6 rings: Mike Kadlick sits down with Tom E. Curran to discuss Bill Belichick’s future
The Patriots come into Week 15 riding high off of their first win since late October, and will look to make it two in a row this Sunday in Foxborough.
In their way? None other than the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs.
As we do every week, both here at WEEI.com and on the 6 Rings and Football Things podcast feed, here a look three crucial clashes to keep an eye on in this weekend’s Pats vs. Chiefs game from Gillette Stadium:
- Patriots O-line vs. Chiefs’ pass rush
We’re starting in the trenches this week as the Chiefs’ defense, thanks to a dominant pass rush, has become one of the best units in all of football.
“They have a good scheme,” Patriots head coach Bill Belichick said on Wednesday when discussing the task at hand in Kansas City’s defense. “They put a lot of pressure on you with different looks, different blitzes.”
The Chiefs are top-five in the NFL this season with 42 sacks, with their 2022 first round pick George Karlaftis tallying 9 of them and arguably the league’s best defensive tackle in Chris Jones adding 7.5.
“Jones is a major problem,” Belichick said Wednesday. “Like he always has been.”
Tasked with stopping them will be the Patriots’ offensive line who, after a rough go of it against the Chargers in Week 13, went on to have one of their better games of the season last Thursday. Quarterback Bailey Zappe completed 19 of his 28 pass attempts and was sacked just twice on the night.
“I just felt myself playing out of character,” right tackle Mike Onwenu said of his performance against Los Angeles two weeks ago. “Not really trusting my blocks. Most of my bad plays were me not trusting my technique.”
Onwenu bounced back mightily against Pittsburgh, specifically against their all-league player in T.J. Watt. Something Zappe took note of.
He actually had the hardest job out of everybody on the field,” the signal caller said this week. “Taking care of T.J. Watt. He did a phenomenal job of that.”
After the mini-bye week, it’s time to do it again against an even better front in Kansas City.
- Bailey Zappe vs. Steve Spagnuolo
Speaking of getting better against better competition, Patriots quarterback Bailey Zappe, as briefly mentioned above, had himself a bit of a re-coming out party last Thursday against the Steelers, throwing for 240 yards and three first-half touchdowns in a 21-18 win.
Now, however, it’s time for him to do it again— against Steve Spagnuolo, one of the better defensive coordinator’s the league has seen this century.
Spagnuolo’s aggressive, blitz heavy philosophy has led him to three Super Bowl titles (one with the Giants and two with the Chiefs) and is what both Bill Belichick and offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien have stressed is what makes playing against him so difficult.
While this could be looped in with the first clash, what I’m really keeping my eye on here is how Zappe handles this from a mental standpoint, both pre and post-snap, as opposed to the fronts themselves. Here’s how the quarterback said plans to handle Kansas City’s approach:
“Just watching a lot of film,” he explained. “Understanding what they like to do… I think a lot of it just comes down to the communication between me and DA [David Andrews] and the offensive line, trying to get all on the same page. As long as we're on the same page, everything will hopefully go well. You're just trying to believe in the offensive line that they're going to pick up the pressures, whatever they bring, and just being able to stand back there confidently and just take care of the football and throw the open guys and let them make plays.”
Sounds like a good plan. Now you just have to execute it.
- Patrick Mahomes vs. Jerod Mayo
We can’t write this column without mentioning not only the best player in the game, but the entire NFL in Patrick Mahomes.
“Offensively, of course, it all starts with the quarterback,” said Patriots head coach Bill Belichick as he continued his rundown of the Chiefs. “He’s a great player, does everything well. Can make all the throws, athletic, got a lot of poise, clutch player. Can’t say enough about what he does for their team.”
Mahomes has thrown for 3,398 yards and 23 touchdowns this season, but hasn’t looked like perennial league MVP he’s been in the past. Outside of his main man in Travis Kelce, Mahomes’ second leading receiver in 2023 is rookie Rashee Rice, and other guys like Kadarius Toney and Marques Valdez-Scantling have done much more to hurt his cause than help it.
As for Patriots linebackers coach Jerod Mayo, he’s been center-adjacent to the biggest story in the football world this week: Belichick’s job security.
“We're 100 percent focused on the Chiefs,” Mayo said this week when asked about being the apparent heir apparent in Foxborough. “And you know, I only try to control the controllables and that's out of my control. Hopefully as you guys all know, one day I want to be a head coach. Where that is, I don't know. But at the same time, I would say I have a lot of love for New England. I have a lot of love for the fans, the people around the building. And you know, my family, they love it here as well. So that would be great if I could stay here and continue to progress throughout my career, but we'll see."
If he truly does want to continue on in New England as their head coach in the near future, it would certainly help his resume if he can help in defeating Mahomes and the Chiefs. That opportunity is right in front of him on Sunday.
Make sure to follow Mike on Twitter @mikekadlick, and follow @WEEI for the latest up-to-date Patriots and Boston sports news!
Related
