FOXBORO, Mass. — It didn’t take long for Akeem Ayers, Jonathan Casillas and Alan Branch to fall in with the New England Patriots’ winning ways.
The Patriots were in the midst of a seven-game winning streak when all three players were acquired by the Patriots — pass rusher Ayers before Week 8 and linebacker Casillas and defensive tackle Branch before Week 9. They became so used to winning with the Patriots that things turned “awkward,” as Branch said, when the team actually lost in Week 13 to the Green Bay Packers.
“It’s not like a common thing,” Casillas said. “When it does happen — I mean, it’s not the end of the world, you got more games — but you gotta put everything in perspective. The goal, what we’re trying to do. It’s hard to stay undefeated, even though the Patriots did that several years ago, but you wanna go out there and win every game.”
Cornerback Darrelle Revis, signed by the Patriots as a free agent over the offseason, said after falling to the Packers that he hadn’t been on a team that took losing so hard since he was in high school with the state champion Aliquippa Quips.
“I don’t know if it was because of that game or not, but usually teams, they don’t take it to heart as much,” Branch said. “We really took it to heart, the loss and everything. We put a lot of work into it, so it’s understandable, but at the same time, being on other teams, I don’t think that we quite took the losses as hard as here. I guess it is something new.”
Casillas and Branch have seen both sides of the spectrum in their NFL careers. Casillas won a Super Bowl with the New Orleans Saints as a rookie and went 4-12 last season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Branch made the Super Bowl in his second season with Arizona Cardinals and went 6-10 last season with the Buffalo Bills.
“I don’t want to use these terms, because I don’t want to bad-talk anybody, but people say, ‘What’s the difference?’ I don’t really know what it is, but there is a difference between winners and so-called losers,” Casillas said. “There is just a difference, even from year to year. When I was in New Orleans, we had a really good season, won a Super Bowl, and then we had a bad season my last year there, went 7-9, worst defense in the NFL. Totally different. Almost same people, different coaches, but totally different environment. It’s just different.”
Ayers only experienced one winning season in three and a half years the Tennessee Titans — a 9-7 record his rookie year. The pass rusher immediately noticed a difference when he came to New England via trade.
“You just expect to win,” Ayers said. “Whenever we go out, that’s the mindset of everybody, and that’s what everybody expects. And everybody holds each other to such a high standard. We expect everybody to perform each week and just expect to win. It’s not even a thought.”
The midseason acquisitions have gone shockingly swimmingly for the Patriots and all three players. Ayers has recorded three sacks in four starts and seven games with the Patriots, adding a versatile threat to the edge of the defensive line. Casillas has started the Patriots’ previous two games at linebacker while also contributing on special teams, and Branch has helped fortify the Patriots’ run defense as a rotational defensive tackle behind starters Vince Wilfork and Sealver Siliga.
They’ve all gained the trust of head coach Bill Belichick, as well.
“Akeem is a pretty smart guy. He’s picked up things very well,” Belichick said Wednesday. “I’d say at this point I don’t think that’s really a big factor. Branch, Akeem, Jonathan, they don’t have as much experience as some of the other players we could mention, but I think whatever we need them to do, whatever their assignments are, I don’t think there’s a thought of, ‘Oh, we’re not sure if he has it, if he’s been here long enough, if he’s repped it enough.’ I think we’re pretty — anybody can make a mistake out there, but I think we’re past all that. Whoever is in there is in there. We expect them to do it and they’ve had enough reps to do it and I think they’re all confident in doing it.”
Casillas said the Patriots’ winning mentality starts with Belichick, who does a good job of making sure his players never get too high or too low. The Patriots clinched their sixth consecutive AFC East championship in Sunday’s win over the Miami Dolphins. They’ve won 12 division titles in 15 years under Belichick.
“I think Bill does a good job of putting things in perspective,” Casillas said. “He puts things in perspective and lets people know, like, this is the way that we have established, and it’s not easy. It’s very difficult. Struggling early in the season here, I was on a different team, but everybody knew the Patriots were struggling — 2-2, that’s a struggle for the Patriots. Two losses, Week 8, it’s still like ‘Oh my God, are they any good?’ But thats’ the standard that’s set here. It’s an honor to be on board and be a part of that.”
No one is worrying if the Patriots are any good at this point of the season, but they have to continue their winning ways to maintain their best shot at a Super Bowl — keeping home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. To earn that right, the Patriots must win their final two games of the season. The New York Jets are up Sunday.
Thumbnail photos via USA TODAY Sports Images
