Film Room: Patriots' unathletic defense is their true Achilles' heel

It's shaping up to be a long December for the New England Patriots.

After two straight losses, the Patriots are still looking to clinch the AFC East and could be forced to play on Wild Card Weekend for the first time since 2009, when they lost to the Baltimore Ravens.

There are certainly offensive concerns in New England - including uncharacteristically bad decisions from Tom Brady, some decline from Rob Gronkowski, and the sudden loss of Josh Gordon - but the biggest issue of all can be found on the other side of the ball.

Specifically, the Patriots' lack of athletic playmakers at the first two levels of their defense is a huge problem.

It's an issue that's lingered over the unit in recent seasons, and one that was evident in the Patriots' Super Bowl LII loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. In that game, New England's defenders couldn't recover when caught out of position and struggled to cover running backs and receivers underneath.

The front office somewhat addressed the problem by drafting linebacker Ja'Whaun Bentley, but he went down with an injury in September and the unit's struggled at the second level without him.

Those struggles are evident on plays like the one below - a long touchdown run from Miami's Brandon Bolden in Week 14. Strong safety Patrick Chung (No. 23) is down in the box alongside linebackers Elandon Roberts (No. 52) and Dont'a Hightower (No. 54), but all three players get swallowed up by their blockers:

Your browser does not support the video tag. NFL

Chung and Roberts fail to disengage in time, while Hightower can't chase the play down from the backside. That allows Bolden to reach the third level of the defense untouched before outracing the safeties to the end zone.

Another example is seen on this 17-yard run from Jaylen Samuels of the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 15:

Your browser does not support the video tag. NFL

Here, Hightower gets hooked on the outside by Steelers tight end Jesse James (No. 81), preventing him from setting the edge. Meanwhile, Kyle Van Noy is swallowed up inside and Chung's backside pursuit isn't quick enough.

New England's lack of playmakers also impacts its pass rush. Other than Trey Flowers, the Patriots don't have anyone who consistently wins one-on-one matchups up front and/or finishes sacks in the backfield. That's led the unit to try different looks in hopes of generating pressure on passers, such as in Week 13 against the Minnesota Vikings when Flowers moved inside to line up over the center.

Your browser does not support the video tag. NFL

In this case, New England's alignment creates some confusion for blockers while Flowers gets past the center to pressure Kirk Cousins and force an errant pass.

However, much of the time, the Patriots - who actually generate a lot of pressure without blitzing - aren't finishing these plays, as they rank fourth-last in the NFL in sacks.

That lack of finishing is seen on this snap against the Steelers, as the Patriots rush just four and Adrian Clayborn nearly gets to Ben Roethlisberger. However, Clayborn can't finish the sack as Roethlisberger steps up in the pocket before completing his throw for a 9-yard gain:

Your browser does not support the video tag. NFL

It's been a trend all season, as mobile quarterbacks - namely Deshaun Watson, Andrew Luck, Patrick Mahomes, Aaron Rodgers, Ryan Tannehill, and Marcus Mariota - have avoided New England's pressure and enjoyed success in the passing game.

That might be why Patriots defensive coordinator Brian Flores has turned to the blitz at the eighth-highest rate in the league this year. However, when you blitz and don't get to the passer, it's worse than whiffing with a four-man rush:

Your browser does not support the video tag. NFL

Here, the Patriots send the blitz after Tannehill but don't get home, leaving the secondary exposed in man coverage. The Dolphins easily complete the throw and move the chains.

Overall, it's certainly true that New England has a growing list of concerns on both sides of the football. But while much of the talk has focused on Brady, Gronkowski, and the rest of the offense, the defense's lack of athletic playmakers at the first two levels looks like the Patriots' true Achilles' heel.

Copyright (C) 2018 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.