered
TY Hilton very well. Clearly New England has adapted well to the new pieces of
their defense, allowing them to remain one of the top defenses in the NFL.
