Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - A ‘Texas One-Step’ in the Right Direction: Thoughts on Patriots-Texans — 10/12/2021

Episode Date: October 13, 2021

The New England Patriots are back in the win column. Quarterback Mac Jones completed 23 of 30 passes for 231 yards with one touchdown and one interception. The rookie showed tremendous poise in leading the team on what would be his first game-winning drive as the Pats would come from behind to defeat the Houston Texans 25-22 at NRG Stadium. Joining host Mike D’Abate is fan-favorite Thomas ‘Murph’ Murphy as the duo break down the Pats victory in Week Five.Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!Built BarBuilt Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKED15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.BetOnline AGThere is only 1 place that has you covered and 1 place we trust. Betonline.ag! Sign up today for a free account at betonline.ag and use that promocode: LOCKEDON for your 50% welcome bonus.Rock AutoAmazing selection. Reliably low prices. All the parts your car will ever need. Visit RockAuto.com and tell them Locked On sent you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You are Locked On Patriots, your daily New England Patriots podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Hello to all of you, Foxborough faithful. You are now locked into the Locked On Patriots podcast. It is Tuesday, October 12th, but it is still hashtag Locked On Murph Monday. Bear with me, folks, and I'll explain in a moment. Because it is still time to talk Pats Texans here on your daily home for news, notes, and analysis infused with the occasional opinion on your six-time Super Bowl champions, the New England Patriots.

And folks, thank you once again for making Locked On Patriots your first listen every day. Remember that Locked On Patriots is free and available on all platforms. And of course, today's episode is sponsored by rockauto.com. Amazing selection, reliably low prices, all the parts your car will ever need. Visit rockauto.com today and tell them Locked On sent you. Greetings and salutations, Patriots Nation, and thank you for joining me here on this Tuesday episode of the pod.

My name is Mike DeBate, and I cover your New England Patriots for Patriot Maven of Sports Illustrated. I am also your host of the Locked On Patriots podcast, which, of course, is a proud part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. And folks, because it's your team every day, that means your questions, comments, and feedback are always welcomed and very much appreciated. So share that feedback. Send it to the internet by reaching out to me and following me on Twitter at MDABATENFL. And while you're out there doing some Tuesday traveling through the Twitterverse, please

be sure to follow the Locked On Patriots account as well at LO underscore Patriots. Pats fans, technology can be a wonderful thing, but sometimes that technology can be unforgiving. And yesterday here on the pod, you probably noticed that the golden melodious tones of our great green friend Thomas Murphy were not heard as regularly scheduled. Well, folks, we recorded a pod and a pretty good one. Unfortunately, some technology snafus prevented us from being able to get the show uploaded. So here today on Tuesday, we bring you Locked on Murph Monday. And of course, that means the Green King of Sting himself is here to bring you his thoughts

on the Patriots 25-22 victory over the Houston Texans. What were the positives to be taken from the field at NRG Stadium? What are still some areas for concern? And will the Patriots be able to carry that Texas-sized momentum into their week six matchup at home at Gillette Stadium this coming Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys? Folks, there is no way that we would let a week go by without bringing you Locked on Murph Monday, and that's exactly what we're going to do today. Even though it's Tuesday, the Green Man is here to lend his wisdom and counsel the way only he can. Without much further ado, Murph joins me here on the hot seat when this Tuesday episode

of the Locked On Patriots podcast continues. Locked On listeners, we're back and better than ever. All eyes are on the gridiron as teams are back to start another football season. As always, BetOnline is your number one spot for all the pro and college football action this season. With a new updated site and interface, even more odds, props, and contests, BetOnline.ag continues to be the number one source for everything football. Head to the website or use your mobile device to sign up today to receive your 100% welcome bonus. That's double your initial deposit, just for signing up.

Don't forget to use the promo code NFL100. From football, basketball, boxing, right to your favorite Vegas casino games, don't wait to take advantage of all the amazing offers available for the 2021 season. BetOnline, the fastest and easiest way to bet all of your favorite sports. BetOnline, your online sportsbook experts. Patriots fans, it's always better to join you on a Monday when it's a victory Monday and the Patriots are still savoring their 25-22 victory over the Houston Texans in week five of the 2021 regular season.

However, it's a special day here today on Locked On Patriots, not just because it's a national holiday, but every Monday is a national holiday here on Locked On when we're joined by the great green wisdom and counsel of my guest today. That is right, folks. It is hashtag Locked On Murph Monday. And here today to lend that green wisdom and counsel, the only way he can, is the only guest on this pod Locked on Murph Monday. And here today to lend that green wisdom and counsel,

the only way he can, is the only guest on this pod with his very own branded hashtag. He is the monster master of disaster, the green king of sting, the count of Murphy, Fisto himself, the legendary Thomas Murphy is back for his weekly appearance here on Locked on Patriots. Thank you for coming to me in friendship. Thank you for joining me today, Don Murph. Well, thank you for having me, Bud, and thank you for, you know, moving all of the laundry that was on my chair before I got in here. It smells tied fresh.

We try our best to make you feel comfortable. We try our best to always, you know, give you the accommodations that you so richly deserve, my friend. And yeah, there was, you know, some still some still some soggy clothes from last week's, you know, game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Heavy, heavy rain. Yeah. Two weeks ago. Absolutely. But, you know, the friendly confines or the I guess the more flush confines of NRG Stadium in Houston with the Dome. A little bit more climate control and a little bit better on everybody's, probably everybody's health after that game as well.

So, you know what, we're ready to roll today, Bud. And it's, again, it's always good to be able to talk football with you on a Victory Monday. And the Patriots certainly had their share of difficulties, things that they'll continue to work on, but there was still plenty to build on as well. It was still plenty to be proud of. Matt Jones, 23 of 30 completed passes yesterday, 231 yards, one touchdown, one interception. Damian Harris rushing for 58 yards, one touchdown.

Of course, the big fumble at the goal line, that will be talked about for quite a while. And somebody that I've talked up a lot on here on the airwaves on Locked On Patriots, tight end Hunter Henry finally showing the prowess that I always knew that he could, leading all receivers 75 yards, six receptions, and of course the 12-yard touchdown to Mac Jones or from Mac Jones to Hunter Henry in the end zone. But spirits in New England are high right now. You look at the ability for them to come out with a win, and it's something that I think a lot of fans were hoping for. You know the team was hoping for. But ultimately, when you look back on this game what's going to be your biggest takeaway from the field on Sunday from Pat's Texans and we five Brandon Bolden two carries 25 yards

how did I not know he was going to go there folks you knew it yeah 24 yard run absolutely hey I was 24 yard run. The 24 yard run by Brandon and not, not for anything, folks. It was a thing of beauty. Brandon showed a lot of toughness. He showed great field awareness and hitting the hole folks. You're a professional. That's what you want to do. Everything you need to do in your profession as a running back is exactly what Brandon did on that drive. So go ahead, take the bow, take the victory lap. You deserve it. Brandon definitely deserves it. Uh, but that was a hell of a play. That was, that was a sweet play. No, he won't. That's not who he is. He's just too humble, man. He's underdog out there. He's humble and lovable.

So, you know, that's, that's why I'm on the payroll. It was, it was, it was nice to see, you know, I gave, I gave one of my, my suck it non-believer tweets out there as I saw that come up. I was at my son's ball game, and I'm sitting there, and I'm trying to piece together the game before I watched it on Murph Replay here at home. And, yeah, that felt good. It felt good to see Brandon out there doing what he did. We were talking a little bit off air, Michael, and you've really got to respect the way that the running game came together. doing what he did. We were talking a little bit off air, Michael,

and you've really got to respect the way that the running game came together this week. Now, granted, I know people. I know that the Texicans are at the very bottom of the league in rush defense. But the Patriots were out there against the MASH. You know, we're running out, literally, the starting offensive line from the movie MASH in 1972. And these guys came together. They played really well.

They opened up some holes. And this running back group attacked it and did really well. They're not getting enough props from the media right now. So Mike and I are going to give it to them right here. Hats off to Damian Harris and his crew for really taking care of it on Sunday, with the exception of another fumble at the goal line. Oh, my God. Yeah, and that definitely has to be uh that has to be addressed without any

question and we'll get to the Patriots fumble woes and double secret probation maybe forthcoming for a number of different players on this roster but you're absolutely right they ran the ball more efficiently yesterday they ran the ball with a more balanced attack yesterday Damian Harris 14 carries 58 yards of course he had the one rushing touchdown. Should have been two. Brandon Bolden, two yards, 25. Two carries for 25 yards. We talked about that one. Ramondre looked a little more.

I don't want to go full on saying that he looked completely fantastic, but I thought he looked pretty good on the field yesterday. 11 carries, 23 yards, his longest being a nine nine-yard rip. So from Andre Stevenson, if you get these guys involved, I think they do have the opportunity for them to have a pretty balanced rushing attack. Of course, right now, all eyes are on Damian Harrison, the rib injury, which he left yesterday's game. Hopefully, everything will be okay, and we'll get Damian back on the field sooner rather than later. But they do still have some talent in that backfield.

And J.J. Taylor spent his day on double secret probation yesterday. You probably look for him to be active in the coming days. And hopefully we can get him back out on the field and see what he can do as well. But you mentioned the makeshift offensive line that the Patriots were playing with yesterday. And, you know, bottom line, Murph, I mean, whether it's makeshift or whatever, down-forward starters, no problem. That was a provisional unit yesterday, but they performed pretty well

given the circumstances. Justin Heron at left tackle, I thought, looked much more comfortable there than he did on the right side. That's his natural spot. That's where he's able to really make contributions. And I think he played relatively well yesterday. James Ferentz coming in, playing the left guard position. Obviously, David Andrews holding it all together. But very impressed with the right side. Ted Karras at right guard. Yannick Adjust at right tackle. I thought these guys did

a very good job of protecting that right side. This was a real problem area for the Patriots minus Trent Brown. I thought Kajust did a great job playing the tackle on the right side. Again, not his natural position. He's more of a natural left tackle. But Kajust does have that push ability that allows him to be a very strong, protective player. And he did it yesterday. And of course, Ted Karras, I thought, you know, opening up some holes, really, he was the key block on the Damian Harris rushing touchdown, you know, continues to be steady Teddy. And we, we love to see that one of the great guys on the team, one of the great swing tackles in the league and the Patriots definitely appreciated

having him yesterday, but they allowed that Patriots offense to run the ball with a 39% success rate on the ground. Definitely an improvement from what we've seen the last couple of weeks. When you look at this O-line now, Murph, now that we know Trent Brown's going to be on the shelf for at least a couple more games, we're still not sure what's going to happen with Wynn and Elenu. One of my Twitter followers made a very good point last night by DM saying that even if Wynn does come back, this is a kid that's been on the injured list quite often. He's been on injury reports and nursing injuries. He hasn't been pushing off the same way. I've talked about this several times here on the airwaves.

Are the Patriots starting to maybe figure this out in terms of the offensive line, even with maybe some players down, that they have enough depth to still be a very good unit in this league? They are and they do. And I'm not just going to put this on the success to the team that they were facing. I really did. I like the way Kajus stepped up yesterday. Karras was just amazing at left guard to the point where I'm thinking that he should be starting at guard right now. He has really shown that his veteran leadership out there is something. Two centers is better than one. I'm sorry.

Okay, folks? That's what it really comes down to is the brain power. It's not just what we're doing with our bodies. And he's been able to step in there. Maybe it's time to kick on Weyu back out to tackle and start giving Ted Karras some more snaps out here. Yeah, I think so. And you know what? It might be an option for the New England Patriots. Bill Belichick speaking to the media on Monday morning seemed very open to the possibilities of utilizing all the talent that he has on this offensive line, maybe utilizing it in areas that he never had thought of before,

or I'm sure he thought of it before, but maybe in ways that we hadn't expected prior to now. But Karras showing a lot of versatility. I thought Kajust again showing a lot of versatility. Carone, I thought, showed some pretty good versatility as well. And look, you can say all you want about James Ferentz being a practice squad call-up. He had a very solid training camp. I remember watching him day after day practicing at Gillette Stadium and saying,

this kid's really making a strong push. He's going to make it very interesting for Bill Belichick to let him go from this unit. Eventually, he ended up doing that, and the Patriots re-signed him on the practice squad. Maybe one of the more underrated practice squad moves that the Patriots made was retaining someone like James Ferentz, who just continues to be there when you need him. He's not going to make a ton of plays that are going to help you win the game, but he's going to make plays that are going to help you to continue to be in it. And his presence and his knowledge of the system, I thought,

was impressive yesterday. So good job by the offensive line. Absolutely. Good on Bill for taking my notes to the presser today. That was great. Absolutely. He took your notes and he took the keys. I told you, folks, if you turn the keys, you go to the top.

You don't turn the keys, you're never heard from again. And this man consistently continues to nail it each and every week. That's why we have him here on Locked On Patriots. Well, that and the Godfather quotes. But you know what? We live for it. But no, I'm just kidding. You know, but I'd be remiss if we didn't talk a little Pat's offense

and we gave some love to the running unit. We gave some love to the offensive line. Mac Jones continues to play with, and I've said this several times in my writing over the course of the last couple of weeks, with a wisdom and a poise beyond his years. Now, Mac did not have a perfect game on Sunday. Some of the narrative that you'll read out there will indicate that Mac essentially strapped this team on his back and single-handedly carried them to victory. I thought Mac played very well yesterday, but that is not an accurate narrative, folks.

I mean, there were some errant throws. There was one that he was very fortunate that did not get ultimately picked off in the final drive, which is his first game-winning drive in the NFL. But I was very impressed by what he was able to do progressing and moving the football when he needed to do it um he's playing uh with a little bit more i think openness in terms of what he can do in the red zone i still question some of the play calls that josh made yesterday is some of them yeah it was a little too horizontal yeah yeah but at the same time i love the synergy that he's developing with hunter henry we mentioned that earlier, 13 yards strike to tie the game. That is what Patriots fans have been dying to see. That's what Claire's been dying to see. Obviously, we know she got very excited when she saw Hunter

Henry find the end zone. She's still calming herself down. I believe she's having a sedative and having a little bit of a rest up there in West Midland. So Claire, thank you for the shout out on that when Henry scored. We all heard you yelling from the side of the pond, but all kidding aside, Mack has been very efficient and very accurate. And I think that's where he's impressing people most. He's completing just over 71% of his passes on the season, 78% completion percentage yesterday, very efficient out of play action um statistics that i really thought were eye-opening nine of 11 completions out of play action and 11.6 yards per attempt on that so he's utilizing that short intermediate field to his to the best of his

ability and also third down this is an area where the patriots needed to confirm now needed to convert yesterday and they did so at 70 conversion conversion rate, 7 of 10 on third down. The future may look bright with Mac Jones, but did yesterday convince you, Murph, that the present is pretty bright with this kid as well? Yeah, it really has. His first half was amazing. He didn't have an incomplete pass until I think it was less than a minute in the first half,

and then he had another one after that. But that stat, that third down stat, is a little misleading, and I'll tell you why. He was four for four on his first third down conversion attempts, and after that it was what, what do I have it? Two for seven the rest of the way. So that's, you know, it's here or there. It's really nice to see that number, but you have to put it into the context of how the game was flowing.

In the first half, it was really excellent. In the second half, not so much, which is kind of... One, it's a team stat, not just his. They still need to improve in that area. I've been focusing on the other side of the ball for most of the morning while I'm watching tape. But no, no, I am in agreeance with you on this point, my friend. Yeah, I think that's a very fair point about the third down conversion rate being more first half heavy rather than second half heavy.

And look, bottom line, that's when you need to convert these is the second half. So I agree. I think there's still a lot of areas of improvement. But you look at the plays, you look at the ability, and you look at the determination that this kid has, and you look at something that a lot of teams would be happy to build upon. And I think the Patriots see that in Mac Jones. Again, not a perfect team by any stretch of the imagination,

but the future is definitely bright. And I thought he utilized both the red zone and the running game out of play action really to his advantage on Sunday. His play action was fantastic. Yeah, absolutely. And that's really fantastic. And that's where the Patriots need to focus and keep moving the ball. I'm sorry, Michael.

I don't mean to keep stepping on you today. You weren't at all. I didn't get to live tweet the game, so here I am today. That's it, my friend. Drop the green pearls of wisdom and counsel any way you can. We love them. And, yeah, I mean, to, you know, keep going on the play action, Kyrie Thompson joined me here to preview the game on Friday at boston.com.

Kyrie and I talked a lot about, we thank you very much. I appreciate that. And I know Kyrie will appreciate it. He's listening. But it's really was an opportunity where we both really made a lot out of the Patriots utilizing play action. And then to see that come into fruition the way it did, even probably knowing that most of the Texans knew that was how they were going to try to move the football, to see them still be able to do it effectively was a thing of beauty yesterday.

So we'll continue to build on that and continue to move forward. But there were still some areas that the Patriots need to improve upon, some of them, surprisingly, on the defensive side of the ball as well. And when we come back here, folks, we will talk some defensive miscues. We'll also talk about some of the defensive standouts on the field yesterday when this Locked On Murph episode of the Locked On Patriots podcast continues. Locked On listeners, when it comes to repairing or maintaining your vehicle, why would you spend 30%, 50%, even 100% more for the exact same auto parts at a chain store or a new car dealership? It's still possible to take pride

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Patriots fans, it is hashtag Locked on Murph Monday. Joining me here today is the legend Thomas Murphy himself. And Murph, in the previous segment, we talked a lot about the Patriots and their ability to move the football on the ground. We talked about the prowess of Mac Jones, and we showed a lot of love to guys you love to show a lot of love to. And that is the offensive line, because they really did deserve it after being down four starters and just an insurmountable difficulty uh but the patriots were able to weather through it and that line actually looked pretty good yesterday so uh

for all of the um goodness that we saw for the patriots on the offensive side of the ball and some of the negatives that we talked about there there were still some areas that surprised me. And one of the areas that really surprised me was defensive ineptitude, especially in the first half. This is a team that looked out of sorts in terms of communication, breakdown and coverage, things that you usually do not see in a Patriots defense, especially one that's been as highly touted as this one has leading up to this moment. And there have been moments where the defense looked very good. I thought the defense looked excellent last week in containing and holding Tom Brady to only 17 points in his return to Foxborough. You know, Tom was definitely, you know, chomping at the bit to light that scoreboard a lot more than he did.

And he took it out on the Miami Dolphins yesterday but at the same time um the Patriots continue to go with a three safety look that seems to be something that I think they're really looking at heavily uh and they've got three good safeties to be able to do it with and Kyle Duggar Adrian Phillips and of course Devin McCourty safe for the breakdown and uh in the 67 yard touchdown reception yesterday uh Devin you know always in on plays and always seems to be right there in the thick of things. The secondary you knew Murph was going to have a lot of eyes on it, and J.C. Jackson was also a part of that communication breakdown on that play, but I thought he settled into his game a little bit better.

But that other outside corner position continues to be a liability, and they look like they really missed Jalen Mills yesterday Murph now that we know Stefan Gilmar is not walking back through that Foxborough door um is this an area of concern for you going forward or do you think they'll be much better when Jalen Mills returns to the lineup no I I think you hit the nail on the head and thanks for leading me in that direction but I think when Jalen Mills is back on the field, we're going to see a much tighter group, a much more knowledgeable group, and one that shuts things down in a way that just did not happen yesterday. The Patriots secondary made the Texans look really, really good yesterday in the first half.

And it's a week earlier against a Buffalo team that was really pumped for this game, and it took it out on them. But this week, there were just too many chunk plays that happened down the field that we won't be seeing once Jalen Mills is back in the fold. Yeah, Mills is someone that I know when it was announced that he was not going to be able to start. This actually worried me just as much as the offensive line. I'm not going to lie and sit here and say, oh, this worried me more. I knew the line was going to play well. I don't think any of us expected the line to play that well.

And if you say that, you're probably not being 100% forthcoming. We all had our doubts on the line i was pleasantly surprised by that but one thing that i did expect was a fall off in the secondary and maybe i thought that there wouldn't be as much of a fall off but it was and unfortunately this just continues to prove that joan williams is just not ready to assume to that role he continues to struggle he was on the back side of that texans flea flicker we didn't see him after that he definitely let up that coverage 37 yard touchdown also was responsible for letting up a huge 40 yard game uh in the game leading up to that um a lot of the secondary was full on the play so i don't want to put that completely on joan no shoulders that's

not fair um but uh yeah but that secondary edge force that he needs to be he's just he's overplaying his runs just got badly beaten a couple of times and i think he's just yet to emerge as that match with the new england's press coverage schemes it just doesn't seem to be a natural fit there and we talked about this early into uh you know the training i shouldn't say early early into the season, heading into the final weeks of training camp, that Williams actually might be better suited as a safety in this defense rather than a cornerback. I'm not ready to go to that level, but he definitely has to make his adjustments.

Either the Patriots have to realize where they're going to be able to use him situationally or maybe have to start warming to the idea that it just may not be a fit here. I'm not saying that Williams can't be a solid pro. He may be, but I'm just, I don't know, maybe I'm being a little bit too hard on him, but I just don't see this being the fit that the Patriots, I think we're hoping for when they drafted him in the second round a couple of years ago. Am I being too harsh on Williams here? No, I don't think you're being too harsh at all. If you look at the secondary as a whole with the giant hole that is there left by Stephon Gilmore,

this is a team that did limit Tom Brady to 261 passing yards last week. This is a team that is only allowing 206 passing yards per game. That's fifth in the NFL. When the scheme is right and the personnel is there that Bill can mix and match, this is still a formidable unit. This is still a unit that can get things done. The bottom line is with the Patriots' defense right now is being able to stuff the run and being able to do it consistently. And I was really surprised and not surprised, but I was, I was very happy to see

the return of, of the Donta Hightower that we all know and love this, this weekend. He had four great run stuffs during this game. He looked much better, much quicker. It looked more like Donta Hightower from 2019 and 2018 and not the Donta Hightower of 2021. And this is something that I did put in my keys this week, that we still need to be a little bit patient. Taking a year off from this patient. Taking a year off from this game is taking a year off from this game. It's not like going back to school after winter

break and taking a couple of days to get back into it, folks. Absolutely, and I'm glad that you mentioned Dante Hightower. He definitely looked much more comfortable on the field yesterday, out there for 64 percent of the Patriots snaps. And, you know, bottom line, I mean, he continues to be able to do it. And he's showing now that he can once again do it at a high level. Not a good day or not a good week for the Dante Hightower is washed crowd. If you're still pushing that narrative or trying to save whatever minimal credibility that you ever had by making stupid comments about Hightower and his intentions,

maybe time for you to shut up. But that's just my two cents. But all kidding aside, Hightower definitely playing well. Yes, it was good to see Juwan Bentley out there as well with the shoulder injury. There was some question about whether or not he was going to be able to come back and be able to be effective. I thought he looked pretty decent at times. He's still laboring a little bit, but it's good to see him out there and it's good to have him out there.

And it was also good to see Jamie Collins out there for three defensive snaps. Everybody is going to make a big deal about the sack. And Bill Belichick said it today. He says, look, Dante was uncovered. He made a good play on the ball. And Bill Belichick said it today. He says, look, he said Dante was uncovered. You know, he made a good play on the ball. It was good to have him back. But when you're out there for only three defensive snaps and you get to the quarterback on one of them,

that's a good welcome back. I put that on Twitter yesterday, welcome back, Collins. And then I put a little line from the welcome back Cotter theme. But, you know, Murph, nobody bid on that. But I know you'll appreciate it because, you know, you're of the same generation and we both share that same type of sense of humor. All kidding aside, good, good stuff

in the linebacking core, but probably the brightest spot in the linebacking core is Matt Judon. We're going to continue to sing a praise to Matt Judon. Six and a half sacks through five games.

He's already amassed the totals. It's not a freelance thing. He's out there working within the system and doing this. It's amazing. Once again, I'm stepping on my friend here, and it's a terrible thing. I promise to go buy him a new pair of Nikes tomorrow. But what Matt Judon is out there doing is something fantastic. It's Brewski like it, that that's how smart this man is on the field. That's, that's the,

the leadership and the swag that he brings to the to the table when he sits down at the head of it. And, and now that Jamie Collins is also here, it's only going to get better. It's only going to get better folks. Yeah. I mean this, this middle part of defense, folks, especially the linebackers, whether it be on the outside or whether it be in the middle, they are going to continue to impress week after week. There's so much talent from top to bottom here. Absolutely.

And like you said, now you're adding Jamie Collins into the mix that already has Matt Judon, that already has Dante Hightower, that already Kyle Van Noy is still back in this mix. His presence has also been, you know, a huge part of the Patriots resurgence. They continue to do very, very good things in that linebacking core. And that really, I think, probably is the brightest spot that you'll take from the field. But circling back for just one moment on Jalen Mills, you know, 12 total tackles on the season for him so far. One pass defended, but he really makes a difference in that secondary.

And I believe that once he returns to the lineup, you'll see that secondary return to better things. And you will. One of the stats that bothered me this week, we were talking about third down. The Patriots were very good on third down efficiency on the defensive side of the ball. The Texans only converted six of 14 opportunities. The downside of that is three for three on fourth down. And when you see a guy like Jalen Mills come back into this and

some other guys get up to speed, that number is going to really depreciate. You're probably not going to see as many fourth down attempts. The Texans were geared up to no end to come back and win this game. And on fourth down, they looked really, really good. I think going forward, that's going to need to get cleaned up. But third down was really good, but when you go three for three on fourth, it kind of erases that third down efficiency. Yeah, it truly does, and it also gives teams credit and really confidence, I think, to be able to do it moving forward, and that's not the type of confidence

you want to give opponents, especially with a team like the Dallas Cowboys that can move the ball so effectively on offense. This is going to be tough. We're already starting to break this down, and we'll continue to do so here throughout the week, folks, on Locked On Patriots. But, Murph, what can I say? You lend the wisdom and the counsel as only you can. That is truly, my friend, why you are familia here on Locked On Patriots,

the true Don of Locked On Patriots. And we're all in awe of the wisdom and counsel. As always, I thank you for joining me today, Bud. And folks, all of you out there, you should already be following this man. But for the benefit of any of our new listeners, please follow my good friend, the Count of Murphy Fisto himself

on Twitter at TeamMurph207. You hear us mention these monster keys folks you know them if you know them but if you don't know them check out murph's column and his great work on e2g sports.com not only is he absolutely crushing it when it comes to red sox coverage in the playoffs i can't recommend that highly enough but these monster keys each and every week are really a blueprint to victory. You turn them, you go to the top, you don't turn them, you're never heard from again. And again, Murph continues to nail it. So point, click, learn enrichment material. And of course,

never, ever miss an opportunity to check out an episode of my second favorite Patriots podcast. No, just kidding, folks. It's at the top of my playlist. One Patriots place with my good friend Murph, our great mutual friend Steve Balistrieri, and making contributions like only she can, the Countess of Clas herself, Ms. Claire Cooper. But what can I say? Always honored, always humbled by your presence. Oh, man, always great to be here, Michael. You were always too kind with your words. Yes, folks, please check us out over at E2G Sports. I'm out here. I'm cutting keys already.

Cutting keys already. And I'll give you one right here that you won't have to wait for. All right, folks, I want more Juno Smith and Hunter Henry in the backfield this weekend. And I think we're going to get it. I think you're seeing the emerge.

The tight end rises. Sounds like a superhero movie, but you know what? It could end up being the rise of prominence to an offense that definitely needs these guys to contribute, and I think you saw that in Hunter yesterday, and I think you're going to continue to see that in Jono this week. Jet sweep. Cowboys defense might allow them to do it.

We'll break that down, folks. But in the meantime, Bud, thank you for joining me today. Continue to stay safe and well, and we look forward to breaking down next week's game right here on Monday on Locked on Patriots. Thanks a ton, Murph. Always, Bud. Always here. And so, Patriots fans, one down, but a lot of Pat's coverage still to come here on Locked

On Patriots this week. So to ensure that you do not miss a single second of the action, download, subscribe to and follow the Locked On Patriots podcast on platforms such as the Odyssey app, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, wherever you get your podcasts. Just make sure that you are staying locked into Locked On Patriots by making Locked On Patriots your first listen every day. And always remember that Locked On Patriots is free and available on all platforms. Once again, my name is Mike DeBate.

I thank my good friend Thomas Murphy for his time, his insight, and his appearance on today's pod. But most of all, I thank you so much for listening and for continuing to make Locked On Patriots a daily part of your New England Patriots coverage. Until tomorrow, Foxborough faithful, stay safe, stay well, be the change you wish to see in the world. Have a great day, everyone.