What’s more, the Patriots defense was not very good in this situation. They allowed 5.5 yards per carry when the offense ran the ball with three or more receivers on the field, the second-highest rate in the league. The Pats will need to figure out a way to stop the Eagles’ running game in those situations if they want to avoid getting burned by the likes of LeGarrette Blount, Jay Ajayi and Corey Clement.
Now the Patriots. The Patriots’ high-powered offense looks to have its hands full against the Eagles’ fearsome defense. The Eagles don’t have many obvious weaknesses, but one area in which the Patriots may be able to find an edge is passing the ball to their running backs. Among quarterbacks with at least 50 attempts to their running backs, no quarterback had a higher passer rating on those throws than Tom Brady, who was 125-157 for 947 yards and 9 touchdowns.