New England Patriots upset Arizona Cardinals: Likes and dislikes from Week 1

LIKE: Pressure on Carson Palmer

The Patriots did an excellent job of putting pressure on Carson Palmer last night. On the stat sheet, you will see that Vincent Valentine, Jamie Collins and Chris Long earned sacks, and each of those plays were integral in the Patriots’ victory.

Of course, the pass rush could have done better; there were plays in which Palmer evaded the rush and found an open receiver. But for the most part, the baseline amount of steady pressure on the opposing quarterback helped the Patriots keep pace with such a high-octane offense.

Good on Valentine for earning a sack in his NFL debut. The rookie pushed out veterans Markus Kuhn and Terrance Knighton in the preseason, and it looks like the Patriots made the right decision there.

As for Collins, we expect the fourth-year pro to contend for Defensive Player of the Year and corralling a sack in Week 1 is a good start.

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