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New England Patriots focusing on defeating man coverage

By Logan Jakubajtys

Jan 22, 2017; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots wide receiver Chris Hogan (15) tries to run past Pittsburgh Steelers defensive back Cortez Allen (28) during the 2017 AFC Championship Game at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 22, 2017; Foxborough, MA, USA; New England Patriots wide receiver Chris Hogan (15) tries to run past Pittsburgh Steelers defensive back Cortez Allen (28) during the 2017 AFC Championship Game at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports /
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In last season’s AFC Championship Game, Tom Brady torched the Steelers zone defense. While they’ve begun to focus on a man to man defense, so has the Patriots offense.

Tom Brady was lights out in the AFC Championship Game for the New England Patriots in January. TB12 was 32-42 for 384 yards and 3 touchdowns as New England won 36-17.

Newcomer Chris Hogan was able to break free of Pittsburgh’s coverage all night long, hauling in two Brady touchdowns.

Word came out this offseason that because of that game, the Pittsburgh Steelers are looking to play more man to man defense against the Patriots. The two teams will meet in the Steel City in the regular season, and there’s a good chance we see another AFC Championship Game between the two in Foxboro.

The Patriots struggled a bit against man to man defense last season when they faced the Texans in the divisional round and the Falcons in the Super Bowl. Now, New England has made it a focus of their own to improve their play against man coverage.

Of course, Rob Gronkowski will be back and no one in the NFL can cover him one on one. The Patriots want to look beyond Gronk though in terms of getting guys open.

Wide receiver Danny Amendola certainly believes the Patriots have the players needed to beat the coverage.

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The talent gap between New England and Pittsburgh increased even more this offseason as the Patriots added Brandin Cooks for Brady. They also added Stephon Gilmore on defense who can help shut down Steelers wideout Antonio Brown.

Next: Top 10 Patriots defenders of all-time

New England will head to Pittsburgh for a clash with the Steelers on December 17th. Tom Brady is 10-2 in the regular season against the Steelers, and he’s 3-0 against them in the playoffs. The Steelers will need a drastic improvement on defense to have a chance at taking down the defending Super Bowl champions.

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