Defense is deserving of 2d look

September 30, 2009|Christopher L. Gasper, Globe Staff

The focus so far has been on whom - defensive stalwarts Tedy Bruschi, Rodney Harrison, Mike Vrabel, and Richard Seymour - and what - an offense as explosive as the record-setting 2007 version - the Patriots don’t have.

That captious fixation on past players and the team’s inability to get past the goal line has obscured what the Patriots currently present opponents with: one of the best defenses in the NFL.

New England’s defense might not have the swagger, accolades, or big names of the New York Jets’ or this week’s foe, the Ray Lewis-led Baltimore Ravens’, but statistically speaking, the Patriots have had one of the most miserly defenses in the NFL this season.

The Patriots are one of only three teams that rank in the top 10 in scor ing defense (tied for seventh, 16.7 points per game), total defense (sixth, 262.3 yards per game), rush defense (10th, 88.3 yards per game), and pass defense (sixth, 174 yards per game). The other two teams are the Denver Broncos, who lead the league in both points allowed (5.3 points per game) and total defense (214.7 yards per game), and the Jets, who rank second in points per game (11) and third in total defense (256).

The Patriots defense was supposed to be the weak link this season, but their offensive teammates knew otherwise.

“I don’t think anyone outside of our locker room had faith in them. We believed in them because we’d go against them every day at practice, and we know what they can do,’’ said left guard Logan Mankins. “We believed in them, and they’ve done a good job so far.’’

Even more impressive is that New England has played this type of defense without its best defensive player, linebacker Jerod Mayo, who sprained the medial collateral ligament in his right knee in the first quarter of the first game of the season. He has been replaced at middle linebacker by Gary Guyton.

No Mayo, no Bruschi, no Harrison, no Vrabel, no Seymour, no dropoff.

No team has been able to top 300 yards of total offense against the Patriots and no offense has scored more than 17 points - the Buffalo Bills, who scored 24 points, benefited from a defensive score.

You could nitpick and say the Patriots don’t look dominating or they have to do a better job of rushing the passer or point out they have no interceptions, but if anybody knows about great Patriots defenses, it’s Bruschi and he offered his imprimatur.

“The bottom line is you can talk about all the stats you want, but the bottom line is how many points are they giving up and how many yards are they giving up, really,’’ said Bruschi, who retired in August and is now an analyst for ESPN. “They’ve held three teams under 300 yards of offense, and that’s really all you can ask of them for right now.’’