FOXBORO — It wasn’t the MVP-caliber quarterback or the red-hot run game that propelled the New England Patriots to their AFC Wild Card victory over the Los Angeles Chargers. It was their underrated defense.
It won’t be overlooked any longer after the thrashing took place Sunday night at Gillette Stadium.
The Patriots’ defense made life miserable for Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert. It tallied six sacks, tied for the second-most in a playoff game in team history. One of them was a strip-sack by linebacker K’Lavon Chaisson in the fourth quarter that all but punched New England’s ticket to the Divisional Round:
The Pats defense set the tone early on. After a brutal Drake Maye interception with about five minutes left in the first quarter, New England kept L.A. scoreless with a huge fourth-down stop at its own 3-yard line.
The Patriots defense allowed only three points the rest of the way in what was undeniably a statement game for the unit.
“I thought they played extremely well,” Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel said of his defense after the win. “I thought they were committed to stopping the run. The sudden change was critical. … What our defense was able to do early in that game, in the red zone, inside the 5-yard line or inside the 9-yard line, I think really set the tone for them for the rest of the game.
“Could have been better. A lot of scrambles. We knew that. Again, trying to rush, make sure that those scramble lanes aren’t there. Secondary did a fantastic job with the play extensions, making sure that those plays didn’t get loose. Just really proud of everybody.”
Maye, who threw for 268 yards and one touchdown, agreed with his coach’s assessment.
“Wasn’t pretty, that’s for sure. But this defense was so fun to watch,” the Patriots’ second-year QB said, “Congrats to them. It was so fun to watch. They won the game for us.
“I didn’t throw very well tonight. Need to be better. We did what we had to do. That’s what it takes in the playoffs. Proud of this team. That was fun to get one at home. Look forward to being back here next week.”
Several defensive players starred in New England’s first playoff win since 2018. Chaisson had two sacks, including the clutch strip-sack. Milton Williams had two sacks of his own. Marcus Jones forced a fumble on a sack and had a big-time pass breakup on third down.
While it was the players who executed, it was Zak Kuhr who designed the plays that left Herbert and the Chargers looking lost. Kuhr was the Pats’ inside linebackers coach before taking over as defensive coordinator for Terrell Williams, who was diagnosed with prostate cancer.
According to Patriots linebacker Robert Spillane, Chargers players admitted that Kuhr’s defensive schemes put them in a blender.
“Zak has been great all year. He keeps the dial spinning. He keeps offenses guessing. All year, he’s been doing that,” Spillane said.
“After the game, talking to a few of the guys on (the Chargers), they had no clue what we were doing. They came up and said that, ‘We have no clue what you guys were in all game.’ So for him just to be able to build those packages throughout the week, to know how to disguise the different defenses, really keeps quarterbacks guessing.”
Vrabel emphasized Kuhr’s immeasurable impact on the win.
“I would tell you this means a lot to him. These players mean a lot to him. I think that they want to do well for Zak and for the entire staff that put a lot into it,” Vrabel said. “I’m proud of Zak for not only the performance calling the game, but the preparation and what goes into it. He’s earned every bit of recognition that he’s getting and should get.
“Again, it takes everybody. There’s great communication from upstairs, getting it to the players. They certainly respond. All the credit has to go to them. But Zak was able to change up some calls there at the end. I felt like that mixed the pressure in because that’s what we felt like we needed.”
The Chargers had a great third-down offense all season, but they were just 1-for-10 in those situations on Sunday. According to OptaSTATS, the Patriots became the first team since the 1985 Chicago Bears to allow zero TDs, notch six sacks, allow fewer than 100 rushing yards, and let up fewer than 150 net passing yards in a playoff game.
Star wide receiver Stefon Diggs (two catches, 16 yards) was quiet in the win, but he loudly praised the defense afterward.
“Escaping that thing with a win? The defense showed up. Let’s call it what it is,” he said. “The defense showed up when it needed to, and shoutout to Milton Williams. Glad to have him on my team.”
Before the game, Diggs fired up his teammates with a pregame speech in which he stated, “Nobody likes us, and nobody believes in us.” He later doubled down on that claim.
“Nobody really liked us. Nobody believed in us,” he reiterated. “We were a young team, we got a young quarterback and throughout the season we grew together… so why I said it is because it’s the truth. Nobody liked us but us.”
The Patriots are on to the AFC Divisional Round, where they will host the winner of Monday night’s Houston Texans-Pittsburgh Steelers matchup. Houston boasts arguably the best defense in the league, but that won’t matter if New England’s D plays even half as well as it did on Sunday night.
If nobody believed in this Patriots defense before, they will now.
