Getty Dont'a Hightower and Kyle Van Noy headline a strong group of linebackers in New England.
The New England Patriots defense is the best in the NFL this season and is making a strong case for the best one ever.
Affectionately dubbed ‘The Boogeymen’ by linebacker Dont’a Hightower, the Patriots defense has terrorized all of its opponents this year, even making New York Jets quarterback Sam Darnold think he was seeing ghosts. What started as an inside joke has taken on a life of its own, with Boogeymen merchandise and references by teammates on the offensive side of the ball.
One of those is wide receiver Julian Edelman, who has taken up a second job outside of football as a YouTube personality. His latest weekly video, just in time for Halloween, is a trailer for the fake movie ‘The Boogeymen’ and it is must-see TV.
Take a gander.
I know, you can’t wait to see this movie. Well, fortunately for Patriots’ fans it has been showing weekly this year given how well the defense as a whole has played all year.
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Latest W
Even Tom Brady respects the contribution from the Patriots defense this season. As he’s done traditionally over the past few years, the day after a victory he has made aa special post on Instagram.
This year, those ‘W’ videos have included cameos from his young son, Ben. And for this particular week, he even got into the ‘Boogeymen’ fever holding up his very own shirt. In addition, Brady chose some very appropriate music to go along with highlights of the game.
Happy Halloween indeed. The Patriots defense has accounted for four touchdowns while only allowing a total of four touchdowns this season as well, which has made coach Bill Belichick happy. Since training camp, the Patriots’ defense has been turning heads with its superior ability and is right in the conversation with the 2004 championship team as one of the best of all time.
The Players Have Acknowledged This Craze
The man who came up with ‘The Boogeymen’ moniker, linebacker Dont’a Hightower, has openly acknowledged how much the new craze has blown out of proportion. When Hightower scooped up a Nick Chubb fumble and returned it for a touchdown on Sunday, his celebration, along with his teammates, embraced the nickname.
When asked about it after the game, Hightower had a simple explanation:
“The whole boogeymen ordeal thing, that was like a little fun thing for us and it kind of got blown out of proportion, but I mean it’s something that we do in practice. We have fun, we continue to work and we’re successful while we’re doing it so I hope we keep our foot on the pedal on that.”
The Patriots have certainly been grinding defensively this season. And as a reward, New England has a plus-17 turnover differential through eight games. With 25 takeaways already, the Patriots are on track to edge their previous franchise record of 41 set in 2003 and their margin of plus-28 set in 2010.
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