Patriots vs. Jets: Brady Shined, but Defensive Line Deserves the Real Credit

Although Tom Brady produced a masterclass in wearing down the tough New York Jets defensive front, it is the Patriots defensive line that deserves the lion's share of the plaudits.

As impressive as Brady's lightning-quick no-huddle approach was, the Patriots' much maligned front four were every bit as dominant.

Spearheaded by a career night from the criminally underrated Andre Carter, the New England defensive line swarmed all over the Jets offense.

The group applied constant pressure on the pocket and routinely forced New York blockers backwards into the face of Mark Sanchez.

The Patriots used their personnel extremely well.  Vince Wilfork, Gerard Warren and Kyle Love were rotated in and out of the lineup all game long.

The various combinations and multiple alignments kept the linemen fresh and confused the Jets blocking schemes.

Carter and Mark Anderson were constant threats off the edge.  Anderson attacked from both a two and a three point stance, while Carter simply toyed with D'Brickashaw Ferguson.

New England's defensive front also led the charge against the Jets running game.  The group was particularly effective at disrupting running plays which targeted the perimeter of the defense.

The defensive ends regularly took pinch moves inside and forced ball carriers sideways and prevented them from turning upfield.

This simple tactic gave the linebackers clear lanes of pursuit and allowed them to seek out and destroy the Jets' ground attack.

Last night's performance should be a welcome boost for a defense that has struggled mightily with both injuries and the requirements of switching to a 4-3 front.

It is a testament to the work done by line coach Pepper Johnson, that the Patriots line was able to take over and dominate such a big game.

Johnson played as an inside linebacker for Belichick with both the New York Giants and the Cleveland Browns.

He was often used as defensive end in nickel packages and proved to be a very effective supplementary pass rusher.

Johnson is steadily crafting a very deep and effective line rotation that can still turn the Patriots' 4-3 into a success.

Although the Patriots probably still use too many hybrid schemes for a defense so short of experienced and elite personnel, their burgeoning defensive line is becoming a threat to any offense.