Re-energized Patriots jolt Saints in 36-20 win

NEW ORLEANS — Between the regular-season opener and Sunday, someone found the Patriots a generator.



After the quarterback questioned the energy level of the rest of the roster following the shocking season-opening loss to the Chiefs, it looked like most of the New England roster was in the throes of a 5-Hour Energy binge Sunday in New Orleans. All afternoon, the Patriots displayed the intensity and attitude needed to win in a loud building like the Superdome.

New England had it going from the jump on Sunday, jumping to a 20-3 lead after one and a 30-13 lead at the half. By the time the middle of the fourth quarter rolled around, the building was half-empty, and the fans that were left were chanting “BRA-DY! BRA-DY!”

Asked how he thought the team responded to the prodding he gave them after the loss to Kansas City, quarterback Tom Brady referenced the veteran leadership, which flexed its muscles in the wake of the defeat, and set the stage for Sunday’s bounce-back win.

“I think all the veterans had a chance to say what they wanted to say to their different groups, whether it was your own unit or your offense or defense or the whole team,” Brady said. “The NFL is tough. Every game is tough, Every quarter is tough. Even play is tough. And you can’t take it for granted. In order to win you have to go out there and compete and compete as hard as you can on every play. We did a good job of that (on Sunday) and I’m glad it resulted in a great win for our team.”

On offense, without Julian Edelman, Danny Amendola and Malcolm Mitchell, it was the backs and tight ends who powered things. Three touchdowns on their first three offensive drives set the tone in the early going, and Brady ended up 30-for-39 for 447 yards and three touchdowns, while four different receivers accounted for at least 65 receiving yards. In all, the Patriots finished with 555 total yards, the sixth-best output of the Brady/Bill Belichick Era.

“We definitely wanted to bounce back from last week. That’s not the way we wanted to play football,” said running back James White, who had a team-high eight catches for 85 yards in the win. “(Energy) was very important. Guys did a great job of keeping everyone in it throughout the game. We were up 14 points, and guys were like, ‘The score doesn’t matter. Just keep fighting. Keep pushing. It’s 0-0.’”

“That was big for us,” said wide receiver Brandin Cooks. “Not to just start fast, but to finish strong as well. That was our motto all week.”

Meanwhile, the New Orleans defense couldn’t convert a single third-down opportunity in the first half. That was big against an offense that led the league last year in third-down conversion rate. Four of the Saints’ 10 offensive series went for six plays or less. The Patriots were able to keep Drew Brees and the Saints’ passing game off balance all afternoon long — Brees ended up 27-for-45 for 356 yards with two touchdowns, and the bulk of that production came when the game was out of reach.

“(Third-down stops) were a key for us,” Belichick said. “That’s a tough offense to stop. They have a lot of good players that are very well-coached and a great quarterback. Anytime you can get them off the field or even let them get down into the red area and hold them to a field goal, it’s a good job by the defense.”

On defense, safety Duron Harmon credited a good week of practice as setting the stage for Sunday’s bounce-back performance.

“It was definitely one of those weeks,” he said. “When we got back out there on Wednesday, everybody was locked in. Nobody wanted to have the feeling that we had over the weekend — just sitting there and not playing for three or four days and watching everybody else play after not playing our best ball. So everybody came out with a great mindset all week and it showed out there.

“When you get that type of effort from all our guys, it’s going to make us a pretty good team.”

Nate Solder, who said that the 2017 Patriots would be defined by how they responded to the loss to Kansas City, sounded a cautiously optimistic note at the end of the game.

“Well, I thought it was a step in the right direction,” he said with a sigh in a nearly empty locker room. “I didn’t think we were waiting for guys to make plays this week. I think that guys took the initiative. I think guys played with a sense of urgency. And I think that started in practice last week. Guys were really giving it their all, taking it to the next level when it came to effort, and doing the things you need to do to improve. That’s who we are. We have to continue to improve.”