FOXBOROUGH - The Patriots have faced some damn good defenses this season. Cleveland and Atlanta immediately jump to mind, but they also caught the Ravens when they were in peak form, and Drake Maye had to go nuclear in the final quarter to erase an 11-point deficit.
That Zach Orr defense, while not a 1-for-1 carbon copy of the Chargers defense, does come from the same tree as the one Maye and company will see on Sunday night at Gillette. LA defensive coordinator Jesse Minter blossomed as an assistant in Baltimore under John Harbaugh before taking what he had learned to the University of Michigan to coach for the ‘other’ Harbaugh, Jim. When Jim left Ann Arbor for Los Angeles, he took Minter with him. That may have been his best decision. Minter now oversees one of the league's most creative and effective units.
Minter’s core tenets - as described by the man himself - are communication, effort, tackling, ball disruption, and block destruction. He wants the scheme to matter - they are a four-man front in base and play a lot of quarters coverage behind - but also hammers down on the fundamentals. The Chargers' defense finished 6th in total yards allowed and 9th in points against. The nerd numbers back that up (mostly). LA is 10th in overall DVOA (7th in weighted DVOA), 10th against the pass (further broken down into 13th vs #1 WRs, 3rd against #2s, second against #3s, and 25th against TEs) and 18th (!) against the run.
“They are statistically excellent in every category across the front defensively,” Mike Vrabel said. “They don't just stop the run well ... they're good on third down. They're good on short yardage, excellent in the red zone.”
“You've got to be physical. You know? I mean, the only answer to physicality is physicality,” Stefon Diggs told us on Wednesday. “They fly around. They swarm to the ball. It's kind of like an out-west Ravens, if you may. You can tell that they were raised in the same household (referencing the Harbaughs). They preach the same stuff, and they kind of play the same.”
“Super fast defense, super physical,” Rhamondre Stevenson said. “They chase the ball, and they play well together.”
When Vrabel was asked what he’s learned about the play style and play demeanor of the Chargers, he highlighted a specific instance from two weekends ago in LA’s loss to Houston.
“I think it's - you look at a play that broke against the Texans. It was a screen to the left, and every single guy on defense is chasing the ball, and Khalil Mack wins the race and hammers the football out and causes a fumble,” he recalled. “So those are the things that I can appreciate, you know, with a defense or for a team.”
That effort is very evident on tape. Gang tackling isn’t a suggestion. It’s a requirement. But Minter’s defense is also greatly aided by having a player as versatile and disruptive as Derwin James.
A safety by trade, James has morphed into a linebacker/slot corner/blitzer/bully. He was a 2nd team All-Pro as a nickel corner last year, and has the best DVOA against slot receivers this year. James has three interceptions, seven passes defensed, forced a fumble, has a couple of sacks, and is second on the team in QB hits with five. Oh, and he also leads LA in solo tackles.
“Hall of Fame player, in my opinion,” Diggs said. “I know he's super young right now, but he's been playing hella ball since he stepped into the League. He plays all around the football field. He plays in the box, aggressive, and can run. He's a good football player, man. He's gonna be obviously a task for all of us. It's everybody's job to try to contain a player like that.”
“Vet in this league, very physical player,’ noted Stevenson, who will be key in blitz pickup against James. “He's gonna get near the ball, he's gonna get near the line of scrimmage, blitz a little bit. So we got to be ready for him.”
“Derwin James is Derwin James for a reason,” added Will Campbell.
There will be an element of “Where’s Waldo” in this game, only with regard to James. There was another play in that Texans game, when C.J. Stroud inexplicably threw the ball right to the Charger defense. It was illogical at the moment, and even the announcers couldn’t believe the horrible decision Stroud made. But upon further review, James wasn’t supposed to be there. I can’t tell you if he did that on his own or if it was scheme-related without asking him, but the point is, he made a play when the quarterback never would have guessed he’d be there. Different kind of player from Ed Reed, but that’s one of the things that made the Ravens safety so dangerous. I would put James in that same bucket.
Next Gen Stats has Minter’s defense scheming an unblocked pass rusher over 9% of the time, which is 4th best in the league. And while the zone coverages they prefer to play behind it - cover three and quarters mainly - are looks Maye has been excellent against, it could be more complicated with pressure and disguise. In short, this is as sharp a challenge as the Pats offense has faced to this point, and will test them more than most. It’s the playoffs. It’s not supposed to be easy...