FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- New England Patriots defenders never lacked for confidence after losing two straight games in which they didn’t play up to their standard.
They knew they had the talent. It was a matter of that talent rising to the forefront on game day, and playing with more energy and urgency.
That’s what happened in Sunday’s 38-7 victory over the Miami Dolphins, and it provides a springboard for the unit as it makes the quick turn to preparations for Thursday night’s home game against the Indianapolis Colts.
What looked like a grim picture to some last week now has the chance to be dramatically altered in a span of five days if the Patriots can improve to 3-2, and then take advantage of a long week before a Week 6 prime-time home game against the red-hot Kansas City Chiefs.
If there was one play that best reflected the turnaround for the Patriots’ defense on Sunday, it was probably linebacker Kyle Van Noy’s fumble recovery in the second quarter. Quarterback Ryan Tannehill appeared to fall on the errant shotgun snap, but Van Noy never relented and just took it away from him.
“I guess I wanted it more than he did,” Van Noy said.
It was Van Noy who had made the analogy to a baseball game last week, saying the Patriots’ defense was getting too far behind in the count. In other words, the unit needed to hit the strike zone earlier and take better control of games.
They did that, which was reflected in how many long-yardage situations they put the Dolphins on Sunday. Of Miami’s initial seven third-down plays, it needed 8 yards or more on all of them.
That was a result of better run defense from the Patriots, and tighter coverage in the secondary as well. Second-year defensive lineman Deatrich Wise Jr. said the unit fed off the crowd, which Tom Brady was already imploring to be at its best Thursday night against the Colts.
The defense was obviously sparked by the return of end Trey Flowers and safety Patrick Chung -- who both missed a Week 3 loss in Detroit -- with safety Duron Harmon saying every player took more ownership of a situation that didn’t sit well with them.
“It definitely feels better than the last two weeks,” Harmon said. “We know what type of team we have, what type of defense we have, and not only what we’re coached to do but able to do. We needed to go out and do it.”
Harmon used the word “reassured” to describe parts of what unfolded. The defense might have looked a step behind in losses to Jacksonville and Detroit, but against a fast Dolphins team, they set the pace.
Now they set their sights on the Colts, who might be without receiver T.Y. Hilton, one of the fastest receivers in the NFL.
“No panic,” safety Devin McCourty said. “Tom [Brady] said it [after the game], ‘It’s a great feeling to be 2-2.’ You don’t come in expecting or wanting to be 2-2 to start the season, but I thought the way we just battled the whole week. Bill [Belichick] talked about practicing harder, flying around, guys not feeling sorry for themselves.
“I think the more we play together, the more comfortable we get -- flying around, making plays. Short week, we’ve got to turn it around and get that done again Thursday night.”
Another positive development for the Patriots’ defense is that it played just 49 snaps on Sunday, a light workload on a week with a quick turnaround. The Colts’ defense, for example, played 86 snaps in an overtime loss to the Houston Texans.