Patriots quarterback Drake Maye liked what he saw from the defense against the Giants in Monday Night Football, and the physicality they brought to the gridiron is the blueprint for New England as the calendar flips.
“I think it’s just kind of the mentality we want to bring,” Maye told ‘WEEI Afternoons’ during his weekly appearance on ‘Patriots Monday.’ “We’re trying to build an identity. I think we’re building it, and we’re on the way towards bringing it every week. The defense is a prime example of how we want to play and the physical football, the brand of football we want to play.”
The defense held the Giants to just 15 points and tallied seven quarterback hits and two sacks.
The most notable hit of the night came from Christian Elliss, who took New York quarterback Jaxson Dart off his feet while he remained a free runner inbounds. The play was ruled legal, but Dart’s teammates were up immediately up in arms in defense of their rookie QB.
“There's nothing illegal about anything that he did,” head coach Mike Vrabel said Monday afternoon. “There's nothing dirty. It's him playing football. Whether it's covering kicks, and he takes a lot of pride in that unit, and also on defense.”
The Patriots defense have a -0.05 EPA per play, tying them for the sixth-best team in that measurement, with the Eagles and Vikings. The Houston Texans currently reign supreme with a whopping -0.14 EPA per play.