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Foxborough, Massachusetts — Quick thoughts and notes on the New England Patriots and the NFL:
Judong’s Jump: Patriots outside linebacker Matthew Judon leads the NFL with 11.5 sacks and is one of the leading contenders for NFL Defensive Player of the Year entering Week 10.
Judong knows it doesn’t make much sense. He’s motivated not to let it happen again, and those close to him have even seen behind the scenes. We are confident that he will continue to be a game-changing force this season.
“His approach every day is different than last year,” said linebackers coach Jerrod Mayo.
“I wouldn’t say last year was bad. The only difference is his approach, which has had a huge impact on him and the team.”
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Joo Dong’s workload is also different. He was good every game, and in his 5-4 starts for the team he played 429 defensive snaps (74%). In nine games last season, he played 512 defensive snaps (85.4%).
This could be a key factor in a stronger performance than in 2021, when they were tied up without a sack in all of their last five games (and the Patriots went 1-4).
Judong spent time in the offseason asking older veterans for tips on how to stay fresh at the end of the season. And recently, when asked by WBZ-TV’s Steve Burton what he learned from last year, Judon replied:
This was a reference to his being placed on the COVID-19 list the week preceding the team’s Week 17 game.
Judong said he was unaware of the reduced playing time compared to last season. Mayo added that managing Judon’s workload this year “wasn’t much of a conversation between coaches.”
Instead, as Bill Belichick pointed out last week, it’s largely tied to a team-wide philosophy of “probably play as much as possible.” [defenders] Like anyone in the league’ and ‘rotation keeps everyone involved [and] Fresh. “
The difference this season related to Judon is that the appearance of Anfanie Jennings (32.9% of the snaps) seems to have given the coaching staff the confidence to give Judon some rest from time to time.
The less is more approach has worked so far for Judon in his second season with the team after signing a four-year, $56 million deal as an unrestricted free agent.
Linebacker coach Steve Belichick said, “He’s probably used to schemes and calls and the dialect and terminology and language we speak here.” It looks like we’re taking the next step.”
2. Unique Schedule: When the Patriots return from their goodbye weekend, they’re gearing up to play three games in 12 days. bills). He will then take an 11-day break before his next game in Arizona on December 12th. It’s one of their scheduling quirks, and how they handle it could ultimately define their season. Captain Matthew Slater said: “We need to have a high degree of urgency when returning home.
3. Off track: One of the biggest problems with the Patriots’ offense over the past two weeks has been the high number of plays that resulted in negative yardage (24 yards total), even when they were winning. The Patriots assistant coach believes the Jets and Colts defenses created some of them, but also admits others are the result of self-harm. If you can get it on track, you can move the ball well,” quarterback coach Joe Judge said.”We need to make sure we don’t go back to driving.”
4. Pace for 60 sacks: Led by Judon (11.5) and Dietrich Wise Jr. (5.5), the Patriots totaled 32 sacks this season. This is his second number in the NFL behind his 33 sacks for the Cowboys. It surpasses Belichick’s tenure-high total (49, 2015). Belichick’s take on Sack: Any time the coverage is good, the pass his rush. A good team. His defense is just that. ”
5. Uche sets up a rush plan. One of the highlights of the Patriots’ Week 9 victory over the Colts was that third-year defender Josh Uche was given the responsibility of calling the team’s rushing schemes (twists, standard rushes, etc.). That’s it. It’s part of his niche role of entering the game in more obvious pass-rushing situations.
Linebackers coach Mayo said: It’s all about communicating with the rest of the rushers after seeing the formation and hearing what the lines say. ”
6. End of punt: The Patriots rank lowest in the NFL in gross (42.1) and net (35.3) punts. His 7-yard punt for Bayley against the Colts on Sunday highlights some of the struggle. When asked about Bailey last week, special teams coordinator Cameron Accord noted his exemplary work at kick-offs and said the improvement in punts was “manipulative consistency from hand to drop point to contact point. Is it all working together? Smooth operation allows for good punts. ”
7. Two Iron Men: Left tackle Trent Brown and right guard Mike Onwenu are the only players on the roster to play every snap this season. Brown has missed 24 games in the past three seasons, and has focused on weightlifting and dieting in the offseason to ensure he’s available for more games. “I hate missing time because I know what impact I can make,” he said.
8. Equip for attrition: One of the best things the Patriots have for themselves is quality depth. Football He’s The Outsiders’ Aaron Schatz ranks New England his fourth deepest roster in the NFL, and he’s one of the best teams in Belichick to manage injuries. I have confirmed that there is. Schatz has a strong veteran with recent starting lineup experience (e.g. safety Jabril Peppers) and high draft picks with many future promises (e.g. cornerback Jack Jones, quarterback him). Bailey Zappe) was the focus of the picks.
9. Another Bledsoe-Brady link: Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady threw the second-most 398 passes in the team’s first nine games in NFL history. The only quarterback to pitch more in nine games? Drew Bledsoe, 401 RBI in 1994. One big difference is that Bledsoe was 22 at the time in his second season as a Patriots quarterback, while Brady was 45.
10. Did you know? All four teams in the AFC East — Bills (6-2), Jets (6-3), Dolphins (6-3) and Patriots (5-4) — have won championship records in 2002. It is the fifth record since then. All four of his teams in one division have winning records in his first nine weeks of the season. The others were 2021 AFC North, 2021 AFC West, 2014 AFC North and 2008 NFC East.
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