It's been three-straight wins for the New England Patriots, and they are getting production up and down the roster. From the top — Drake Maye and Christian Gonzalez continue to play lights out football — to the bottom, where young special teams players are earning more reps, the Patriots have carved out a really good football team six weeks in. Their last showing, a 26-19 victory over the New York Jets, wasn't the prettiest, but they got a lot of good snaps from a lot of players.
"Won't know until we move forward, but I just know that you have to be able to continue to improve, and I don't feel like we did," Mike Vrabel said. "We won, which is the most important thing. We just, I don't think we improved from what we had shown the previous two weeks, and I have to figure out why. That's my job. My job's also to get us to win and also to get us to improve."
Here's a look at all the snaps the Patriots took in all three phases, and what stood out about how much some certain players got onto the field against the Jets.
Offensive Snaps:
C Jared Wilson (68, 100%), OT Will Campbell (68, 100%), QB Drake Maye (68, 100%), OT Caleb Lomu (60, 88%), OG Ben Brown (54, 79%), WR A.J. Brown (52, 76%), TE Hunter Henry (52, 76%), OG Matt Pryor (46, 68%), WR Efton Chism III (42, 62%), RB Rhamondre Stevenson (41, 60%), WR DeMario Douglas (40, 59%), TE Eli Raridon (39, 57%), WR Kyle Williams (25, 37%), OG Alijah Vera-Tucker (22, 32%), TE Cameron Latu (18, 26%), RB TreVeyon Henderson (16, 24%), OG Walter Rouse (14, 21%), RB Corey Kiner (12, 18%), OT Morgan Moses (9, 13%), WR Romeo Doubs (2, 3%)
Two drastically different workloads for the Patriots' big offseason gets at receiver. A.J. Brown, in his first game back since a high-ankle sprain, played 52 of a possible 68 snaps — struggling to truly make his mark on the field. On the other hand, Romeo Doubs played just two before a shoulder injury forced him out of the game. The Patriots also ran plenty of three tight end sets, with Cameron Latu playing a season-high 18 snaps.
"We were down to four guys, so I mean, somebody's got to play in there," Vrabel said Monday on Brown's snap count. "We like to have our best players available as much as they can be."
The Patriots also had three backup linemen come into the game due to injury, and it was a much larger workload for the likes of Caleb Lomu (right tackle), Matt Pryor (right guard and Walter Rouse (left guard).
Defensive Snaps:
LB Christian Elliss (62, 100%), S Kevin Byard (62, 100%), LB Robert Spillane (62, 100%), CB Christian Gonzalez (62, 100%), S Craig Woodson (62, 100%), CB Marcus Jones (60, 97%), EDGE Elijah Ponder (48, 77%), DT Milton Williams (46, 74%), EDGE Dre'Mont Jones (45, 73%), CB Charles Woods (40, 65%), EDGE Gabe Jacas (31, 50%), DT Cory Durden (29, 47%), DT Christian Barmore (25, 40%), DT Joshua Farmer (14, 23%), DT DaQuan Jones (13, 21%), S Jaylen Reed (9, 15%), DT Leonard Taylor III (8, 13%), LB Darius Muasau (3, 5%), CB Kindle Vildor (1, 2%)
The Patriots defensive line hasn't gotten a lot of statistical production this year, but that changed last week. Both Milton Williams and Christian Barmore got sacks (on back-to-back plays, no less), and Williams played a season-high 46 snaps in the middle.
At the third level, the Patriots went heavy with cornerbacks, utilizing a lot of three cornerback sets. One of those players was Charles Woods, who played 40 snaps and earned his first interception of his career. Kindle Vildor, who played a large role in Week 6, was limited to just one snap.
Special Teams Snaps:
S Brenden Schooler (21, 81%), TE Cameron Latu (21, 81%), S Mike Brown (20, 77%), LB Namdi Obiazor (20, 77%), S Elliott Davison (18, 69%), S Jaylen Reed (18, 69%), LB Darius Muasau (15, 58%), LB Erick Hunter (15, 58%), EDGE Elijah Ponder (12, 46%), K Andy Borregales (11, 42%), RB Corey Kiner (11, 42%), DT Cory Durden (10, 38%), CB Kindle Vildor (8, 31%), EDGE Gabe Jacas (7, 27%), DT Leonard Taylor III (7, 27%), P Mitch Wishnowsky (7, 27%), LS Julian Ashby (7, 27%), DT Milton Williams (5, 19%), DT Christian Barmore (5, 19%), DT DaQuan Jones (5, 19%), OT Caleb Lomu (5, 19%), OG Matt Pryor (5, 19%), OG Walter Rouse (5, 19%), WR Kyle Williams (5, 19%), OG Ben Brown (4, 15%), C Jared Wilson (4, 15%), LB Christian Elliss (3, 12%), CB Marcus Jones (3, 12%), S Kevin Byard (1, 4%), CB Christian Gonzalez (1, 4%), OT Will Campbell (1, 4%), WR A.J. Brown (1, 4%), TE Hunter Henry (1, 4%), RB Rhamondre Stevenson (1, 4%), WR DeMario Douglas (1, 4%), TE Eli Raridon (1, 4%), OG Alijah Vera-Tucker (1, 4%)
Through six games, it's clear which Patriots are carving out roles as core special teamers. It's been good to get Brenden Schooler back on the field these last two games, and he's been returning to his usual self all over the field. The Patriots have also gotten great snaps out of Mike Brown, Namdi Obiazor and Jaylen Reed.
Two of the biggest plays in the game came on special teams. Punter Mitch Wishnowsky had his best punt of the year, booting it deep and having it pinned at the Jets' three-yard line. Later in the game, Latu would make a massive hit on the kickoff unit — the group that Vrabel said was the best overall unit in the game. One disappointing play was Andy Borregales' missed extra point in the third quarter, keeping the Patriots' lead at just 10.
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