Mike Vrabel didn’t lose his cool after watching the New England Patriots blow 21- and 17-point leads to lose 35-31 to AFC East rivals the Buffalo Bills in Week 15, but the head coach wasn’t lost for words when listing all the ways his defense failed with the division title on the line.
Vrabel focused on defensive vulnerabilities after the Bills amassed 168 yards on the ground at Gillette Stadium on Sunday, December 14. Speaking to reporters, including ESPN’s Mike Reiss, Vrabel put it bluntly when assigning blame for the defeat, “They were able to get the running game going. We missed tackles. Didn’t build a good enough wall. Didn’t get off on third down. Weren’t able to create any turnovers. Weren’t getting any stops in the red zone.”
“They were able to get the running game going. We missed tackles. Didn’t build a good enough wall. Didn’t get off on third down.
That’s a lengthy list of things New England’s defense got wrong in the most important game of the Pats’ season to date. Yet, it’s hard to argue with Vrabel’s tough assessment, even if the D’ was hardly helped by a calamitous special teams and an offense that largely folded in on itself after an explosive showing during the first half.
Patriots’ Defense Got Bullied on the Ground
Vrabel was in no doubt the defense called by interim coordinator Zak Kuhr lost the physical battle along the line of scrimmage. Particularly in the second half.
He explained “This is a big, physical offensive line. You have to not give them any cracks or any holes in the wall. If you have any, [James] Cook finds them,” per 98.5 The Sports Hub’s Alex Barth.
Vrabel name-checking James Cook was no accident. Not after the Bills running back ran for 107 yards and two touchdowns on 22 carries.
Frustration is compounded by Vrabel not always having a good answer for how to prepare for Cook. He was asked about the problem before Week 5’s game in Buffalo, and Vrabel rather flippantly replied, “If we had somebody that could show us a look for James Cook, we’d be using him a lot…,” per WWEI’s Tom Carroll.
Those words ring hollow after Patriots running back TreVeyon Henderson averaged a whopping 10.6 yards per carry and ran for touchdowns covering 52 and 65 yards this week. The Patriots’ defense surely could have been prepared for Cook by Henderson simulating the two-time Pro Bowler some at practice.
Instead, the Pats looked wholly unprepared for the Bills leaning on Cook in clutch moments. It hurt the defense, but so did reigning NFL MVP Josh Allen throwing for three touchdowns without an interception.
The defense wilted in front of Allen and Cook, but the Patriots were also guilty of failing to play complementary football when it mattered.
Patriots Faltered in All Three Phases
Take away Henderson’s 60-plus yarder in the fourth quarter, and New England’s offense barely sounded a murmur after halftime. Second-year QB Drake Maye is content to take the blame, but coordinator Josh McDaniels and his staff appeared to be out-coached by adjustments the Bills made up front and on the back end.
No such changes helped Kuhr’s unit, weakening his case to keep the job on a full-time basis, if needed. Especially with a popular Vrabel assistant available.
One other Patriots coach likely feeling the pressure is special teams coordinator Jeremy Springer. His coverage units allowed the Bills to seize on momentum in key moments, like when Ray Davis returned a kickoff 38 yards and All-Pro special-teamer Brenden Schooler was flagged 15 yards for a face-mask foul late in the second quarter.
Those cheap yards positioned the Bills to score their first touchdown, but this wasn’t the last time the Patriots were losers in the return game. Davis went 58 yards with the opening kick of the third quarter, and Allen threw a touchdown soon after.
A sputtering offense and overly generous special teams gave the Bills initiative late in the game, but the Patriots had enough of a lead to expect a defense constructed with a ton of free agency dollars to make a few more stops.
Mike Vrabel Called Out Patriots Defense After Bills Loss