Patriots News 11-09, Offense Shorthanded Against Tampa
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Good morning. Here is your Patriots news, 11-09, and NFL notes this week. The Patriots have the opportunity to make it seven in a row with a win today over the Buccaneers. The Bucs were planning on going all out for a Salute to Service day, but due to the government shutdown, no parachute jump, no fighter flyovers, or halftime enlistment ceremony. But to all my fellow vets out there, a big tip of the Beret.
The weather today is going to be hot and humid; the Patriots are just missing a blast of cold air coming down beginning late Sunday night. Lows on Monday and Tuesday are supposed to hit the 40s. Missed it by that much…Hydration will be key today.
Both offenses are entering today’s game shorthanded. The Patriots will be without RB Rhamondre Stevenson and WR Kayshon Boutte. The Bucs will be short RB Bucky Irving and WR Chris Godwin. Both teams have also ruled out key members of their defenses with the Patriots Christian Elliss and the Bucs’ Haason Reddick both missing today’s game. Expect to see a lot of Jack Gibbens in Elliss’ place today.
The Bucs’ defense will bear watching today, they have been outstanding at generating sacks and turnovers, two things the Patriots have been prone to giving up this season. They like to bring pressure from all over the field and disguise their blitzes and coverages.
It will be a big test for Drake Maye and the offensive line to get the ball out quickly and accurately against the Buccaneers’ secondary, which is excellent.
The Patriots will look to play more man coverage this week, an area that the Tampa offense has struggled against this season. Baker Mayfield has done well with scrambling to make plays and this may end up having the Patriots using a spy (Robert Spillane) in that aspect today.
The November 4th NFL trade deadline came and went without the Patriots making any additions. They were, in fact, sellers at the deadline, trading Keion White and a conditional 7th round pick to the Niners for a 6th rounder. And they traded Kyle Dugger to the Steelers for a 6th rounder.
The Patriots had 10 picks in the 2026 NFL draft at their disposal to work with, which includes an additional fourth-round selection and four picks in the sixth round.
Dianna Russini reported that NFL sources suggested Tennessee’s owner, Amy Adams Strunk, was hesitant to make deals with New England due to how Mike Vrabel’s tenure in Nashville ended.
Two players on Tennessee’s roster—running back Tony Pollard and edge rusher Arden Key—were reportedly being sought by New England. But Tennessee declined to deal with the Patriots.
Key is a pass rusher who could have added some much-needed depth to the Patriots’ pass rush. Pollard was the intriguing name because he would have been more than a rental, as his contract runs through next season with a cap hit of $9.25 million. Does that mean that the team is considering moving on from Stevenson or Antonio Gibson next season?
The fact that they didn’t make any significant moves was not a surprise. Mike Vrabel has essentially said for a while that the team is still in the early stages of rebuilding and didn’t want to give up draft capital for a quick-fix rental.
What does that mean for the pass rush? UDFA Elijah Ponder, Anfernee Jennings, and recent addition Caleb Murphy will be expected to contribute down the stretch this season. Their fifth-round draft pick, Bradyn Swinton, is on the practice squad. It will be interesting if he gets a call-up soon.
Stefon Diggs: The Patriots’ wide receiver talked about improving his attitude on Friday. In an interview with CLNS, Diggs said his own mentality is an area that he can improve on.
“My attitude,” Diggs said. “I have a way of getting mad at everything, and I want everything to be perfect.”
“I think it’s a competitive edge as well because you’re always chasing to be better, and I always want better,” Diggs added. “So, for me, my attitude towards myself. I always want excellence. Sometimes, I don’t attach myself to the results, but I always want more.”
“Let your actions speak louder than words,” he said. “Commit to the process. Don’t attach to the results because the results will vary, and trust in yourself. You got here from believing in yourself and the time that you put in, so don’t stop believing in yourself.”
Kayshon Boutte: The Patriots’ best deep ball threat is out this week with a hamstring injury. And without him in the lineup in the second half against Atlanta, you could see the difference.
Demario Douglas had his best game of the season, going for 101 yards and a touchdown in his absence, and they’ll need more of that this week, going against a very good Bucs defense.
Kyle Williams will see an uptick in usage with Boutte out, and this would be a great opportunity to see what he can do. His forte is getting open quickly and getting separation at the line of scrimmage. Given Tampa’s ability to get after the QB, this would be a prime opportunity for him.
Tom Brady: The former Patriots quarterback was in the news this week in some non-football news as he announced that he had cloned his beloved former pitbull mix, Lua, who died in 2023, and now has Junie.
Many people argue against the use of cloning, stating that it is morally wrong, but thinking back to the loss of our beloved English Bulldog back in late June, I would love to have had the opportunity to have her back with us.
The cost of cloning your dog, however, isn’t for the faint of heart. The price ranges from approximately $50,000 for a dog or cat to $80,000 for a horse.
Colossal Biosciences CEO Ben Lamm stated that the company has focused on trying to return the woolly mammoth, dodo bird, and Tasmanian tiger from extinction. The company announced in April that it had resurrected the dire wolf, an animal that had been extinct for roughly 13,000 years and is best known for its presence on the HBO series “Game of Thrones.” Dire Wolf? Sign me up.
Patriots No Huddle Podcast: Mike and I broke down the win against Cleveland on our Monday night postgame podcast. Later in the week, Derek and I broke down the upcoming Bucs’ game, focusing on key matchups and key strategies for success.
Join the three of us for our post-game podcast at 8 pm tonight, and we’ll break down the game. And be sure to like, share, and leave us a review.
Russ Francis/Chuck Fairbanks: The former Patriot tight end and head coach should be in the Patriots team Hall of Fame, and the fact that Francis isn’t is an absolute travesty. Francis and the Raiders’ Dave Casper changed how teams used the tight end position.
This will be displayed in our Sunday posts until it happens. Casper is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Francis’ numbers stand up well against Casper’s, yet he isn’t even in the team’s HOF.
The Patriots aim to win their seventh consecutive game and improve to 8-2. The Bucs are 6-2 and coming off their bye week, so they’ve had plenty of time to prepare for New England and are well-rested.
From a Patriots perspective, what must be done to win the game this week?
This formula doesn’t change. Christian Barmore, Milton Williams, and Khyiris Tonga have been outstanding at penetrating and disrupting the running game at the point of attack. They’ll need to continue that this week against the Bucs, who will be without star running back Bucky Irving.
The big men have been very good at creating pressure, and with the very mobile Baker Mayfield, they’ll have to be pushing the pocket from right up the middle to keep him from stepping up, forcing him to get rid of the ball.
Mayfield has struggled to throw well against man coverage this season, but in doing so, it leaves the door open for him to scramble, which he is excellent at. I would expect to see the Patriots to spy him using Robert Spillane, who continues his outstanding season.
The Patriots’ quarterback has been playing at an MVP level this season, and now he’s facing the best overall defense the Patriots have gone against this season.
The Bucs bring pressure from everywhere, 15 different players have at least a half-sack, and while Maye has thrived against blitzing teams, this system is different and presents difficult challenges.
Maye will have to process quickly and get the ball out fast. Many of the sacks he’s taken have resulted in him holding the ball too long, trying to make a big play downfield. This week, the process has to speed up.
This is why the rookie Williams may see an uptick in targets. His game is gaining quick separation, and the Patriots will need that this week. Look for Stefon Diggs to factor prominently this week as well. He’s a savvy veteran WR who can work as the outlet.
The Bucs have a slew of injuries offensively. Mike Evans and Jalen McMillan are on IR. Irving and Chris Godwin (who the Patriots tried to entice to New England during the offseason) are still out with injuries.
So, their passing attack is limited, but in reality, it is Baker Mayfield that makes it go. He has the very talented rookie Emeka Egbuka (34 catches, 562 yards, five TDs), who looks like the next great Ohio State wide receiver to throw to.
He’ll be matched up with Christian Gonzalez, and that should be a great one to watch. Tez Johnson is the slot receiver, and he and Marcus Jones should see plenty of reps as well. Veteran WR Sterling Sheppard will draw former Buccaneer CB Carlton Davis III in coverage.
Tight end Cade Otton has become a good security blanket for Mayfield, especially lately, due to the injuries they’ve suffered to their receiving core. While Otton isn’t as talented as some of the tight ends the Patriots have faced lately, he can be a good red zone target, an area that the Patriots have struggled mightly in lately. It will be interesting to see how the Patriots choose to defend him.
The Patriots have run for more than 360 yards in their last three games. Tampa’s run defense with Vita Vea will present a tough challenge, as the Bucs are very stout (92.6 yards per game) against the run.
With Rhamondre Stevenson out again, TreVeyon Henderson and Terrell Jennings will once again be expected to carry the run game to keep the offense balanced.
No one expects either team to be able to run the ball this week, but look for the Patriots to use Henderson’s speed and run away from Vea’s side. It promises to be tough sledding this week.
The Cleveland – Cincinnati game last week was crazy, but the Bengals’ defense gave up a huge game-winning touchdown in the final seconds after coming back from two scores in the final two minutes.
The Bills, after beating Kansas City, still aren’t getting a lot of love nationally. Everything is the Chiefs and Baltimore.
Now we’ll see how the rest of the schedule goes.
Thursday Night Football:
Denver over Las Vegas 1-0
Sunday Day Games:
Indianapolis over Atlanta (9:30 am start in Berlin)
Chicago over NYG
Buffalo over Miami
Baltimore over Minnesota
Cleveland over NYJ
Tampa Bay over New England
Carolina over New Orleans
Jacksonville over Houston
Seattle over Arizona
LARams over San Francisco
Detroit over Washington
Sunday Night Football:
LAChargers over Pittsburgh
Monday Night Football:
Philadelphia over Green Bay
BYE WEEK:
Cincinnati, Dallas, Kansas City, Tennessee
Last Week 10—4
2025 Season 92—42—1
2024 Season 204—68
2023 Season 178—94
2022 Season: 178—92—2
2021 Season: 183—88—1
2020 Season: 169—86—1
2019 Season: 162—93—1
“No, I never really looked at it that way. I think we’re trying to build a program, the same thing that we said when we got here. I think that’s part of building a program. It’s finding ways to win, building a team and figuring out where the pieces are that we can continue to add when it makes sense. And so, I don’t think anything – I don’t think this is a negative. I don’t think this is – this is just where we’re at. I know they worked extremely hard to make calls and have conversations, and then in the end, we didn’t do anything.”
Mike Vrabel was asked if he thought it is difficult at all for the organization to sort of adhere to its plan when you guys are performing the way you’re performing right now at the top of the division and near the top of the conference, just to be a little bit more aggressive and try to capitalize on what’s happening now?
“Well, I’m going to give Todd credit, but obviously the credit goes to the players. They’ve got veteran players that play physical, two really aggressive corners.
“Obviously the safeties, playmakers with [Antoine] Winfield [Jr.], but up front, Vita [Vea], [Haason] Reddick and [Yaya] Diaby. Lavonte David’s been doing it at such a high level. So again, credit to the players.
“And then what Todd adds is just a lot of pressure, great disguises, bringing multiple players from off the football. It’s not just a linebacker, you could have a corner, you could have a safety, could have the nickel and the coverage changes. And you’ve seen them force a lot of turnovers, especially on third down, when quarterbacks are making quick decisions, that they make the wrong decision. So, 10 turnovers in the last four games, this will be critical that we take care of the football.“
Mike Vrabel, after being asked what challenges the Todd Bowles defense has.
“Well, the athletes in this league are really good and every team has them. Sometimes people miss tackles or their space plays. Sometimes teams try to create numbers out on the perimeter. For example, the second play of the game, Milt [Milton Williams]’s running out there, the linebackers are triggering and Milt’s running down the line. We talk about making them earn it, that’s a defensive lineman hitting a running back for a 2-yard gain. So, I would say that they earned all those two yards last week and that’ll be critical this week. You’ve seen different players, whether that’s Harold [Landry III], Milt, Christian [Barmore], [Khyiris] Tonga, KC [K’Lavon Chaisson], all those guys that play along the front going to extend and help us out on the perimeter because sometimes those are tough tackles. So, that’s how we want to play defense, and it starts with that. Then we look at the technique and then we look at the scheme.”
Vrabel was asked about the defense swarming to the football
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“Somebody asked me what success looks like, and I said, ‘Yeah, you can judge it by wins and losses during the season, but success for me in the offseason is going to be that the players believe in what we’re doing, and they believe in the message, they believe in the teaching, and they believe in the connections that we’re making.’” — Mike Vrabel
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