Matt Stone, Boston Herald
The Patriots’ Defense Is Scary Good
It sounds crazy when you consider all their success in the past two decades, but you’d probably be hard-pressed to remember a time when you were this confident in a Patriots team through the first two weeks of the season. To find anything close, you’d have to go back to 2007 when they won both of their first two games by a score of 38-14. Impressive, but they still allowed 28 points compared to just 3 so far this year.
The Pats have started 2019 on a mission, already out-scoring their opponents by a total of 73 points. That’s the largest point differential through two weeks since the 1975 Redskins and the fourth largest in NFL history. They haven’t allowed a touchdown since the second half of last year’s AFC Championship. On Sunday in Miami they pitched a shutout. In a time when Antonio Brown has dominated headlines, it’s been the guys on the other side of the ball who have proven to be the backbone of the defending champs/Super Bowl favorites.
Sure, it’s important to keep in mind how historically atrocious this current Dolphins team is. They’ve also been chasing some records, tying the 1973 Saints for the worst point differential through two games since the merger. But when you combine this potential all-time defense with three of the best receivers in football, a really good running back, and the greatest quarterback to walk the planet, it’s pretty hard not to get cocky. Barring any serious injuries, the rest of the NFL does not stand a chance this season.
Side note: How many more missed extra points until we start considering a new kicker? Talk about a glaring weakness in an otherwise flawless game. Gostkowski used to be solid but has been slowly unraveling in front of our eyes for about four years now. Anyway, great win.