New England Patriots Week 9 Stock Report
The New England Patriots are once again a part of history.
According to ESPN's SportsCenter on Twitter, the Patriots are one of four teams to hit 7-0, the first time in NFL history there have been this many 7-0 teams.
For some reason, though, it feels like things are going so much better for the Patriots than they are for the other 7-0 teams. Their quarterback, Tom Brady, leads the league in passing touchdowns (20) and passer rating (115.3), their defense ranks in the top 10 in scoring and against the run and their remaining schedule is against teams that are a combined 24-34.
Do the Patriots have a chance at going undefeated? If so, they'll need some of their key players to continue making positive contributions to the team, and they'll need other players to step their game up a bit.
Stock Up: Dion Lewis
1 of 5
Week after week, running back Dion Lewis shows everyone what makes him so special: the quickness, the elusiveness, the hands, the balance, all of it.
Lewis may not be the "total package" at running back, but he's pretty close, and he's perfect for his role as a third-down option. Once again, Lewis had a solid game in Week 8 with five rushing attempts for 19 yards and six receptions for 93 yards and a touchdown.
The Patriots offense is so deadly because there are so many threats to worry about. Lewis is another of those players who might not single-handedly destroy a team, but he'll make the most of his 10 or so touches per game. This season, he is averaging 12.8 touches per game for 94.5 yards. He has also scored a touchdown in four of the six games he's played this year.
The Patriots found out just how much he means to their offense in their win over the New York Jets, where they sorely needed him for his matchup ability against the Jets linebackers. Tom Brady was all too ready to take advantage of those matchups on Thursday night against the Miami Dolphins.
Stock Down: Cameron Fleming
2 of 5
With Nate Solder out for the season, the Patriots have been put in a tough spot at offensive tackle. They must decide not only which players to line up, but where they should be lining up.
In Week 8 against the Dolphins, Cameron Fleming was given the tall order of blocking defensive end Cameron Wake for much of the game. He had some help from tight ends, but Pro Football Focus still "credited" Fleming with four hurries, one hit and one sack of quarterback Tom Brady.
The Patriots are already on Plan C at offensive tackle. Originally, Marcus Cannon slid in at left tackle to replace Solder, which allowed Sebastian Vollmer to stay on the right, but Cannon was also injured in Week 6 against the Indianapolis Colts, which forced Fleming into the lineup. Thus, Vollmer flipped to the left side and Fleming slid in at right tackle.
The lack of depth at offensive tackle has the potential to be one of the Achilles' heels for the Patriots this year. That being said, with Brady getting the ball out of his hands as quickly as he has been through the first seven games, the linemen haven't been asked to hold their own in pass protection for extended periods of time.
Stock Up: Chandler Jones
3 of 5
The Patriots defense lost a lot of talent in the secondary this offseason, so their front seven has had to step up. Thus far, that unit has been up to the challenge, and has been led by defensive end Chandler Jones.
Through Week 8, Jones is tied for the NFL lead in sacks with 8.5. Jones had another monster performance on Thursday night against the Dolphins; according to Pro Football Focus, Jones registered two hurries, a hit and two sacks of Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill. Jones has really come on strong over the past three weeks, with a combined 5.5 sacks in games against the Indianapolis Colts, New York Jets and the Dolphins on Thursday.
That being said, sacks are not the only measure of pass-rushing proficiency. Pro Football Focus also ranks him as the 10th-best pass-rushing 4-3 defensive end in football.
The Patriots haven't had a pass-rusher play this well in a long time, and if Jones keeps it up, he might be headed for his first career Pro Bowl.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Stock Down: Sebastian Vollmer
4 of 5
The Patriots gave Sebastian Vollmer a tall order on Thursday night. With Cameron Fleming getting help from tight ends and running backs in pass protection against defensive end Cameron Wake, and with the interior linemen mostly helping in double-teaming defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, that left Vollmer one-on-one with defensive end Olivier Vernon.
To add to Vollmer's troubles, the right tackle was asked to flip to the left side of the line in the wake of an injury that kept Marcus Cannon out of action.
Vollmer did get beat several times, allowing a total of four hurries, two hits and one sack on Thursday night, according to Pro Football Focus.
Maybe Vollmer's tough day had to do with the change in position, or maybe Vernon simply got the better of him; after all, the Dolphins defensive ends have classically given Vollmer a tough time in the past. That being said, as mentioned previously, the offensive tackles will have to step their game up to avoid letting pressure get to quarterback Tom Brady on a consistent basis.
Stock Up: Dont'a Hightower
5 of 5
The Patriots might have the two best linebackers in the NFL. Put theirs up against any pair in the league and they measure up.
Week after week, Dont'a Hightower has set himself apart among the NFL's best linebackers with his ability to both stuff the run and to create pressure on the quarterback. According to Pro Football Focus, Hightower registered three quarterback hurries, two hits and one sack on Thursday night against the Dolphins. He also had three tackles that registered as stuffed runs.
The Patriots run defense has turned around dramatically since Hightower returned from injury in Week 7. In the past two games, they have yielded just 104 rushing yards, compared to an average of 114.2 yards per game through their first five games of the season.
With Hightower's variety of skills at linebacker, the Patriots can count on steady production at the second level regardless of the situation.
Unless otherwise noted, all quotes obtained firsthand or via team news release. All advanced stats obtained via ProFootballFocus.com.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
.png?w=480)
