We went through each game and tallied up the blitz totals — with a huge assist from ProFootballFocus.com — and found that yes, indeed, the Patriots aren’t blitzing a whole lot this year. They are blitzing on 22.2 percent of passing plays, ranked 26th in the NFL. The league average is 31.3 percent. But the Patriots are 13th in pass defense and third in points allowed, so the tactic is working well.
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The Patriots are always a conservative defense, and if they’re blitzing a lot, it means they’re trying to cover up a weakness. In a perfect world you can get pressure with your front four and never have to blitz. Sorry to those looking for an “attacking” defense that is sending defensive backs all the time.