The New England Patriots have climbed to the. 500 mark with a 4-4 record. Along the way, they have seemed to have found their identity.
Sunday’s win over the Los Angeles Chargers saw balance on both sides of the football. With 218 passing yards from Mac Jones and 80 rushing yards from Damien Harris the offense was able to break through.
Defensively, Adrian Phillips’ two interceptions set the tone on that side of the football. In particular, Phillips’ second interception allowed New England to widen their lead and control the game.
As Sunday illustrated, the Patriots are beginning to find what works. It is something safety Devin McCourty has noticed along the way.
“I think we’ve learned what our blueprint is,” he said. “We know what we gotta do each week to go out there and play well. Like, we’re not a team that’s just gonna roll it out there. And my whole time being here, we’ve never had that kind of group. So I definitely think we have confidence, and I said it probably a couple weeks ago, you’re record is what it is. That’s who you are. There’s nothing else to really say. There’s a lot of teams who have confidence. It’s about going out and doing it. I think that’s what we’re doing a good job of now.”
McCourty added: “I think the biggest thing is you gotta learn how to win as a team,” he said. “I think, like you said, obviously [Matthew] Judon knows how to win. I would say even Mac does, being at Bama. We got winners here but you gotta learn how to win as a team. And I think Bill said it earlier this season: It’s about playing well in the critical situations, when offensively they know we need to run the ball and stay in bounds and have good plays. And we do that.”
With the Patriots back in the playoff hunt, New England will have a chance to solidify their playstyle as they look to make a run towards the postseason.
