New England Patriots Prove They're Still Alive Among AFC's Elite

Breathe easy, Patriots fans. Your team isn't dead to rights in the AFC race just yet.

It was a long week in New England, with scrutiny raining down like hail as the team faced its first 0-1 start in a decade. The Patriots needed a bounce-back game, and with a 30-7 win over the Minnesota Vikings, that's exactly what they got.

It's a long season, and there are still 14 games to go, but New England showed us the blueprint for success.

Coming-Out Party for Defense

The first quarter started out a lot like the second half for the Patriots defense as the Vikings marched down the field at will, but New England quickly tightened things up and did not allow any points for the remainder of the game.

Across the board, it was a stark contrast to last week. 

The front seven created pressure, bringing down Minnesota quarterback Matt Cassel six times. The secondary created turnovers, hauling in four interceptions. It was a perfect example of what can happen when the defense is performing as its capable of.

After spending much of the game in zone coverage and playing off the line of scrimmage against Miami Dolphins wide receiver Mike Wallace, New England cornerback Darrelle Revis was lined up in man coverage on Vikings wide receiver Greg Jennings and followed him all over the field.

Revis logged his first interception of the season by trailing Jennings downfield on a post pattern (0:23 in the video above) and made a great play on the ball in the air.

The star corner said after the game, via Shalise Manza Young of The Boston Globe:

"

They had scripted plays, maybe the first couple of series, and showed some new things. And we had to adjust to it. Football, it’s a long game; we get four quarters, and things happen. We kind of just settled in, we adjusted to everything, and we were fine.

"

Jennings vanished on Revis Island, picking up just one catch for four yards on four targets. It was a performance as advertised from the high-priced free agent coming off a game where he was criticized for allowing Wallace to get past him in coverage on more than one occasion and for failing to finish the game due to cramps.

The secondary did its part, but the front seven was the group that had the best showing.

Patriots defenders repeatedly found their way into the backfield and created pressure on Cassel. At times, he was able to elude the rush. For the most part, he was not. 

Dont'a Hightower had two sacks, and it could have been three if he hadn't missed the former Patriots signal-caller in the backfield. His presence off the edge has been a revelation for the New England defense. 

Hightower was the subject of much scrutiny for his shortcomings in coverage last season, but the Patriots have not been putting him in space nearly as much this year. Instead, they've set him up on the end of the line, allowing him to get into the backfield. 

A week after his talents were misused as a 5-technique defensive end in a 3-4, Chandler Jones was instead moving all around the line as a defensive end in a 4-3 and in a 3-4, as well as an outside linebacker in a 3-4. Jones logged two sacks, both of which came from the outside linebacker spot. 

The entire front seven played markedly better in the running game, where it was exploited by the Dolphins last week. 

Opponent	Att	Yds	YPA	TD
Miami Dolphins	38	191	5.0	1
Minnesota Vikings	19	54	2.8	0
Total	57	245	4.3	1

As a whole, the defense did a better job of filling its gaps, attacking the line of scrimmage, tackling and getting off blocks. Those ingredients all add up to a much-improved defense.

Of course, the Patriots were dealing with Vikings running back Matt Asiata on Sunday and not Adrian Peterson—who was inactive—but New England was playing fundamentally sound against the run. If the team continues to play like that up front, it will force opponents to throw the ball at its talented secondary.

More Balance on Offense

The defense set up the Patriots in positive situations throughout, and the offense capitalized. New England scored points on five of its 11 total drives. 

One big reason: It was far more balanced on offense this week than in the game prior. The Patriots ran the ball 37 times, picking up 150 yards (4.1 YPA) and a touchdown. Running back Stevan Ridley ran hard and was able to bounce off would-be tacklers and create his own opportunities on more than one occasion when Vikings defenders would be in the backfield before he could hit a hole. 

Opponent	Rushing plays	Yards per rush	Passing plays	Yards per pass play
Miami Dolphins	20	4.5	60	3.8
Minnesota Vikings	37	4.1	23	6.2
Total	57	4.2	83	4.4

The passing game took a backseat as the Patriots controlled the clock, but a week after putting up the lowest completion percentage in the league, Tom Brady came out hotter than the sun. He hit 10 of his first 11 passes and finished the game 15-of-22 (68.2 percent) for 149 yards (6.8 YPA), a touchdown and a 102.3 passer rating.

One thing New England still needs to do is find a way to spread the ball around a little bit more. Julian Edelman finished with six receptions on seven targets for 81 yards and a touchdown—that accounts for 40 percent of the receptions, 31.8 percent of the targets, 54.4 percent of the yards and 100 percent of the touchdowns. 

The second-leading receiver, to no surprise, was Rob Gronkowski with four receptions on six targets and 32 receiving yards. Other than Edelman and Gronkowski, no receiver had more than two targets. 

Aaron Dobson had one catch on two targets in his first game back. Danny Amendola had one target and did not come down with a catch; his lone reception was wiped away by an offensive pass-interference penalty on Dobson.

If the Patriots can get their other weapons involved while maintaining balance in the running game, the offense will be tough to stop. 

Special Special Teams

New England got a huge play on special teams when Chandler Jones blocked a field goal and returned it for a touchdown before halftime.

This may revive the narrative of starting players participating on special teams, but the tone will change. 

Aside from Jones' play, the Patriots got a lot of "hidden" yards with Stephen Gostkowski kicking four touchbacks on kickoffs.

Vikings wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson is considered a huge threat on kickoff returns, but he only returned one kick for 23 yards. Gostkowski also hit all three of his field-goal tries on the day, including two from over 40 yards away. 

Patriots wide receiver Matthew Slater downed a punt at the 4-yard line in the third quarter. On Ryan Allen's five punts, the Vikings started on their own 12-, 18-, 4-, 9- and 33-yard line. 

The special teams group got off to a tough start last week with a blocked punt on the opening drive, but that unit as a whole took a huge step forward this game.

Adjustments

The Patriots struggled in several areas last week, but the coaching staff made necessary adjustments.

Their offensive line stumbled in pass protection. Thus, it's no coincidence that we saw a lot of draws by the New England running backs this week to bring the defense into the backfield before hitting it with the run while out of position. 

The Patriots defense struggled against the run in Week 1. As such, it came out with a mission to stop the run and held the Vikings to only 54 yards on 19 carries. Again, the difference between Peterson and Asiata is astronomical, but the New England defense played soundly in gap integrity and did a much better job of wrapping up on tackles.

The Patriots have a lot of weapons on offense, defense and special teams, but credit the coaching staff for turning things around this week. Bill Belichick and Co. will be the team's trump card as it continues to gear up for a playoff run.

Follow @ErikFrenz