FOOTBALL OUTSIDERS: Patriots defense falls to 32nd in DVOA

There’s no way to sugar coat this one. Football Outsiders’ DVOA rankings (that basically measure efficiency) are ones that many NFL front offices do pay attention to and when they say your defense is bad it says something.

The Patriots have been 32nd or 31st the entire season vs. opposing #1 WRs. Against #2s and other wide receivers they’ve been hovering in the 20s. 

The only thing this Patriots defense has done efficiently this season is cover running backs, where they’re ranked 9th overall. Even against Tight Ends they are ranked 28th.

I will be the first to say that this defense has had it’s moments this year. Moments when they stepped up and made a big play with everything on the line. However they have been horribly inconsistent, and often times non-existant.

They have the fight, but they have yet to show they can play sixty minutes, consistently every week.  Can they put together three games against the iron of the AFC and NFC? At this moment it looks like a tall order.

But never say never when you have Tom Brady.