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Sep 7, 2025; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Geno Smith (7) drops back to pass against the New England Patriots during the first half at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images

Patriots HC Impressed With Defensive Line Pressures

Originally posted on New England Patriots on SI
By Ethan Hurwitz | Last updated Sep 9, 2025 4:00 PM ET

In 2024, the defensive line of the New England Patriots was one of the worst in the league. Just one game into the next season and the front seven in New England appears to have turned over a brand new leaf. The front seven — which includes defensive tackles Milton Williams and Christian Barmore, and edge rusher K'Lavon Chaisson and Harold Landry — continually pressured the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 1.

Landry (2.5 sacks) and Chaisson (0.5 sack) brought down Raiders quarterback Geno Smith and it showed up in the box score. Williams on the other hand played a career-high 49 snaps in the 20-13 loss. His nine total pressures now rank him among the league leaders to start the regular season.

"Well, I though Milt was disruptive and, again, had some really good plays, and I think that when he sees how he can mix his penetration in with playing with his hands and playing with some technique and those things all factored, then he'll start to finish more. But I thought he showed well and continued to go," Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel said Monday afternoon.

In the first half, the Patriots settled down from an antsy start to really find their groove defensively. New defensive coordinator Terrell Williams started to dial up some blitz packages and let Landry and Chaisson, both free agents who are expected to contribute big time this season, run loose toward Smith.

Vrabel did clarify that it's important to not get blitz happy if it's continually working for a team.

"I think we had some good four-man rushes," he said. "There were times where guys won, whether we're going to rush straight or whether we're gaming. Just having an understanding of where the slide is or who you're working with on a particular side, whether he's going to be high in the B-gap and you need to wrap around, or they're winning on the edge and we need great push in the middle. So, those are the kinds of things that come up with a four-man rush, and we'll continue to work them. You can't live in a blitz world."

The pressures led to the team's lone turnover of the afternoon — a tipped interception that fell into the hands of starting safety Jaylinn Hawkins. In the eyes of New England's head coach, the pressures could have forced some more turnovers.

"We probably missed some hammer attempts to find the football and be able to hammer it out," Vrabel said. "So, those are great teaching moments. I'm confident that we'll improve and we'll – again, we're going to learn together, we're going to win together, we're going to stick together through this."

The Patriots are set to face the Miami Dolphins in Week 2, a division rival who was careless with the football in their season-opening loss. Both AFC East squads sit at 0-1 and if the pressures mount up against Miami quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, the Patriots could grab their first victory of the year.

And yet, Vrabel stressed the fact that there's a lot more to improve on defensively.

"We lost, so nobody played well enough, nobody coached well enough for us to win, but there were some encouraging things," he said.

This article first appeared on New England Patriots on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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