New England Patriots: 5 observations from Week 16 win over Bills

Flowers Blossoming

Normally, we have to wait until the Spring to see Flowers bloom. When you’re a Patriots fan, you get to see Flowers all through the Winter. How wonderful!

The defense might as well have been all Flowers on Sunday, as Marquis Flowers and Trey Flowers accounted for almost one third of the team’s total tackles.

Marquis Flowers stole the show, recording 10 total tackles, 5 solo, 3 for loss, and 2.5 sacks. He was fantastic rushing the QB and his wrath was felt by Tyrod Taylor and Lesean McCoy.

The more exciting story, however, is Trey Flowers. Flowers had been out for two weeks with a rib injury, but returned to the Patriots front seven on Sunday.

In his return, he totaled 8 tackles, 7 of which he made on his own (2 TFL). The defense had been struggling lately, so the return of Flowers is huge. He’ll continue to be one of our top pass rushers and wreak havoc on opposing offensive linemen.

If the New England Patriots defensive line can generate an effective pass rush, we’ll be a very strong team down the stretch. Our defensive backs can’t get beat deep if the QB has to throw the ball quickly. Oldest trick in the book.