Bill Belichick, Patriots defense knows what they need to do against Josh Allen and the Bills

But that match was marked by winds of up to 55 miles per hour. In the second match between the two teams, Allen seemed to prove that the first match was a fluke due to that wind. In a 33-21 win over the Patriots, Allen completed 30 of 47 passes for 314 yards and three touchdowns.

Perhaps the most impressive part of the Week 16 performance was that the Allen and the Bills offense not only committed a spin, but never ran the ball. Key members of the Patriots defense learn that taking the Allen and the Bills off the field is something they have to do from jumping.

“It is always good to start fast, to start against your opponents,” said J.C. Jackson. “You don’t want to play catch-up. Getting a good, quick start is always good for us. We go there in the first series, we get three players – that’s how you want to start your football game. And I think that’s what We need to do it.”

“We didn’t get them to run in the last game, so it was definitely critical,” added safety Adrian Phillips. “You get to the last flight with a chance to win and you get third a few times and we can’t get off the field. I saw how the game went for us. So, we have to get off the field and make a turn.”

Allen doesn’t just do his damage in the air. He can also do damage on the ground, having rushed for 722 yards this season. In the last game, Allen lunged for 64 yards on 12 buggies. Arguably his biggest plays in the game came in an accelerated play. In fourth and one and five points behind, Allen raced to his left and passed the Patriots to the defenders for eight yards to grab the first goal.

Jackson was one of the defenders who knocked Allen out of that play. He thinks running with the ball is Allen’s best trait, which makes stopping him even more difficult.

“You can’t sleep,” said Jackson. “He has a very strong arm. He can scramble out of the pocket, throwing the ball to the other side of the field. He can do everything, really. You know what I say? It’s like playing soccer in the backyard.”

Phillips agreed with Jackson’s assessment of playing against the moving midfielders.

“With any kind of portable quarterback, when they get out of the pocket, they freak out,” Phillips said. “When those plays are extended, it gets tough. It makes it tougher on [defensive backs] And men in coverage.

“It would be crucial for us to take him out, but keep him in the pocket at the same time. It’s a tough challenge and people haven’t done a really great job. We managed to beat him in the first match with it, which made him feel uncomfortable. It’s a tough job.”

Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, who believes most Allen runs by design, recognized the challenge of trying to thrill Allen while keeping him in the pocket.

“It rushes, but goes through a rush with discipline and awareness,” Belichick said. “If you miss him and let him go, that’s going to be a big problem. You can’t just stand there and watch him throw. That’s not the answer, but being undisciplined and having to run in there, letting him run, that’s not the answer either. He’s a tough guy to defend. We’ll have to Trying to balance what I said: aggressive impulsiveness with vision and the element of containment on it.”

Keeping Allen on the ground could be a challenge for New England. Since Week 14 Farewell, 615 fast yards at 4.8 yards are allowed per game over four games.

Phillips thinks the Patriots should get back to basics so they don’t get run over by Allen and Biles on Saturday night.

“A lot of our struggles lately have been more on the technical side and basically being healthy,” Phillips said. “If we find out – well, we’ll figure it out – we’ll have a better ending.”

Even if the Patriots were able to contain the Bills’ ground match, they would still have their hands full in the passing game. Star-level receiver Stefon Diggs has earned a Patriots number since joining the Bills prior to the 2020 season, collecting 26 passes for 373 yards and four touchdowns over four games.

Jackson, who has been tasked with covering the Diggs for many of those games, considers Diggs to be one of the best receivers in the league. While Jackson wasn’t putting in much effort in one of the main matches, Phillips did open the curtain a little bit about how Jackson thought about facing the Diggs.

“That’s exactly what he wanted,” Phillips said. “He wouldn’t have had it any other way. Whoever the number one receiver in the league is, he wants to guard that guy. When he has a chance to go in there and go against Diggs, he gets locked up. He doesn’t want it any other way.”