Patriots vs. Cowboys: New England Grades, Notes and Quotes

Sunday's matchup was supposed to pit the New England Patriots against a star-studded Dallas Cowboys squad, but Dallas' injury woes created a big talent gap headed into the game. Despite a sputtering start, the Pats recovered to trounce the undermanned Cowboys 30-6 with a textbook complementary effort in all three phases of the game.

Pass protection was the overwhelming storyline early in the game, as the Patriots gave up five first-half sacks. Tackles Nate Solder, Sebastian Vollmer and Marcus Cannon were particularly ineffective, especially against former All-Pro Greg Hardy in his 2015 debut. The Pats did penetrate into Cowboys territory on their first two possessions but only mustered a single Stephen Gostkowski field goal as the teams came away tied 3-3 at the end of the first quarter.

Fortunately, the defense suffocated the toothless Brandon Weeden-led Cowboys offense, forcing Dallas to go three-and-out on five of their seven first-half possessions. The offense was able to establish a rhythm near the end of the first half, with Tom Brady capping off an efficient seven-play, 55-yard drive with a one-yard touchdown plunge, putting New England up 10-3. A 24-yard Julian Edelman catch set up a 57-yard Gostkowski field goal to give the Patriots a 10-point halftime lead.

Two long possessions from each offense ate up all but two minutes of the third quarter. New England extended its lead to 17 with a methodical 80-yard touchdown drive, which featured 51 receiving yards from Rob Gronkowski. Dallas responded with a drive that lasted 8:26 and gained more yards (75) than the Cowboys garnered in the entire first half (59), but ended in only a Dan Bailey field goal to trim the lead to 20-6.

The Pats subsequently put the game away on their first drive of the fourth quarter, with Edelman scurrying to the house on a 59-yard catch-and-run from a pick play. The defense held near the goal line at the end of the game to snap Dallas' 65-game streak of scoring at least one touchdown, putting the cherry on top of an excellent 60-minute effort.

Read on for full unit-by-unit grades and analysis of the top storylines from New England's dominating win to move the Patriots to 4-0.

Position Grades for Patriots

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Position	Grade
QB	A
RB	B+
WR	A-
TE	A
OL	C
DL	A
LB	A-
DB	A-
Special Teams	A
Coaching	A

New England's offensive skill positions held the talent edge over Dallas' defense, so it was hardly surprising to see the likes of Dion Lewis and Julian Edelman post big numbers. Tom Brady has broken down in the past when pressured as relentlessly as he was throughout the first half, but the 38-year-old remained steady in a 20-of-27, 275-yard, two-touchdown performance.  Among regular starters, Brady remains the only quarterback yet to have committed a turnover this season.

We'll discuss the offensive line's struggles shortly, but the defensive line had a strong afternoon. It wasn't hard to guess that the Cowboys would construct a run-heavy offensive game plan, and Dallas followed suit by running the ball on nearly every first down throughout the game. However, the Cowboys never developed a rhythm on the ground, and a one-dimensional second-half offense relying on Weeden's arm predictably turned out disastrous for Dallas.

Special teams also played an underrated factor in stymieing the Cowboys offense, as the Pats pinned them at or inside of their own 20 on each of Dallas' first nine possessions. Meanwhile, New England started seven possessions ahead of its own 30-yard line, rarely forcing the offense to play from deep in its own territory.

The big injuries from the game were Dont'a Hightower (ribs) and Nate Solder (elbow), neither of whom returned to the game during the second half after being removed early on. Duron Harmon also appeared shaken up in the third quarter, but returned and finished out the game with the rest of the starters.

Defense Grounds Cowboys' Running Backs

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Any shot Dallas had at pulling the upset would revolve around its ability to control the game with its rushing attack. Though the tandem of Joseph Randle and Darren McFadden represents a downgrade from DeMarco Murray, the Cowboys' estimable offensive line presented a real challenge for New England headed into the contest.

However, the Pats' front seven essentially held this matchup to a draw, limiting the Cowboys to 100 yards rushing on 4.2 yards per carry. Dallas never had a run longer than 14 yards, and when subtracting three Weeden scrambles from the equation, Dallas actually gained just 3.9 yards per attempt from its running backs.

Jabaal Sheard was the star of the defensive line Sunday, playing steady snaps on the edge while also compiling two sacks along the interior. Sheard now leads the team with four sacks through the first four games and is on his way to delivering a hefty return on New England's relatively modest free-agent investment. Big-bodied defensive tackles like Alan Branch, Sealver Siliga and Malcom Brown also received extended run on the afternoon, as the Pats often stacked the box with eight or nine men.

Given New England's run defense struggles through the first two games, it has been refreshing to see them turn both Dallas and the Jacksonville Jaguars into one-dimensional offenses in the past two contests. Playing behind a league-leading offense certainly helps, but the New England defense has proven capable of closing games thus far.

O-Line Flails in Pass Protection

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Headed into the afternoon, the Patriots had given up just six sacks through their first three games. New England nearly equaled that total in the first half alone, conceding five sacks over the first 30 minutes to the Cowboys before settling down to keep a clean sheet in the second half.

Nevertheless, it's concerning that the greatest struggles have come from the tackles, ostensibly the most stable part of the unit. Whereas the interior has survived despite having three new starters, the tackle rotation of Nate Solder, Sebastian Vollmer and Marcus Cannon was helpless at times against Greg Hardy and Tyrone Crawford.

Dallas employs an aggressive one-gapping 4-3 scheme, and the tackles seemed to particularly have issues against speed-rushes from the Cowboys' linemen. There were repeated instances where Brady was forced to climb the pocket almost immediately because the pocket's edges had been compromised off of the snap. Those sequences often led to jarring blindside hits on Brady, including one forced fumble during the second quarter that miraculously bounced into Julian Edelman's hands to avoid setting the Cowboys up in the red zone.

Solder didn't play in the second half due to an elbow injury so his status will bear watching next week against an Indianapolis Colts defense that will likely rotate veterans Trent Cole and Robert Mathis on the weak side.  The tackle rotation New England employs is a rather unusual practice, but this game certainly didn't reveal anyone as an every-down starter moving forward.

Rob Gronkowski, Dion Lewis Jumpstart Offense

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When the Patriots opened up the second half, they went to Rob Gronkowski and Dion Lewis four times on a 10-play drive. The duo would combine for 68 of the drive's 80 yards, culminating in an incredible 10-yard Lewis touchdown reception, during which the back dipped and dodged around four defenders to reach the end zone.

The scoring drive resulted in a 17-point lead, which essentially iced the game because of the anemic state of Dallas' offense. On the afternoon, Lewis and Gronkowski combined to receive 16 of Brady's 27 targets and accrued 126 yards through the air. The former received a career-high 11 targets, as the screen game became a focal point due to the line's protection issues.

According to snap counts compiled by ESPN Boston's Mike Reiss, Lewis also played 43 of the team's 62 offensive snaps, illustrating how he'll clearly remain the top back in a roughly 2-to-1 proportion to LeGarrette Blount. The power back Blount also failed in a 3rd-and-1 and 4th-and-1 situation, and given Lewis' short-space agility and constant ability to wriggle through tight spaces, it's at least worth considering if Lewis is a better short-yardage option.

Along with Brady and Julian Edelman, Gronkowski and Lewis are probably among the four most important offensive skill-position players on the roster. Lewis is the shocker in that group, and New England's unearthing of his talent could be the decisive factor that puts the offense over the top this season.

Devin McCourty: Collins All over the Place

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It has become routine for Jamie Collins to stuff the box score and make his presence felt against both the run and the pass. After the game, Devin McCourty praised the third-year linebacker's omnipresence on Sunday, per CSNNE's Michael Giardi:

"

McCourty on Collins "he was all over the field today. Made so many plays he didn't make on paper...just his presence, from being in gap."

— Michael Giardi (@MikeGiardi) October 12, 2015"

For the record, Collins actually had 10 tackles, which led all defenders in the game. He also forced a Jason Witten fumble in the fourth quarter. Tackles alone don't illustrate how much Collins' true impact is felt, though. For instance, on Jabaal Sheard's second sack, Collins lined up at the 3-technique spot and quickly drew a double team. Collins occupied both blockers to free Sheard to wrap around on a stunt, giving the defensive end a clear path to Weeden for an easy sack.

Hightower's potential loss would be a tough setback for the defense, but Collins' Swiss-army-knife skill set would soften the blow. Look for New England to send Collins on plenty of blitzes against Andrew Luck next week—the Colts quarterback has struggled against additional rushers the past two seasons.

Bill Belichick: Cowboys Threw Wrinkle on D

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Dallas is typically a straight 4-3 team that doesn't do much to disguise its vanilla rush concepts. However, that wasn't the case to open the game on Sunday, and according to CSNNE's Phil Perry, Belichick says the offense needed to adjust to an unexpected front from the Cowboys:

"

Belichick called it a 3-2 front w/six DBs. Dallas DC Rod Marinelli has a rep for doing what he does. Sounds like he broke out something new.

— Phil Perry (@PhilAPerry) October 12, 2015"

Cowboys defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli clearly pushed the right buttons to start the game, as his blitz schemes often went totally unblocked by the Patriots' offensive line. Though Dallas has rarely been deceptive with its rush schemes, having Hardy back on defense allowed the Cowboys to put out their most talented pass-rushing personnel of the season.

Ultimately, Marinelli's adjustments didn't affect the end result, and the Patriots were able to scheme around Dallas' pressure by running the ball well and relying on steady doses of Dion Lewis screens. Still, the Cowboys unexpected revelation illustrates how teams are willing to scheme out of their comfort zones in an effort to find an answer to New England's high-powered offense.

Solder: Too Hard to Tell About Elbow

Winslow Townson/Associated Press

We mentioned Nate Solder's elbow injury earlier in this article, and after the game, the Providence Journal's Mark Daniels reported Solder is unsure about his long-term prognosis:

"

Solder asked if there are any long term concerns with his elbow: Too hard to tell. We’re just going to go forward and see what happens.

— Mark Daniels (@MarkDanielsPJ) October 12, 2015"

It's unclear if the Pats have enough faith in Sebastian Vollmer and Marcus Cannon to allow both to play the entire game in the event that Solder misses time. The Pats do have 2014 fourth-rounder Cameron Fleming on the practice squad, so whether or not Fleming receives a promotion during the week could be indicative of Solder's health. Despite his preseason struggles, Fleming was solid in limited time last season, and represents New England's likeliest source of an adequate swing tackle if pressed into action.

Additionally, it's also easy to wonder if Solder's struggles on Sunday stemmed from elbow discomfort. Even against a Colts squad the Pats would surely love to beat next week, New England would be wise to rest its left tackle if it ensures his return to full health later in the season.