Instant observations following Patriots' Week 5 win over Redskins
Another week, another win for the New England Patriots, who remain undefeated after five weeks of regular season play following a 33-7 win over the Washington Redskins.
Let's look over some instant observations from the Week 5 win for New England.
1) O-tackles are struggling to pass protect
The Patriots' offensive woes continued on Sunday against Washington, in part because of their offensive line, specifically on the perimeter.
Time after time, Marcus Cannon and Marshall Newhouse (more so Cannon) failed their blocking assignments, which in result had Brady scrambling and throwing the ball away for an incompletion. As if New England's offensive line problems weren't enough of an issue, now Cannon, who is the starting right tackle when everyone in the unit is healthy, is struggling, and the reasoning is unknown.
Luckily, the team was able to run the ball and block a bit better in the second half. But they were also playing the Redskins, so take that for what it is worth.
2) Defensive continues their turnover frenzy
As an elite defense does, the Patriots defense continued to produce turnovers in their Week 5 game.
Allowing only seven points and 220 total yards, New England also had two turnovers on the defensive side of the ball, which came from an interception by Jason McCourty and a fumble recovery by Jamie Collins. The defense also had six total sacks.
Granted, it was against another bad offense, but the Patriots continued to dominate on that side of the ball. The turnovers gave the offense extra chances, which was helpfully on a day when Brady and the offense struggles to move the ball early in the game.
3) Brady wasn't at his best vs. Washington
Despite what looks like a good game via the stat line, the Patriots' 42 year old quarterback didn't have a very good game. Brady's throws were not on point, and at times were completely off the mark, which was in part due to the continued pressure he had on him in the pocket.
Again, yes - he did have nearly 350 yards and three touchdowns. But against a lackluster defense, Brady has plenty of opportunities that he would want back, such as the interception he threw up for grabs in the red zone in the first half.
4) Offense put emphasis on feeding Sony in second half
After basically abandoning the run game for no reason in the first half, the Patriots ran the ball early and often in the second half and had success with it.
Sony Michel rushed 16 times for 91 yards and one touchdown, finding running lanes late in the game after the Patriots had a steady lead.
It's good to see Michel have a game like this one. After a month of football, it was hard to imagine him having great production going forward after failing to do such against less than formidable opponents in the month of September. But he did in Week 5, so hopefully these narrative keeps pointing in the right direction going forward.
5) Dont'a Hightower turned back clocks in Week 5
Veteran linebacker Dont'a Hightower, who was questionable heading into the Week 5 game because of a shoulder injury, had himself a heck of a game against the Redskins. Hightower recorded eight tackles, four tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, and two QB hits.
The veteran linebacker proved once again as a couple of players have on the Patriots' roster have that age is just a number, and that Hightower is still one of the best linebackers in the league at 29 years old.
