It wasn't pretty, but the New England Patriots were able to improve to 2-3 on the season with a win over the Houston Texans on Sunday.
Despite getting a tally in the win column, the Patriots clearly have a lot to clean up ahead of their Week 6 meeting with the Dallas Cowboys. Specifically, the defense has plenty to fix after allowing rookie quarterback Davis Mills to throw for 312 yards and three touchdowns.
On a brand new episode of the Patriots Talk Podcast, Tom E. Curran and Phil Perry discussed these problems and whether they're fixable.
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"There's a lot here that I've said, 'They're gonna figure it out.' For instance after the Miami game, 'Fumbles, penalties, whatever, they've got a quarterback and it's a Bill Belichick-coached team, it's gonna figure it out,' " Curran said. "Well, five weeks in we're seeing similar issues crop up, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Offense too, but more on the defensive side of the ball with miscues and substitution breakdowns and what seem to be coverage issues that don't mesh with the situation we're looking at."
Curran asked Patriots linebackers coach Jerod Mayo about the defense's glaring issues.
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"We're still a work in progress," Mayo said during his press conference Tuesday. "We have a lot of new guys and I would say if you looked at our team historically we've had very little turnover. We've got a bunch of new guys and they're all good players but we're still trying to figure each other out. In saying that, there have been stretches this year that we've played pretty decent football, especially on the defensive side of the ball. ... But you're right, we definitely have a long way to go. We have to get better."
Also discussed in this episode: Josh McDaniels is asked about his playcalling and the offense in general. Has Bill Belichick’s coaching style changed over the years? Mayo on the challenges the Cowboys present on offense. Curran and Perry react to comments from Darrelle Revis about not enjoying his time in New England. Kyle Van Noy joins to talk about the team’s slow start. Van Noy weighs in on Revis’ comments, and much more.
Check out the latest episode of the Patriots Talk Podcast on the NBC Sports Boston Podcast Network, or watch on YouTube.