Pats D still Number 2 in AFC points against

[Ring 6]

You gotta go by what your eyes tell you, if your living off of turn overs but you really don't stop anyone then yeah, I would say its dangerous to count on turn overs because they are inconsistent.

Other than that I will just agree to disagree with you. I don't have a lot of confidence that the defense will win us any games in the playoffs. There Offense will have to win it.. and we have seen how that goes.

We aren't talking about your confidence (which is meaningless) we are talking about how the defense has played overall in the field for 10 games.
Anything else is a projection and a guess.
If you don't think this defense had been good compared to the rest of the NFL for 10 games you either aren't paying attention or don't understand the criteria.

 

[Ring 6]

Yep

I want to be wrong, but how long has it been since Belichick the defensive guru put together a scary defense? Seattle did it, denver did it, hell even Minnesota did it and Minnesota hasn't done much right in a long time.

You call us chicken littles, we're just wondering when the genius is going to deliver a D you can look at as a strength

He isn't trying to put together a scary defense he is trying to put together a defense that wins.
He has won more than all those teams you envy.

 

[StockingAnarchyNumber12]

You gotta go by what your eyes tell you, if your living off of turn overs but you really don't stop anyone then yeah, I would say its dangerous to count on turn overs because they are inconsistent.

Other than that I will just agree to disagree with you. I don't have a lot of confidence that the defense will win us any games in the playoffs. There Offense will have to win it.. and we have seen how that goes.

I don't see this as a 1 and done team. I sadly see this as a potential loss in SB 51 though. I also see this as a potential loss in the AFCCG. We're making the AFCCG though. I know we can!

 

[deroc5050]

I don't see this as a 1 and done team. I sadly see this as a potential loss in SB 51 though. I also see this as a potential loss in the AFCCG. We're making the AFCCG though. I know we can!

I never said 1 and done. I think we at least make it to the AFC championship. But at that point we most likely will be playing a team like Oakland which has a great offense that will roll right through our defense. Of course we will roll right through theirs too.

 

[deroc5050]

We aren't talking about your confidence (which is meaningless) we are talking about how the defense has played overall in the field for 10 games.
Anything else is a projection and a guess.
If you don't think this defense had been good compared to the rest of the NFL for 10 games you either aren't paying attention or don't understand the criteria.

By saying confidence meaning my opinion... and yeah on the grand scheme of things this whole ****ing discussion is meaningless. I know we have a top 5 D man... WE ARE UNSTOPPABLE OUR OFFENSE IS ****ING AWESOME AND ARE DEFENSE ROCKS!! **** YEAH!!

 

[StockingAnarchyNumber12]

I never said 1 and done. I think we at least make it to the AFC championship. But at that point we most likely will be playing a team like Oakland which has a great offense that will roll right through our defense. Of course we will roll right through theirs too.

I'm most scared about SB 51. AFCCG "could" end up being a dissapointment for us, but Dallas is scary. I'd hate the story of the 2016-2017 season end up being:

Brady passes the torch onto Dak.

 

[deroc5050]

I'm most scared about SB 51. AFCCG "could" end up being a dissapointment for us, but Dallas is scary. I'd hate the story of the 2016-2017 season end up being:

Brady passes the torch onto Dak.

At this point I am more worried about Seattle than Dallas. Seattle has a D that can stop us enough and obviously their O can put up points against us. If you shut down Dallas run game we probably win. The Super Bowl if we make it won't be easy.. not that it ever is.

 

[Ring 6]

By saying confidence meaning my opinion... and yeah on the grand scheme of things this whole ****ing discussion is meaningless. I know we have a top 5 D man... WE ARE UNSTOPPABLE OUR OFFENSE IS ****ING AWESOME AND ARE DEFENSE ROCKS!! **** YEAH!!

We have a terrific offense and a defense that so far has played very well.
What happens in the next 2 1/2 is to be seen.

 

[Jangles]

At this point I am more worried about Seattle than Dallas. Seattle has a D that can stop us enough and obviously their O can put up points against us. If you shut down Dallas run game we probably win. The Super Bowl if we make it won't be easy.. not that it ever is.

#1 run D in the league got torched today by the Cowboys

I said a week ago they look like a team of destiny

 

[deroc5050]

#1 run D in the league got torched today by the Cowboys

I said a week ago they look like a team of destiny

I don't think Dallas can keep up with us on the score board. Notice how Dallas plays they milk clock and try to shorten the game. If you get up a score on them it will completely take them out of their game.

 

[RDS11]

What actually happens on the field is not misleading.
If you look at the avg points per game of opponents the patriots have not faced an extremely weak schedule any way.

Not extremely weak, but weak. Again, we have only played 3 games against teams in the top 15 in points per game, and one of these was against a backup QB instead of a perennial Pro Bowler.

Also, our defense is helped by a great offense and great special team play. Only 8 turnovers lost all year, so offense and special team doesn't put the defense in a tough situation very often. Also, entering the weekend, the defense had the best average field position of all the NFL, with opposing offenses starting their drives at their own 24.6 yard line.

The good news is that we are going to play more games against weak offenses : the Jets twice, Rams, Dolphins and Ravens are all in the bottom 15 in points per game. Only the Broncos are above 23 points per game (and in the top 15), but I wonder how much of this comes from their defense. So more games to pad our stats. I'm still not convinced that this defense can carry the team if the offense has a bad day. We'll see.

Meanwhile, it was good to see today that nobody was running uncovered against zone defense, as we have seen the last 3 or 4 weeks. To my untrained eyes, Logan Ryan seems much better in man-to-man than in zone coverage.

 

[deroc5050]

Not extremely weak, but weak. Again, we have only played 3 games against teams in the top 15 in points per game, and one of these was against a backup QB instead of a perennial Pro Bowler.

Also, our defense is helped by a great offense and great special team play. Only 8 turnovers lost all year, so offense and special team doesn't put the defense in a tough situation very often. Also, entering the weekend, the defense had the best average field position of all the NFL, with opposing offenses starting their drives at their own 24.6 yard line.

The good news is that we are going to play more games against weak offenses : the Jets twice, Rams, Dolphins and Ravens are all in the bottom 15 in points per game. Only the Broncos are above 23 points per game (and in the top 15), but I wonder how much of this comes from their defense. So more games to pad our stats. I'm still not convinced that this defense can carry the team if the offense has a bad day. We'll see.

Meanwhile, it was good to see today that nobody was running uncovered against zone defense, as we have seen the last 3 or 4 weeks. To my untrained eyes, Logan Ryan seems much better in man-to-man than in zone coverage.

Totally in agree with your assessment only a ****ing homer would think that we have a top 5 defense.

 

[moejr]

I was defending this D but after last week that went out the window. We need to tighten it up and we have the games coming up to try and get that going. I can see stats are deceiving. I just looked on espn and we have given up the least points in the AFC and still look horrible on D.

 

[Ring 6]

I was defending this D but after last week that went out the window. We need to tighten it up and we have the games coming up to try and get that going. I can see stats are deceiving. I just looked on espn and we have given up the least points in the AFC and still look horrible on D.

Imagine how horrible all those other teams look when they are giving up more points.

 

[Nunchucks]

I feel that the defense looked kind of lost at the start of the game and improved by the second half. Good adjustments, better communication, and more stout up front. I hope they are able to build off the second half of the game.

 

[Kontradiction]

The Dallas Cowboys are tied for 5th when it comes to points allowed. Stats are an anomaly sometimes. This defense is somewhere in between the one that shut out the Texans and the one that got torched last Sunday. They're a middle of the pack defense that has trouble getting off the field on third down but can stiffen up when the field shortens. Whether that will be a recipe for success or disaster in the playoffs when the Pats inevitably run into a defense that can slow their offense down and keep Brady and the gang off the field remains to be seen. Lesser defenses have certainly won Super Bowls in this era.

 

[WaterfallJumper]

The Dallas Cowboys are tied for 5th when it comes to points allowed. Stats are an anomaly sometimes. This defense is somewhere in between the one that shut out the Texans and the one that got torched last Sunday. They're a middle of the pack defense that has trouble getting off the field on third down but can stiffen up when the field shortens. Whether that will be a recipe for success or disaster in the playoffs when the Pats inevitably run into a defense that can slow their offense down and keep Brady and the gang off the field remains to be seen. Lesser defenses have certainly won Super Bowls in this era.

This bears repeating. The Patriots may not have the most dominating defense in the league, but it's not as though they are so bad that they have no chance. Defenses can't play the same way in this modern era. The fact that NE is top 3 in scoring defense, despite all the room for improvement, shows me that the NFL as a whole has seriously skewed the game toward offensive fireworks. Yes, the team needs to clean up some of the troubles (TEs and RBs seem to always run free on the LBs, and sometimes the holes in zone are only possible in case of catastrophic failure/breakdown), but overall they are performing at or above the NFL average in almost every category.

It's completely possible to recognize areas of concern without sounding like a prophet of doom and gloom. There are certainly growth opportunities, but we still have nearly 40% of the regular season yet to play. I believe that the defense will improve, but even without significant improvement, this team could win it all. Offense and special teams still exist, and I think we're strong in those areas.

 

[ashley]

Our defense is 27th in the league in takeaways. I'd like to see us get a few turnovers in the next game or two. It was a better defensive performance yesterday though.

 

[fightingirish595]

So you honestly believe that allowing more points is better defense. Really?

Would you take Denvers defense or New Englands defense

 

[Jangles]

Would you take Denvers defense or New Englands defense

Asking the tough questions

If he says Patriots we'll have to discount him as a troll