Defending the Vikings without Adrian Peterson
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| Cordarrelle Patterson runs past the St. Louis Rams in week 1 (Source Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images) |
What does that mean for the Patriots defensively, now that Peterson will not be playing?
It means that instead of focusing on stopping Peterson from running all over the Patriots defense, like Knowshon Moreno did last week in Miami, the Patriots can focus on stopping Cordarrelle Patterson from running all over them, like Knowshon Moreno did last week.
Last week the defensive linemen for the Patriots lacked the ability to engage with offensive lineman, hold the line of scrimmage, find the ball and make efficient tackles. They were poor fundamentally, getting pushed off the ball, and not wrapping effectively when they had chances at tackles. They needed to be 100% better against the Vikings to stop Peterson. They need to be 100% to better to be a true Super Bowl contender. They need to be 50% better to stop Matt Asiata and Jerick McKinnon and beat the Vikings this week, which would be a good start.
In Miami the linebackers were bad against the run, they were slow to fill gaps, and seemed to be trying to catch the Miami running backs when trying to tackle them, instead of attacking them at the point of impact, wrapping them up and bringing them down. Using the same tactic against Peterson would likely have resulted in a 200 yard rushing day for the Vikings. The linebackers need to read their keys better, react quicker and be one to initiate the tackle, regardless of who the running back is, but having it not be Peterson makes it easier.
The front seven, the defensive lineman and linebackers, need to work better together to stop the run as a whole unit. The two-gap style the Patriots employ requires the defensive lineman, to hold offensive lineman at the line of scrimmage allowing the linebackers to fill the gaps and tackle the running back at the line of scrimmage or for a short gain.
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| Kyle Rudolph scores a touchdown, (Photo by Brian C. Singer/Icon SMI) |
The defensive backs were decent against Miami, showing flashes of excellence, Alfonzo Dennard's interception, in particular, but they also showed flashes of awful. Darrelle Revis was completely burned by Mike Wallace on a double move, even if Wallace didn't get two feet in bounds and it was an incompletion, he was torched.
In Minnesota, Revis will likely be charged with defending Patterson exclusively, but with safety help over the top on each play. Meaning that a safety will not allow Patterson to get behind him, while Revis focuses on a more man to man coverage style. As Patriots fans we saw Randy Moss face this type of bracket coverage almost every game.
Using the safety to bracket Patterson is why the front seven will have to handle the run by themselves as the defensive backs will not be able to be spared for run support. I think Matt Cassell will rely heavily on tight end Kyle Rudolph in the middle of the field and veteran wide reciever Greg Jennings opposite Patterson who will both be in single coverage. Those will be the weak spots in the Patriots defense this week.
I would also expect Patterson to get multiple running attempts on reverses or even straight hand offs, but expect the Patriots to be well prepared for those. I also wouldn't rule out some Vikings trickery with the potential for a flea flicker or even half back pass.
We have seen the Patriots get beat because their defense played poorly. We all know Bill Belichick is excellent at making adjustments. We all think this defense has the talent to be excellent. We will see if they can turn their defensive fortunes around with a clear singular offensive threat to stop as they start what the fans in New England hope is a Super Bowl run.
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