How the Patriots defense found a late-season identity by embracing the blitz

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready Do you remember the first few minutes of the Patriots’ season? How the worst team in football dropped a bomb on their defense on the opening drive of the season opener? That’s right. Raiders quarterback Geno Smith lobbed a 26-yard touchdown into the waiting arms of Tre Tucker over a poorly timed, badly executed blitz. It was third-and-11, and the Patriots’ two highest-paid defenders, Milton Williams and Christian Barmore, had dropped into coverage while five teammates rushed around them. The unusual blitz gave Smith time and space, and he punished the Pats for being such considerate hosts. Smith was, in two words, too comfortable. The...