I think we can all agree the New England Patriots are struggling — mightily. But if we think of this NFL season as a Disney movie, then we know in the end the Patriots will turn things around, become the underdogs, go up against the Seattle Seahawks (or Russia if we want to go with the Mighty Ducks reference) and win the Super Bowl. Quick Disney — buy the script to this season.
Sadly for the Patriots, the NFL doesn’t work like that; so the team will have to do the work to get better. It can’t just be some awesome montage set to “Eye of the Tiger” or “Let’s Get Physical” — what a bummer.
We all know the Patriots were massacred at the hands of the Kansas City Chiefs last Monday and their job won’t get easier going up against the best team in the AFC Cincinnati Bengals. The offensive woes of the Patriots have been well-documented and if I try to write about them, it will just end up in a hate note to Josh McDaniels, and I’ve done that enough.
The Patriots’ defense will be the key to winning this game tomorrow night. They need to force Andy Dalton and the Bengals’ offense into mistakes and get them off the field on third down. This is easier said than done since Dalton has one of the quickest releases in the NFL and has yet to be sacked this season because of it. How do you stop a quarterback with a quick release? Press the line of scrimmage — and the Patriots have two of the best to do it.
Through four weeks, Darrelle Revis has not been used how Patriots fans had hoped he would be. Instead of playing at the line and pressing opposing receivers, Revis has played 10 or so yards off, stopping the big play but giving up easy short routes. Revis is best when he can play press-man defense against a receiver, and doing so against the Bengals would throw off Dalton’s rhythm with A.J. Green and Mohammed Sanu.
This change in defensive strategy also makes sense because the Pats are getting back their secret (but not really secret) weapon, Brandon Browner. Now, while Revis can play zone and off-man coverage, Browner cannot. All Browner can do is play physical press coverage. But he’s really good at it. If the Patriots keep their defensive system the same and force Browner to play off and zone at times, this secondary will get torched by Dalton.
The Patriots’ defense needs to change after Alex Smith did his best Tom Brady impression and picked apart the Patriots’ secondary. Putting Revis and Browner up in press coverage and allowing them to do what they do best will not only help beat the Bengals, but will better this defense going forward.
Peter Rogers is a New England Patriots writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @petahrahgas, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google
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