New England Patriots: 3 Season observations entering Week 10 bye

2. Defensive dominance has been pleasant surprise

Through nine weeks of action, the New England defensive unit has been one of the best groups in the entire NFL while quickly emerging as a shutdown squad that is able to hold an opponent in check nearly every week.

With the exception of the Week 9 loss to the Baltimore Ravens on the road, the Patriots defense was able to hold their opposition out of the end zone for the most part while frequently being able to force turnovers on that side of the field.

The result of that dominant defense in return provides quarterback Tom Brady and the New England offense more time on the field and they are then able to go to work within the dominant offensive attack that has pushed games out of reach early on in contests leading up to the Week 10 slate of games.

Entering Week 10, the Patriots defense ranks near the top of the league in numerous categories, further showing how strong they have been as a unit up to this point in the year.

New England’s defensive corps ranks second in the NFL behind only the San Francisco 49ers in yards per game (249.3), also ranking first in points given up on average (10.9), first in yards per play (4.3), first in interceptions (19) and is tied for eighth in fumbles forced (nine).

As they enter the bye week this weekend in the 10th week of action in the 2019 campaign, the Patriots defense has been a pleasant surprise and has continued the trend of being a really solid unit up to this point in the year for the defending champions.