‘D’ still a mystery
Few tests mask true identity
FOXBORO — The Patriots defense hasn’t won over too many fans this season. Not yet, anyway.
Being good, not great doesn’t quite cut it when all the preseason hype suggested Bill Belichick’s defense would be among the elite in the league.
And yet, being good, not great, has worked just fine given the opponents and respective offenses the Patriots have faced in the first seven games.
Taming the likes of Landry Jones and/or Cody Kessler/Charlie Whitehurst hasn’t posed too much of a problem.
While the defense hasn’t dominated, as many would like, it has done what is necessary to help produce wins. Basically, that’s been keeping teams out of the end zone, which, as Belichick is quick to remind everyone, is the primary objective. So being the fourth-best in the league in points per game allowed (15.3) is significant.
Aesthetically, however, the performances have been far from pleasing thanks to teams moving the ball almost at will before being met with resistance.
Most people like to call it bend but don’t break. It might be better described as a defense that drives you absolutely batty because you just don’t know whether to feel good or bad about it.
And that’s a tough feeling to have when the expectation is for another Super Bowl run. While the offense is a given, the defense is more like a wait-and-see proposition.
Right now, it’s just too hard to figure if the formula is going to hold up down the road. The Pats really haven’t been pushed all that much by the quarterbacks they’ve faced. Only one has lit them up for 300 yards, and most of those came during a second-half explosion by Ryan Tannehill and the Dolphins with the game pretty much in hand.
“I think we definitely have our identity mapped out for us. There’s always room for improvement. But we’re still learning, still working, definitely moving in the right direction as far as the time of the season works,” defensive captain Dont’a Hightower said last week. “This is the time you want to have that identity and be able to press forward. I think defensively we have that mindset. We have a few things that we have to pick up on and I think that’ll make us a lot better.”
In 2014, their identity was forged during a monster stretch of games against a succession of elite quarterbacks (Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers, Philip Rivers), or stacked offenses (Colts, Lions, Bears). They were pressed, and in several of those games (Denver, Green Bay), pushed like it was a playoff game. That really helped prepare the defense for their Super Bowl run, and the ultimate goal-line stand against Seattle.
That hasn’t been the case this year. We really don’t know what the defense is made of. It’s still a mystery.
What we’ve seen is a defense that does just enough and makes plays when needed to squash inferior opponents. Sunday’s outing in Pittsburgh was a prime example of the Patriots having a team gain plenty of yards but ultimately do minimal damage on the scoreboard.
Granted, the Steelers were without Ben Roethlisberger, but even with all of their remaining weapons, still scored just one touchdown in the Pats’ 27-16 victory.
The key takeaway was the defense tightened up after turnovers gave the Steelers good field position during a couple critical junctures. After Chris Hogan fumbled on the Pats’ first offensive snap of the game, the defense responded with Malcolm Butler picking off Jones in the end zone on a pass intended for Antonio Brown. Then when Julian Edelman muffed a punt in the fourth quarter with the Pats up 11, they also delivered. The Steelers advanced just 7 yards, forcing a 54yard field goal attempt that missed.
That’s kind of been a pattern. In their past five games, the Pats have held each opponent to 17 points or less including one shutout.
The Bengals (357 yards) and Bills (380 yards in a 16-0 loss), were just like the Steelers, moving the ball up and down the field only to fall short when it came time to do real damage in the end zone.
Maybe that’s just how the Patriots roll. They make you work, with long drives, then put the brakes on.
But how do you get the most accurate barometer when only one of the seven quarterbacks faced (Andy Dalton) registers in the top 10 in either yards or passer rating?
Then to see Jones (29-of-47 for 281 yards with one touchdown and one interception) throw for nearly 300 yards, you wonder what Roethlisberger would have done.
And therein lies the problem. Looking at the schedule, this defense isn’t going to be tested or stressed all that much the rest of the way, either. Perhaps one of the best tests will be Sunday in Buffalo against the one team that beat them, and a mobile quarterback in Tyrod Taylor, who can give teams fits, and has caused the Pats some trouble in the past.
After that, they’re looking at Seattle’s Russell Wilson, San Francisco’s Colin Kaepernick, New York’s Ryan Fitzpatrick, LA’s Case Keenam, Baltimore’s Joe Flacco, Denver’s Trevor Siemian, Fitzpatrick again and Miami’s Tannehill for the second time.
Wilson is the best of that lot, but he’s been playing on one leg with knee and ankle injuries. Obviously, the Pats can’t control the schedule, or injuries to quarterbacks or key players. It just would be nice to see how they shape up against an elite quarterback or the type of offense they might see down the road. In 2014, the question was already answered.