Offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur on the sidelines in the second half as the New England Patriots defeated the NY Jets 25-6 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ on September 19, 2021. The New England Patriots Came To Play The Ny Jets At Metlife Stadium In East Rutherford Nj On September 19 2021
Offensive line continuity remains a concern as Duane Brown did not practice on Thursday. George Fant and Connor McDermott were also limited. Here is the full injury report.
The coordinators spoke to the media on Thursday ahead of the week one home matchup vs the Baltimore Ravens. Here are some notable quotes.
Does the game plan change with Joe Flacco at QB?
No, in terms of, how we’re going to approach this game, you have to fit a game plan to fit a player’s skill set whether it’s the receivers, running backs, o-line, quarterbacks, so does Joe do stuff better than Zach (Wilson)? Does Zach do stuff better than Joe? They’re different quarterbacks, but in terms of how we’re approaching this game, and what we’re putting on the play, we have to attack the Baltimore defense, which is going to give us a lot of different challenges because the coordinator, obviously, being at Michigan last year and being on that staff, how much is he going to do of what Wink (Don Martindale) was doing and all that, so there’s a lot of unknowns always going into Week One. We’re going to approach it with the way we always approach games, but ultimately, this game is going to be decided, particularly the offensive side of the ball with the style that we come out and play with.
Offensive line continuity?
As a coach, you’re always concerned about everything, am I concerned about the continuity? No, is it the most ideal situation? No, you want them to be playing from the first snap of OTAs to training camp, that’s not the cards we were dealt and that is what it is. I’ve been in other situations where you go out there with a bunch of young guys that yeah, they might of had all August together, but they haven’t play Calais Campbell or the Baltimore Ravens defense before, so that’s a whole other concern. The cool part about this offensive line is they played a lot of football games on Sunday’s and there’s no practice that can get you to that moment, it’s just that experience and that preparation that those guys have gone through that you feel confident in them.
How do you stop Lamar Jackson?
It’s a tremendous challenge. It’s just one of the most unique offenses and obviously, Lamar’s one of the most unique players in this League, so it is an absolute headache, but I really believe our guys are up for it and I’m excited about the challenge, although it is a tremendous one.
Having Carl Lawson on the field?
Yeah, I mean he is absolutely impossible to replicate. He brings not only pass rush and he brings skill, but also brings this toughness and this strain and this effort and this mindset that absolutely rubs off on other people, so we missed him last year, we’re excited to have him back we really are and I know he’s excited too.
CJ Mosley
Yeah, I’d say the Mike linebacker, and especially a guy like C.J. which we lean on so hard to run our defense and make all the checks, and adjust, and communicate, and get everybody lined up. He is absolutely critical, he’s a guy that elevates everyone around him. He’s the guy, because of him we’ve got a chance to be a good defense and he’s got a lot of the glue that holds us together. So, we go a little bit as he goes and if there’s a guy I want to lean on, that’s the guy I want to lean on.