Patriots Put In Specific Package Before Dominant Defensive Effort

The Patriots put in a dominant defensive effort while also showing a new wrinkle against the Bears holding Chicago’s offense to 142 total yards in Week 10.

New England controlled the line of scrimmage and held Chicago to its lowest point total of the season in the dominant 19-3 win.

First and foremost, the Patriots nailed the basics.

“It starts up front,” Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo told reporters at Soldier Field, per team-provided video. “I think that’s what we have to do. We have to go out there and reestablish the line of scrimmage and we were able to do that in all three-and-outs.”

With injuries at safety, New England also got creative with its game planning. Brenden Schooler, known primarily for his special teams prowess, played a huge role in the defense Sunday. It was part of a brand-new “Longhorn” defensive package deployed by Patriots defensive coordinator DeMarcus Covington, named for Schooler’s alma mater, the University of Texas.

Schooler recorded his first career sack, as part of a nine-sack day for New England. The Patriots held the Bears at 1-for-14 in third-down efficiency and kept No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams quiet when he wasn’t lying on his back.

“We’ve done things like that before,” Mayo said. “Again, we talk about next man up. Now you’ve got a guy who’s primarily a special teams player making contributions. It’s probably his first sack ever in his career, but he’s fast, he’s athletic, and he’s a football player. We try not to put anyone in a box, and I’m not going to put anyone.”

Schooler, meanwhile, was more than happy to do his part.

“It was awesome,” Schooler said, per team-provided video. “It was my first career sack ever — going back to Pop Warner, high school and college. So it was a pretty cool feeling.”

Defensive captain Deatrich Wise told reporters he was really happy for the defensive unit as a whole.

“Really, it’s a testament of us playing together,” Wise said, per team-provided video. “We couldn’t have had none of those plays without our (defensive backs) shutting down two really good receivers and tight ends. It was a complete defensive effort and then really overall a big team effort just playing our ball.”

Cornerback Christian Gonzalez recorded two tackles in the Patriots win as pressure came from everywhere across the defensive unit.

“Anytime you can hold an NFL team to not being able to score a touchdown is a good showing,” Gonzalez told reporters, per team-provided video. “But we got to stack on it. We can enjoy it today, enjoy it on the ride back, but we got to learn how to stack on this (win).”

The Patriots will have a chance to build on the win when they host the Los Angeles Rams at Gillette Stadium in Week 11.