Kyle Dugger Praises Patriots’ Defensive Coordinator After Dominant Showing

The New England Patriots will rely on their defense all season long. That unit answered the call in a dominant effort to upset AFC contenders in the Cincinnati Bengals with Sunday’s 16-10 victory.

New England allowed just 13 first-downs on Sunday afternoon and did not allow a point in the first half. The Patriots also forced a pair of fumbles, including one from Kyle Dugger, to put pressure on the Bengals’ top-tier offense headlined by quarterback Joe Burrow. With just 244 yards of offense allowed, first-time defensive coordinator DeMarcus Covington made a statement with his game plan for the Patriots.

“Just play good, fundamental football,” Dugger told reporters, per team-provided video. “Obviously, we knew the calls we had in defensively. We needed to execute well. We knew we had a great game plan in from DC. Just execute, tackle well, fundamentals play after play.”

The Patriots continued some defensive momentum from the end of last year’s disastrous season. That marked one of the more impressive performances in Week 1 of the NFL season as New England tallied an impressive victory.

Perhaps unexpectedly, the Patriots now head home in Week 2 with the chance to go 2-0 when they host the Seattle Seahawks.