Biggest Takeaways from New England Patriots' Week 9 Win
How can a 27-10 win feel like a loss?
Simple: Add a few injuries to a list of some more injuries, sprinkle in a few missed opportunities and you have a concoction for a dream week for New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick and a nightmare week for the players.
The Patriots lost one of their best offensive linemen and one of their best, most surprising skill position players to injuries. This team has long subscribed to the mantra of "next man up" and has been successful at plugging new players into open positions, but this season, that mantra is being tested more than ever. The Patriots are running out of men to be up.
They had just five healthy offensive linemen after Sebastian Vollmer went down with an injury. They still have some healthy, talented running backs to replace the injured Dion Lewis, but there's no one like him on the roster.
The Patriots don't have much time to look back on this win before they start to get ready for the New York Giants, but let's take a glance over some of the key takeaways from the Patriots' Week 9 win over the Washington Redskins.
Dion Lewis' Injury Could Be Tough to Overcome
1 of 5
One way or another, the Patriots are going to have to find a way to overcome the loss of Dion Lewis. According to Jim McBride of the Boston Globe, the Patriots will be without their versatile running back for the remainder of the season.
Who would've thought back in August that a season-ending injury for Lewis would be seen as such a travesty? Lewis came from out of nowhere to compete for one of the roster spots at running back, and he beat everyone put in his way from veteran Travaris Cadet to young upstart James White.
LeGarrette Blount is the better pure runner, but Lewis accounted for 18 percent of the Patriots' offensive output before tearing his ACL. The Patriots will have to find someone else with his combination of quickness and hands that can help the offense stay on schedule as a pass-catcher out of the backfield.
Chandler Jones Leads the NFL in Sacks
2 of 5
Patriots defensive end Chandler Jones is the surprising NFL leader in sacks through Week 9. He notched a sack of Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins on Sunday, bringing his total to 9.5 on the season. Not only is he on pace to shatter his personal record of 11.5 sacks from 2013, but he's also picked up more sacks than the entire New York Giants defense.
Jones had six sacks through eight games as a rookie, 6.5 through eight games in 2013 and 4.5 through seven games in 2014 before a hip injury knocked him out of action for nearly two months. He is stepping up in the face of added pressure, though. With Vince Wilfork gone, Jones is one of the anchors of the defensive line.
Jones doesn't care much about whether he gets the recognition he deserves or not, as long as he gets recognition from at least one famous video game franchise.
"I leave all of that to the critics honestly," Jones said. "Whether people talk about me or not, at the end of the day I'm playing for my team. I'm playing for the Patriots logo on my chest, my teammates, the coaches, and I'm also trying to get my Madden rating up."
Drop Luck Tips the Patriots Way
3 of 5
In Week 7 against the New York Jets, the Patriots came away with a win no thanks to nine dropped passes by their receivers. In Week 9 against the Redskins, the Patriots came away with a win thanks in part to seven dropped passes by Washington's pass-catchers.
One of those dropped passes (shown above) went right into the waiting hands of cornerback Logan Ryan as the Patriots were able to get possession back just moments after turning it over themselves.
Live by the drop, die by the drop? Not quite, but close.
Who knows if the game would have been different with more sure-handed play from the Redskins pass-catchers, but it doesn't matter. The Patriots executed better and got the win.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Offensive Line Depth Running Dangerously Thin
4 of 5
The Patriots have already lost left tackle Nate Solder for the season; tackle Marcus Cannon has missed time dealing with a toe injury, as listed on the Patriots injury report; Ryan Wendell also landed on injured reserve this past week. Add a head injury for Sebastian Vollmer, and the Patriots are now dangerously thin on the offensive line.
How thin? Center Bryan Stork, who started the game at guard, was eventually playing right tackle on an every-snap basis. Right tackle Cameron Fleming flipped to the left side. One more injury, and tight end Michael Williams would have been playing tackle again.
The Patriots are being tested with all these injuries, especially with so many injuries at one spot on the roster. There are some practice squad names to watch—Chris Barker and Blaine Clausell—but if the Patriots are going to get continued protection for quarterback Tom Brady and continued push in the running game, it's going to come down to their patchwork offensive line to hold it together.
Patriots Front Seven Giving Defense Huge Lift
5 of 5
Defensive end Chandler Jones already got his due in these takeaways, but the front seven as a unit has been one of the best groups on the entire Patriots roster this season. From the defensive tackles to the defensive ends to the linebackers, the Patriots are getting great production from that group.
According to Pro Football Focus, the Patriots have created pressure on 133 of 354 opponent dropbacks (37.6 percent). On Sunday against the Redskins, the Patriots generated pressure on 22 of quarterback Kirk Cousins' 41 dropbacks. Defensive tackle Dominique Easley had seven hurries and a hit; defensive end Rob Ninkovich had three hurries and a hit; rookie defensive tackle Malcom Brown had two hurries; four more defenders each had one pressure.
The Patriots defense has never been known for its fierce pass rush, but that group is getting the job done this season, helping the secondary by forcing the issue and creating more errant passes and inaccurate throws.
Their dominance in the passing game has not been the only mark of excellence for this group. They have yielded just 418 rushing yards from Weeks 3 through 9, the fewest in the NFL. At 3.4 yards per carry in that same span, the Patriots defense is the third-best in the league on a per-carry basis.
The Patriots defense currently ranks fifth in scoring, eighth in yards, seventh in defensive passer rating and third against the run. This unit should be in the discussion among the best defenses in the NFL.
Unless otherwise noted, all quotes obtained firsthand. All advanced statistics obtained via ProFootballFocus.com.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
.png?w=480)
