The New England Patriots' defense certainly seems like it's starting to click.
While the Patriots' Week 13 win came against an inferior opponent who showed mind-boggling special teams incompetence, New England put together its most complete victory -- a 45-0 shutout at SoFi Stadium.
It was the first time the Patriots' defense shut out an opposing offense this season, doing so against rookie signal-caller Justin Herbert. It was also New England's second consecutive strong showing on the defensive side of the ball, while some could even point to its third in four weeks. The Patriots held Kyler Murray and the Arizona Cardinals to just 17 points during Week 12, and suffocated Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens during a Week 10 win.
It's caused the Patriots to believe in their identity and defensive potential. As it should.
"Yeah, I think we took a step forward," cornerback Stephon Gilmore told reporters Monday, one day after locking down Chargers' Keenan Allen.
"I think we have an aggressive mindset. Going into every game, we try to throw the first punch," Gilmore added. "And I feel like we play physical in the back end and up front. We feed off each other. Whoever makes plays, we're excited for each other. We’re going to try to keep that going each and every week."
Gilmore and the Patriots' defense will have another tough test as they take on the NFC West-leading Los Angeles Rams on "Thursday Night Football."
The 8-4 Rams enter Week 14 ranked third in yards per game behind a sixth-best passing attack.
"They have a great team, great defense, great offense," Gilmore said. "So, I just feel like it's another measuring stick of where we want to be. We have to go through theses guys to get to where we want to go."
