The New England Patriots offense did whatever it wanted against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday. Luckily, thanks to the Colts were able to escape with the win.
Believe it or not, the Patriots ranked 31st in scoring with just over 16 points per game this season. They also ranked 31st in average yards per game.
However, against the Colts, the Patriots offense did what it wanted. On offense, New England rushed for over 200 yards and totaled over 400 yards of offense. They were efficient on third downs, controlling time of possession and scoring average .
That success began with their ability to dictate play on the ground, reminding the Colts of their early-season performances against Houston and Green Bay earlier in the year.
Running backs Rhamondre Stevenson and Antonio Gibson combined for 135 yards, with Gibson averaging 8.9 yards per carry. Quarterback Drake May also added 59 rushing yards of his own at nearly 12.0 yards per attempt.
If an offense can move the ball on the floor, it has a positive trickle-down effect for the rest of that unit. This keeps the offense in front of the hitters and in short down-and-distance situations where the entire playbook is at their disposal, the defense can maintain control and force them to defend the entire field – leaving room for the Creating offense to act – and helping to open up opportunities in the passing game.
Because of these advantageous down-and-distances, Maye proved extremely efficient as a passer, and New England was completely out of action on third downs. Everything goes hand in hand in a football game.
The matchup between the Patriots' tight ends and Indianapolis' second-level defenders, often the linebackers, also didn't help the Colts' defense.
The Colts have struggled to defend their tight ends this season, and the duo of Hunter Henry and Austin Hooper have been the focal point of the Patriots' passing game with Maye at quarterback. Together, the two would reach just under 100 yards with a touchdown.
You wouldn't know it by watching this game, but the Colts defense has held its own for several weeks now, and that's been true against some good NFL offenses as well. But today we saw them return to what had plagued them earlier this season: poor run defense, missed tackles and, I assume, some missed assignments.
What saved these Colts' defense and kept the offense in the game were the Patriots' red zone issues.
While New England moved the ball up and down the field and entered the red zone six times, they only left the game with a touchdown twice. But often those stops were due to the Patriots' own mistakes, which included penalties, a pass that turned into an interception and a missed field goal attempt before halftime.
There have certainly been instances this season where the defense held out as long as it could, waiting for the offense to make a play that ultimately never materialized. Today it was the offense's turn to provide some help to a struggling defense and Richardson made sure he delivered.
