SAN DIEGO — Home-field advantage is nice and all, but the New England Patriots proved they might not need it to reach the promised land this season.
The Patriots marched into Qualcomm Stadium and laid a licking on one of the AFC’s best squads Sunday night, beating the San Diego Chargers 23-14. The Patriots’ offense sputtered, but their defense was stingy, allowing just seven points and 216 total yards.
Name a facet, and the Patriots’ D excelled. Pass rush? Check. Coverage? Check. Run defense? Check. Third down? Check plus.
If the Patriots’ defense needed a test, they got it Sunday night. Their offense was out of sorts early, settling for two first-half field goals and turning over the ball twice. Wide receiver Brandon LaFell’s fumble was recovered for a Chargers touchdown, and quarterback Tom Brady’s interception ended any hopes of an extra score before halftime.
The second half didn’t start much better for the Patriots, who failed to pick up a first down until the final play of the third quarter. Through all the struggles, the Patriots’ defense had to hold and hold, and hold some more. They didn’t allow a second-half point and held the Chargers to just 4 of 13 on third downs.
Linebacker Jamie Collins gave the defense an early spark, picking up two first-half sacks as he shouldered more responsibility with Dont’a Hightower out with an injury. A returning Sealver Siliga combined with fellow defensive linemen Vince Wilfork and Alan Branch to limit the Chargers’ running backs to just 3.1 yards per carry. Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers, in one of his worst games of an otherwise MVP-caliber season, didn’t throw to star wideout Keenan Allen until the end of the third quarter because Patriots cornerback Darrelle Revis covered him so well.
Revis allowed just 3 yards on one catch and one target. Revis claimed he doesn’t get bored when being targeted so seldom.
The Patriots felt they needed to respond after a “devastating” — Revis’ words, not ours — loss to the Green Bay Packers last week, and they certainly did.
“We did a good job,” cornerback Brandon Browner said. “We emphasized to get off on third down. I think we did a better job this week than we did last week. We fought to the end today. I think that’s what helped us win the game today.”
The Patriots’ offense was very appreciative of the effort on the other side of the ball.
“Our defense has been lights out,” wide receiver Julian Edelman said. “We were battling out there the first three quarters. We were not able to get things going. No one doubted our defense. We knew, our defense will hold them and get us the ball back. Surely enough they did, and we were able to execute at the end.”
The Patriots’ defense played its best game of the season Sunday, and it was without Hightower and star defensive end Chandler Jones. It’s difficult to imagine how good this unit will look when all the pieces are back in place.
The Patriots just need to win out to procure a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. After Sunday’s win, that could be a walk in the park.
Thumbnail photo via Lenny Ignelzi/The Associated Press
