Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports
By Brandon J. Koch
The Buffalo Bills take on the New England Patriots tomorrow at 1 from New Era Field.
One thing that everyone said has improved from week one is the Patriots defense. It has, the Patriots defense got off to a brutal start. Since then, the Patriots have made adjustments: better communication, realizing they are a execution, very detail oriented defense.
Of course the quarterbacks and offenses they have faced have help them improve, and you could argue it gets easier against a pretty predictable and bad Bills offense.
But there are weaknesses the Patriots defense has that Buffalo can take advantage of.
Patriots rushing defense gives up 4.9 yards per carry, ranked 32nd in the NFL. This has to be something the Bills offense can have success with if they want to win this game.
Running the ball will result in sustaining longer drives, make third down easier and maybe most importantly, keep Tom Brady off the field.
That ties into another weakness for this Patriots defense: Plays per drive and yards per drive. They’re 28th in plays per drive and 32nd in yards with over 36 yards giving up per drive.
A reason why they’re not bad in points is that they get better in the red zone and get turnovers.
Yes, the Bills offense needs to play a great game to beat the Patriots, but it can be done. Can Dennison call a good game? Can Taylor keep drives alive? Can the offense score touchdowns and not field goals? But most importantly can this offense not have any three and outs? That’s a killer.
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