Patriots defensive back Devin McCourty, right, admits it was not “a great day of tackling” against Houston last week. It’s a problem that seems to have gotten worse later in the season for New England. Charles Krupa/Associated Press
Tackling.
As fundamentals go, there’s nothing more important in football than being able to bring down the ball carrier. It’s something so basic and rudimentary to every team’s success or failure.
And for that reason, it’s a skill that has traditionally been a strength of Bill Belichick-coached teams. Being fundamentally sound has been a hallmark of the Patriots during the past two decades.
Only in 2020, not so much.
One of the under-the-radar issues that’s crept up in several Pats losses this season has been poor tackling. It was particularly evident in Sunday’s loss to the Texans.
Plays and drives were extended because the Patriots either couldn’t get a hand on Deshaun Watson, or couldn’t wrap up whoever had the football.
This hasn’t been a season-long problem, or a factor in every game. But given how much of a stickler Belichick is on the details, it’s eye-opening when it does occur. Displays of poor tackling were also prevalent in losses to the 49ers and Bills along with a win over the Ravens.
Former Patriots linebacker Ted Johnson, speaking on NBC Sports Boston’s post-game show following the Texans game, said the tackling was “as bad as I’ve ever seen it on this team.”
That’s saying a lot.
The breakdowns Sunday mostly featured the secondary, which was no surprise given the Pats are allowing a league-worst 6.4 yards after the catch to opposing wide receivers. If someone is able to get free past the first level, the secondary just doesn’t do the best job getting people down.
The Texans also got quite a few chunk gains on catch-and-run plays or quick-hitters. Case in point: late in the second quarter, facing a first-and-15, the Texans had an 18-yard pass play that should have gone for much less. Only the Patriots couldn’t bring down 6-foot-6, 258-pound tight end Pharaoh Brown.
After taking a quick-hitter from Deshaun Watson, Brown first steamrolled corner Jonathan Jones, who was stiff-armed to the ground. Then Brown basically plowed would-be tacklers Stephon Gilmore, Terez Hall and Ja’Whaun Bentley back for at least seven additional yards before going down.
There were other plays, in that same realm where extra yards were gained because the Patriots simply couldn’t get someone to the ground.
After the game, defensive captain Devin McCourty acknowledged it wasn’t “a great day of tackling” for the team. McCourty didn’t escape notice. He appeared on the offender list against the Texans. He had a tough tackling moment, basically getting trucked at the goal line by Watson on a 4-yard touchdown run by the quarterback.
In other instances, taking poor angles or simply throwing an arm out didn’t get the job done.
“Tackling has to be something you take pride in,” said Patriots Hall of Famer Rodney Harrison when reached earlier in the week. “Bill would have never let us tackle that poorly.”
In that regard, the players are well aware of the problem. It’s probably been replayed a thousand times in their film sessions. They have owned up to their deficiency in that area.
“Tackling is critical for us. They had some tight ends that were pretty good, and pretty big guys we weren’t able to get down in time,” Jones said of the Texans. “We were missing angles and missing tackles that we just needed (to have).”
In all, Patriots defensive backs allowed 125 yards after catch against the Texans. Again, a large part of that was bad tackling. Bentley missed two tackles, as did rookie hybrid safety/linebacker Kyle Dugger.
“We just gotta tighten up. Like coach says, the little details, the little things are adding up,” said Jones. “The little things continue to get us.”
The little things are one of the reasons the Patriots are 4-6 and currently out of the playoff picture.
Interestingly, their best tackling games came in Weeks 1-4, per Pro Football Focus. Their worst weeks were Weeks 7-10, so they’re regressing.
Also, according to PFF’s metrics, Terrence Brooks, J.C. Jackson, McCourty, Gilmore, Bentley and Chase Winovich have been among the Patriots’ worst tacklers this season.
Now, some might attribute a slip in fundamentals to not being on the practice field during their few weeks dealing with COVID-19, not to mention missing OTAs and early camps. Having limited padded practice time also doesn’t help to remedy or fix poor tackling techniques. So it’s not just a Patriot issue. It’s popped up across the league as well.
Whatever the case, it’s not what you typically see from a Belichick-coached team. The Pats are usually incredibly sound tacklers. Along with a poor pass rush, it’s just turned into a sore spot given what’s transpired in several games.
Defensive lineman Lawrence Guy didn’t mince words.
“We just need to get back to playing good football and have good fundamentals every down,” he said.
Sunday against the Cardinals would be a good place to start.
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