FOXBORO, Mass. — The New England Patriots’ defense has been an enigma this season.
The Patriots rank second in points allowed (17.2 per game), but certain pockets of the media and the fans easily influenced by them seem to think New England doesn’t pass the “eye test.”
The Pats certainly did Sunday, when they allowed just 25 yards in the first half to go along with two interceptions and four sacks in the game, even though it was against the lowly Los Angeles Rams. Still, the Patriots now rank ninth in the NFL in total defense, so complaints about giving up long drives aren’t even exactly justified at this point.
Linebacker and defensive captain Dont’a Hightower was asked if he felt the defense turned the corner Sunday.
“Man, I don’t know why y’all keep asking those questions,” Hightower said. “I feel like we’ve played good all year. Y’all are the ones who keep saying that stuff. We know what we have on defense. We just gotta keep going out and proving and playing the way we’ve been playing the last three or four weeks.”
The Patriots are 10-2 and their defense is doing its primary job of preventing points, so one can’t really blame Hightower for taking offense that his unit isn’t performing.
The Patriots’ defense does rank 19th in Football Outsiders’ DVOA metric, and it’s 21st in red-zone defense, 22nd in takeaways and 18th in sacks, so while the unit certainly hasn’t been bad this season, there still are areas to improve.
Thumbnail photo via Kyle Terada/USA TODAY Sports Images
