Ravens-Patriots: Next-Gen New England Defense Looks to Past to Beat Baltimore

Of all the plays that have defined the New England Patriots in this decade, one, to me, stands out above all the rest.

It took place on November 30th, 2003 against the Colts at the old RCA Dome.

If you look at the box score from that game, especially Peyton Manning's stat line, you'd hardly think it was the shining moment of a defense that ultimately brought home three championships:

Manning, Peyton: 29-of-48, 278 yards, 4 TDs, 1 INT

Manning hit four different receivers for touchdowns and had Edgerrin James behind him, with James finishing with 88 yards on 25 carries for no scores.

The Patriots ended up winning 38-34 on three straight goal line stands by their defense. If Edgerrin James had finished with 90 yards, the Colts would've won.

But on fourth down, Willie McGinest blistered around the edge and made a perfect form tackle around James' legs to seal the win, taking off down the field in celebration. 

It was the kind of game that defined the Patriots in those days. Beat up, kicked around, and generally just run on all day, but they won because when it came down to needing a big play in a big situation, they got it.

Over the last few years, it's been the same song, but a different verse; in crucial situations the defense has bent, bent, and bent some more, before having their back broken by big offensive plays and drives.

Against the Colts in the 2007 playoffs, they suffered through the greatest comeback victory ever designed when Peyton Manning showed them what a halftime lead was worth.

In the Super Bowl the next year, they had the Giants down to 4th-and-1, with the lead, on what could've been the last meaningful play of the game.

Boom, Giants first down. Three plays later? Helmet catch.

What's also forgotten is that, almost immediately after David Tyree's phenomenal grab, the Patriots had the Giants again backed up facing a 3rd-and-11 on New England's 25-yard line, yet Manning found Steve Smith open for the first down before tossing a touchdown on the next play.

In 2008, the signs that the defense was too young in some spots and too old in others truly became apparent when, against the Jets in Week 11, needing a victory to keep their hopes of winning the division alive, the Patriots found themselves in overtime.

The defense looked great early, putting Favre into a tight spot: 3rd-and-15 on his own 15 in overtime. Favre found tight end Dustin Keller for 16 yards as Brandon Meriweather and Jerod Mayo were half a step too slow.

The Patriots have been known for their defense during their recent renaissance, but with the exception of the 2004 season, they've never really been a dominating presence in the way the Steelers, Ravens, and Bears have in recent times.

They won by limiting teams to field goals when they could've scored touchdowns, by making key interceptions and few mistakes, and coming up big on third down and in the red zone.

Against the Ravens, that's exactly what happened. The Patriots got two key stops on third and fourth down against a Ravens team that looks about as good as any other team in the AFC right now.

I'm not saying this defense will match the efforts and success of those previous Patriot teams; certainly the fact they could've still lost if not for a poorly-timed drop attests to that.

But watching them sprint down the field in celebration after another crucial stop, something sure did look familiar, didn't it?

This is a young defense with a bit of swagger to it.

It's not full of guys you would expect to find on a defense that stood up one of the better offenses in the league two weeks in a row, though.

Brandon Meriweather has always been destined for big things, and he's done more than just continue to try to hit the numbers off of everything holding a football in his vicinity. He's becoming a much smarter football player and he reads plays before they happen; it's a joy to see.

But across the defense, most of the names would hardly register to the casual fan. Even those you might recognize are people who were successful elsewhere before falling off.

Derrick Burgess earned two Pro Bowl roster spots, but hasn't been the pass-rushing force people thought he could be in the New England setup. Instead, Mike Wright and Tully Banta-Cain have been the ones creating much of the pressure up front.

Adalius Thomas is surely a name people should know, and he's performing well, but second-year man Gary Guyton deserves special praise for handling the middle linebacker duties well in Jerod Mayo's absence.

Vince Wilfork, again, is a name you should certainly know, but what of Ty Warren, Myron Pryor, and Jarvis Green? Not household names, though Warren and Green should be familiar to any Patriots fan.

They've been very stout against the run in Wilfork's absence, holding Michael Turner and then the vaunted Baltimore rushing attack to very limited yardage—with a 50-yard run by Ray Rice the lone blemish in their performance.

Certainly special praise should also be reserved for Brandon McGowan, who seems to have at least one big play every week and has played himself into a starting safety spot, from the look of things.

It's not the best defense in the league, it's not the biggest, or the meanest, or the most athletic. It's not going to show up in the box scores week after week, but it's a defense that, if nothing else, is fun to watch.

Given how the last few seasons have ended, I think any New England fan will take that and run with it.