Tom Brady after being sacked during last Sunday's Patriots-Ravens game. (Getty Images)
BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — Patriots players are off Thursday through Sunday, and WBZ NewsRadio's Adam Kaufman caught up with Boston Globe NFL reporter Ben Volin for the Red Zone Report to see where the team stands at their bye week.
Pats fans have been wondering what the team's leading NFL defense would look like against a legitimate offense. The answer? Not good.
Was the performance against the Ravens an anomaly, or was the Patriots' historic statistical pace overrated?
"So, the answer's kind of both there," Volin said. "I don't think the Patriots ultimately will be one of these historic defenses. Although, to be fair, the '85 Bears gave up 38 points to the Dolphins, and the 2000 Ravens gave up 37 points to the Jaguars, so even these great defenses have one or two games where they don't play so well. But I do think the Patriots defense will come back to Earth."
New England has a tough stretch of games coming up after the bye week, with a trip to Philadelphia, then Dallas at home, then a trip to Houston, before returning to Foxborough to face Kansas City. Volin said he thinks the Patriots will lose one of those match-ups.
"I think one of those road games, whether it's the Eagles or the Texans, I do think the Patriots will drop one of those," he said. "I'm not as concerned about the home games, although obviously if Patrick Mahomes is back, you gotta be concerned about the Chiefs coming in here and winning, 'cause I think that's definitely a possibility. But I think they'll take care of Dallas at home."
Kaufman and Volin also talked about the timing of the bye week, whether the Pats' defense or offense has more questions to answer, who the biggest threat to the Patriots is at this point, and the prospect of a Pats-Niners Super Bowl.
Listen to this week's Red Zone Report with Adam Kaufman (@adammkaufman) and Ben Volin (@BenVolin):
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