The New England Patriots defense is on the hot seat Sunday night and there are three defensive players in particular who must step up to limit the Lions.
While the Detroit Lions aren’t exactly the Jacksonville Jaguars, they still have an explosive offense the New England Patriots must be ready to defend in order to avoid losing on back-to-back weeks through the first three weeks of the 2018 NFL season.
To start off, the Patriots secondary must be prepared to take on a quarterback in Matthew Stafford who has deep ball accuracy. The Lions also have receivers who can make some noise against a defense that make Blake Bortles look like the second coming of Brett Farve.
Speaking to the media on Wednesday, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick addressed the challenge Stafford presents.
"“As good as there is in football, he’s got great weapons. He does an excellent job of seeing down the field in all situations,” Belichick said. “No matter how much pressure he’s under he seems to find guys down there. Sometimes it seems they’re covered, but he can put the ball where (Marvin) Jones in particular but also (Kenny) Golladay can go up and make plays on the ball.”"
Belichick continued to described Stafford as a very “dangerous” quarterback, which puts all the pressure on his defense. This is a game where a player like Stephon Gilmore must step up as a No. 1 cornerback and take one side of the field away from the accuracy of the Lions quarterback.
In Week 2, we saw Jacksonville receivers go up and get the ball against both Gilmore and Eric Rowe. Detroit’s receivers, particularly Jones and Golden Tate have that ability.
This is where a player like Gilmore has to be smart with his head as well as physical with his body and positioning. Lock up their No. 1 option and make Matthew Stafford survey the field is a way the Patriots can make Stafford uneasy in the pocket.
Overall, expect the kind of game Stephon Gilmore played against DeAndre Hopkins in Week 1 when the New England Patriots defeated the Houston Texans. He needs to be at his best to limit the Detroit Lions from gaining offensive momentum to start the game.
Eric Rowe has something to prove
One of the scapegoats of the Week 2 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars was Eric Rowe.
After allowing big plays to Keenan Cole, Rowe was benched in favor of veteran cornerback Jason McCourty. In allowing three caches for 69 yards, the fourth-year defensive back knows he has to be better to retain his role on the team.
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"“I’m pretty critical of how I play,” Rowe said Wednesday following practice. “I know how I need to play, what my standards are and, obviously, last week, that’s just not the type of player I am. It just wasn’t me.”"
While he won’t allow or make any excuses for himself, one of the big plays he gave up was a one-handed catch that made Cole look like Odell Beckham Jr. Those types of plays happen, but the 24-yard touchdown reception he gave up was the greater concern.
If Stephon Gilmore does his part, whoever plays the No. 2 corner role for the New England Patriots will be targeted. That could very well be Rowe, despite uncertainly on whether he will even start the game. It is also possible he plays some safety in place of an injured Patrick Chung.
In that case, he will play a pivotal role in matching up against tight end Luke Wilson. To sum it all up, Eric Rowe must step up and make some plays in this game. If he allows more big plays, he can find himself deep in Bill Belichick’s doghouse.
Can the real Dont’a Hightower please show up
As good as the defense was in Week 1, it was just as bad in Week 2. One player who is standing out as someone who needs to step up is Dont’a Hightower.
Whether he is still trying to get back in football shape after missing most of the 2017 season or just trying to play a different role on the team, he looks slow. He doesn’t look like the beast New England Patriots fans are used to seeing on the field when he is healthy.
With Trey Flowers expected to lose this game, Hightower will be needed to generate some pass rush as well as limit the Detroit Lions on the ground. He must also help protect the middle of the field where opposing offenses love to target the New England Patriots linebackers.
Lions head coach Matt Patricia is going to know exactly how and where to attack his old team on a defense he coached a year ago. Hightower has the ability to be the X-factor in taking away some of those weaknesses in the defense.
Of course, that will all depend on whether he is physically able. Kyle Van Noy, Ja’Whaun Bentley and Elandon Roberts also need to step up on that New England Patriots linebackers unit to free Hightower up to do the things he is best at doing.