The New England Patriots‘ defense wreaked havoc against Justin Herbert and the Los Angeles Chargers, defeating them 16-3 and generating an impressive 30 pressures, according to PFF, on Sunday. New England also sacked Herbert six times, including some massive ones down the stretch.
Easily the most scrutinized unit on the Patriots team stepped up when it mattered most, particularly dominating in the fourth quarter. In a game that featured Herbert, Drake Maye, and a Jesse Minter-led Chargers defense, New England’s defense reigned supreme.
This was easily the Patriots’ best defensive game of the season, and it was a collective effort from just about everyone.
Defensive Coordinator Zak Kuhr deserves a ton of praise for how his defense played, mixing up coverages and throwing everything at Herbert and the Chargers. Coming into the game, we all knew how banged up Los Angeles’s offensive line was, and New England was able to exploit it in the fourth quarter. It was a bit worrisome earlier, as they weren’t really generating pressure, but they were locking up the passing game.
Kuhr threw blitzes, his usual zone coverage, and also played some man coverage, which got praise from even Chargers players, according to Patriots linebacker Robert Spillane.
This all began with a massive goal-line stand in the first quarter after a brutal interception by Maye, in which Daiyan Henley intercepted him after a screen pass to Rhamondre Stevenson. After that, Herbert took it upon himself to run three straight times for a combined seven yards and was buried with a massive tackle on third and goal by Marcus Jones. Right after that, Herbert airmailed a pass to Keenan Allen on fourth and goal. Jones had an underrated game overall, as he also broke up a pass to Ladd McConkey on third down.
The red zone defense, in particular, was massive as New England came into the game allowing the highest red zone touchdown percentage in the league. The Chargers went 0/3 in the red zone, as the most they got out of their trips was a 21-yard field goal by Cameron Dicker.
While the Patriots were also struggling on offense, the defense kept getting stops, so much so that the two teams combined for nine points at halftime. In the middle of the third quarter, Maye had another turnover, as he was strip-sacked and ultimately fumbled.
New England’s defense yet again got another stop and forced a punt, even after a defensive pass interference by Carlton Davis. It also helped that Herbert had an uncharacteristically bad deep ball going for himself, too, including a miss to both Quentin Johnston and Kimani Vidal.
New England’s offense finally got in the end zone, then K’Lavon Chaisson forced a fumble on Herbert that was recovered by Christian Elliss. Chaisson had a big-time game with two sacks on top of that. Elliss was one of New England’s unsung heroes, along with Anfernee Jennings, who had two sacks, including a massive third-down sack at the end of the fourth quarter. Cory Durden and Leonard Taylor also deserve a shoutout in the pass rush, and Craig Woodson showed out in the secondary as well.
Christian Gonzalez was phenomenal all game, not allowing a single reception all game on 5 targets and 26 coverage snaps according to Next Gen Stats. Gonzalez is currently in the concussion protocol, so hopefully he’s good to go on Sunday.
Another big-time player that showed up was Milton Williams, who was handsomely paid $104 million this offseason. Milton stepped up with two sacks on Sunday, including a sack to end the game on 4th and 9, to really put the exclamation mark on the game. It’s incredibly fun to watch the Patriots when Williams, Chaisson, and Christian Barmore are going at the quarterback relentlessly.
Maye definitely struggled with ball security on Sunday, as he threw an interception, lost a fumble, and then, luckily, guard Jared Wilson recovered a fumble late in the fourth quarter. Wilson struggled blocking-wise, so that was easily his best play of the game. Fellow rookie Will Campbell didn’t have his best game out there either. It was really surprising how early on it looked like the Patriots’ offensive line was the one that was beat up and putting Maye in harm’s way.
Stevenson was very stout in the running and pass game, especially in the first half of the game, as he brought a nice jolt of energy for the Patriots. Kayshon Boutte made some big-time plays, none bigger than his 42-yard play on a beautiful adjustment. This came right after a massive 18-yard catch by Hunter Henry on 3rd and 13, as the Patriots were still sleepwalking offensively.
Former Charger, Henry also had a massive 28-yard touchdown snag to make the game 16-3 in the fourth quarter on a beautiful ball by Maye over the outstretched Derwin James. Another cool wrinkle in that play was a beautiful block by rookie running back TreVeyon Henderson.
Overall, it was probably, at best, a C+ game from Maye, even in a game where he excelled on the ground and had a combined 334 yards in his playoff debut. He knows that he has to be better at limiting turnovers; 16 points isn’t going to cut it against most teams in the playoffs. It also didn’t help that New England had three drops on Sunday from DeMario Douglas, Henry, and Stefon Diggs.
Chargers Defensive Coordinator Jesse Minter is elite, their defense is great, and Odafe Oweh had the game of his life with three sacks and constant pressure on Maye.
If you thought that was bad, just envision if the Houston Texans win on Monday against the Pittsburgh Steelers, as they have arguably the best defense in the NFL. They have talent for days, headlined by Will Anderson Jr, Danielle Hunter, Derek Stingley Jr, Kamari Lassister, and Jalen Pitre. The last time Maye faced that defense was in his NFL debut last season, and he threw two interceptions against them in a welcome-to-the-league moment.
The left side of the offensive line has to be better as well, especially Wilson. Diggs needs to have a bigger impact, and they need to utilize Boutte even more.
The running game did just enough; it cannot be overstated how wild the turnaround of Stevenson has been. From being a fumble machine early on, to the blocking, to rushing and receiving, he’s been absolutely amazing.
At the end of the day, Maye won his first playoff game, the defense was phenomenal, and the Patriots have won their first playoff game without Tom Brady since 1997 (Drew Bledsoe was the QB then).
The offense definitely has to be better, especially through the air; there’s a ton to clean up, but thankfully for New England, it’s coming in a win and not a loss.
Maye showed his composure in the second half of the game; their big-time defenders stepped up, and Henry corralled the dagger touchdown on a tight window play. The pressure defensively in the fourth quarter felt like a fever dream, as they finally started teeing off on Herbert.
The Patriots are 1-0 in the playoffs in the Mike Vrabel era, funny enough, the same guy who beat them with the Tennessee Titans in the playoffs in 2019 to end the Brady era in New England.
You can just tell that this is a Vrabel team, especially with the defensive energy that they have; his imprint is all over this team. Going back to his playing days with the Patriots. So much so that Williams celebrated by headbutting Vrabel in the lip, and he even bled out at the end of the game.
Vrabel was also great with late-game substitutions when the Chargers went to their hurry-up offense. It also helped that Los Angeles was substituting players as well.
The Titans have to be kicking themselves for letting him go at this very moment, and New England is extremely glad to have him coaching their team.
The playoffs are where legends are made. Let’s see what’s in store for round two.
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