5 takeaways from the Patriots’ 35-17 win over the Bengals
COMMENTARY
Somewhat sneakily, Sunday’s visit from the Bengals could’ve been a trap game for the Patriots. Cincinnati arrived at Gillette Stadium with a disappointing, sub-.500 record. The tilt marked the Foxborough return for Tom Brady. And in the coming weeks New England goes to Pittsburgh to face the AFC’s other top contender, then to Buffalo to battle the team that beat them earlier this month, then comes out of a bye week by hosting the Seahawks for a Super Bowl XLIX rematch.
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Sparked by the defense and riding another brilliant performance from Brady — who went 29 of 35 for 376 yards and three touchdowns — the Patriots put things together after intermission and pulled away for a 35-17 win that moved them to 5-1. They head to Pittsburgh with a chance to effectively open a 2.5-game lead on the Steelers (who lost at Miami Sunday) in the tussle atop the conference.
Here are five takeaways from the Patriots’ win:
Yes, indeed, Gronk is Gronk again
Rob Gronkowski suggested Thursday that he was finally back at full strength. Then he spent Sunday proving as much.
The tight end set a career-high with 162 yards on seven receptions, one of which elicited the first Gronk Spike of the season while giving the Patriots the lead for good with five minutes to play in the third quarter. Almost as encouraging as the production was the way the Pats used him. After shying away from such routes early in the season, New England sent Gronkowski up the seams and over the middle, suggesting that the coaches agree with the player’s assessment that his hamstring (and legs on the whole) are no longer a concern.
Through four games, Gronkowski had one catch for 11 yards. Through six games he’s now got 13 grabs for 282 yards — giving him a remarkable average of 21.7 yards per catch. Even more incredible might be that he’s only been targeted with 19 passes to this point, meaning that Patriots’ quarterbacks are averaging 14.8 yards per attempt when throwing his way.
Hightower turned the game, then helped put it away
The final score wasn’t indicative of the way the game was played through the middle of the third quarter, at which point Bengals coach Marvin Lewis had to be thrilled with the way his team was controlling the contest. Cincinnati had marched to a score on the first drive of the second half, shut down the Patriots on their first possession post-intermission, and led 14-10.
Then Dont’a Hightower intervened.
Perfectly timing his delayed blitz with the Bengals backed up deep in their own territory, Hightower closed quickly on Andy Dalton and dropped him in the end zone before the quarterback could react. It was the second straight game a Hightower hit resulted in a safety; and this one appeared to tilt momentum permanently in the Pats’ direction. New England outscored Cincinnati 25-3 over the final 22 minutes. If the Bengals had any designs on a late comeback, Hightower squashed them, too, blowing up a run on first down and helping sack Dalton on third down on the series after the Patriots stretched their lead to two scores.
“High’s got a lot of skills,” coach Bill Belichick said. “A lot of things he can do. He can blitz, he can rush, he can cover, he can play the run. He can run and play in coverage. And he’s smart. He’s pretty versatile. He can handle a lot of different assignments. … He’s a good player. He had some big plays for us today, no question.”
Defensive adjustments were key
Dalton started hot, utilizing a variety of weapons and hitting on 13 of 16 throws in the first half. After the opening series of the third quarter, which he capped with a touchdown pass to Brandon LaFell, he was 17 of 21 for 201 yards.
The rest of the way, however, the Cincinnati quarterback hit on just four of 10 throws, and passed for just 53 yards. Belichick credited defensive coordinator Matt Patricia, cornerbacks coach Josh Boyer and even safety Devin McCourty for changing up the way the Patriots were covering the Bengals. Among the major changes was using Eric Rowe on star receiver A.J. Green, who made only one catch over Cincinnati’s final five offensive series. The Bengals went 68 yards for a field goal with one of those possessions, but otherwise generated -16, 0, 3 and 16 yards over the course of 12 plays.
Elandon Roberts appears to be a find
When the Patriots selected linebacker Elandon Roberts in the sixth round last spring, the expectation was that New England had drafted a player who was a leader on his college team and would make any of his contributions on special teams. But as injuries to others have afforded him opportunities at linebacker, Roberts has looked like someone capable of seizing a regular role in the middle of New England’s defense.
A week after making a team-high seven tackles, Roberts again made his presence felt on a number of occasions, particularly during one stretch during the first half. Though it was negated by a penalty elsewhere, he batted down an Andy Dalton pass on third down. He himself drew a holding penalty when he penetrated the Cincinnati backfield. And then he made a goal-line stuff in a sequence that eventually resulted in a goal-line stand for the Pats.
Jamie Collins was out Sunday with a hip injury. Hightower missed two games earlier with an ailing knee. The day is soon coming when the Patriots will need to decide whether to extend themselves financially for their star linebackers or let either of them walk. If Roberts’ emergence continues, it could be interesting to see how he factors into New England’s long-term plans.
The Bengals are still the Bengals
If the Bengals’ lack of discipline wasn’t evident enough when they committed three penalties that extended otherwise-dead Patriots possessions, they made sure to remind everyone of the sorts of issues that have long plagued them — and played a direct role in their exit from the playoffs last January.
With New England moving to try and put the game away in the middle of the fourth quarter, the Bengals’ unraveling seemed to begin with Vontaze Burfict taking a shot at Martellus Bennett’s knee completely away from the play. CBS analyst Dan Fouts suggested it was unintentional, that Burfict merely lost his balance, but a history that has seen him deliver a number of illegal hits, included a series for which he served a three-game suspension earlier this year, suggested otherwise.
Later in that same sequence, a couple of Bengals defensive backs went low at Gronkowski, who took exception twice, and was penalized for taunting the Cincinnati sideline as a scrum developed behind him. There were a couple other post-whistle incidents, too. In the end, the Patriots were the team to come away with all the extracurricular penalties. But don’t be fooled: That strategy still isn’t doing Cincinnati any favors.
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