Patriots defense near the bottom of the league in common lineups

Yes, we all know that the Patriots defense has struggled with injuries.

The thing we take away from that is very simply, good player goes down, worse player comes in. However, the repercussions of these major injuries are so much more complicated than that.

The Patriots have a whole lot of rookies and undrafted rookies playing significant roles on their defense. These guys weren't supposed to be playing, and that's just the thing.

The defense played very well in the beginning of the year because, for the most part, there were a lot of returning pieces. There was chemistry, communication, finally there was some consistency on defense.

That all went out the window when Vince Wilfork, Tommy Kelly and Jerod Mayo were all taken out of the picture.

The Patriots lack that consistency and they don't have the unit they expected to go into the year with. That's not uncommon in the NFL, but it's certainly inconvenient.

In past years, the Patriots have continuously started the year with defense units full of new pieces that hadn't played much together before, especially in the secondary. Due to all of the injuries in the beginning of the year, the Patriots find themselves in that same position at this point of the season.

Nick Underhill, MassLive.com:

Due to a rash of injuries, the New England Patriots have spent the season trying to find the right combination of players to form something resembling a stout defense.

To date, the team has used 210 different combinations, with the most common lineup taking the field together 3.87 percent of the time, the sixth lowest rate in the NFL.

While mix-matching personnel and formations to find something that works, the Patriots have been giving up quite a bit of yardage and points.

Since Jerod Mayo went down in Week 6, the Patriots defense has given up over 30 points in three of the seven games, and have allowed 24 or more in all but one.

Hopefully, the Patriots can find a combination that works and finally build some chemistry in time for the playoffs. Unfortunately, they don't have much time left with only three games remaining.

The Pats might not need an elite defense to make a run in the post-season (see the last two Super Bowl champions) but they will need to be more in sync. Thankfully, they'll get a chance to do just that Sunday against the Dolphins, the one team the Mayo, Kelly and Wilfork-less defense has held to under 20 points and under 20 first downs.