Nice to finally get a look at the All 22 after a day’s delay. Pats seem to be finding their stride on defense and when they wrap up and make tackles, things look pretty good. They’re flashing more and more physicality in the secondary as well, which is needed.
Perhaps the biggest note is Darrelle Revis looking like Darrelle Revis, but also how well Arrington and Dennard played as well. Can’t remember having three corners playing this well since… well… ever.
The biggest concern – defensive end depth with Chandler Jones and Dominique Easley ailing while Michael Buchanan was just shut down for the season. Might be a move to come there.
Here are my notes on the defense…
Dennard might be the unsung hero of this defense. He’s feisty, shows good anticipation and seems like the key guy to allow man defense across the board. Very curious to see what happens with Browner now in the mix. Dennard seems too good to ride the pine now.
Chris Jones continuing to progress, taking on double teams better.
Revis anticipates double moves so well, he never stops moving. His talents were on clear display right off the bat, smoothly sticking with AJ Green like glue.
Man-to-Man defense certainly has it’s plusses when Revis-Dennard-Arrington are all playing. But on third-and-long on the first drive the Pats went to Cover 4 to snuff out the underneath routes. A good example of how mixing coverages is key.
Savvy “ole” move by Ninkovich on the second Bengals possession against the tight end trying to block him. Ninkovich has been under the radar this year somewhat, but continues to show up in the run game.
Some good stuff out of Easley playing defensive end. His power continues to flash, but he’s still developing the savvy needed to pass rush in the NFL. He’s really shown how versatile he is early in the year and as he gets more comfortable on his knee he should only get better.
Casey Walker showed up on just his second snap with the Patriots, plowing through the line to blow up a run for a loss. Might be a little early to say anything definitive but the Pats have to be happy to see this from their big body replacement of Siliga. He could be a key piece down the stretch.
Next third-and-long the Pats went to Cover 2 Man but when that play was blown dead by a penalty they went back to Cover 4 for third-and-longer.
Clear as day where Easley hurt his shoulder mid-way through the second quarter, he was just trying to extend against a block and immediately reached to it. His arm hung limp as he walked to the sideline. Doesn’t seem major and he was at practice today so that’s a good sign.
Love Jamie Collins in the passing game, but he’s not a downhill linebacker how can hammer an oncoming offensive linemen. In space against pass-heavy teams he’ll be incredibly valuable. Of course that is most of the teams in the NFL that we worry most about. But against some of the NFC teams it might be interesting with him.
Chris Jones with another great stack-and-shed in the second quarter. Solid game for him so far. Michael Buchanan entered for Easley and he looks a little lost so far. Looking for the injury that landed him on IR.
I’m sure one of the talking points you’ve heard this week is that the Pats pass rush pressure wasn’t great but against a quick-throw team like the Bengals it’s almost impossible to get to the QB consistently. The good thing I see is that the pass rush is getting there right after Dalton unloads it, forcing him to quickly throw to his first read consistently. That’s a positive and something we’ll need to do against the good QBs like Peyton.
Holy ticky tacky holding call on Dennard!
Bengals went run-heavy at the end of the second quarter after taking a couple shots at the end zone. Pats countered with a 3-4 base defense that held up well, forcing the field goal. Good red zone stop.
On the forced fumble by Revis on AJ Green it felt like it all started with a great jam by Revis that put Green off balance. Again, Revis was everything we thought Revis is and was in this game.
Look at that, Dennard gets sent on a blitz on the first play of the second half forcing a rushed throw and incompletion. Nothing better than a three-and-out to start a half, and the Pats got on their way to one with some rare DB pressure.
Jerod Mayo bounced back again in what has been an up-and-down start to his season. It’s amazing how much better the Pats are when he plays well. And how bad they are when he doesn’t.
Pats were in base defense, Cover 4 on the 37-yard touchdown pass to Sanu. Chung jumped the underneath route leaving Dennard with no help. McCourty’s absence was felt here.
Pats got caught in an exchange on a 15-yard gain to Hill. Ninkovich dropped and Mayo blitzed off the edge. Great throw by Dalton and a tough catch. Like seeing this kind of disguise.
On AJ Green’s touchdown Logan Ryan got no jam and then ran into Mayo which opened up enough space for an easy TD throw from Dalton. Not entirely Ryan’s fault, but a better jam would’ve likely helped him avoid Mayo coming over to cover the RB.
Collins is almost better getting right up on the line of scrimmage and using his athleticism in tight space to avoid blocks. In the fourth quarter he did just that, blowing up a zone run.
Great move by Chris Jones to pick up the first sack of the season against the Bengals. Not playing every down has allowed Jones to really elevate his game. He made a handful of impact plays in this game.
