The 2025 New England Patriots have gone from sloppily disappointing in the first three games to soaring in the next six. The team is on a five-game winning streak and getting better by the week. Yet, one aspect of the defense is troubling - they're giving up points on the first two drives of games far too often, and it has to stop.
The result of this early defensive malaise is that brilliant young quarterback Drake Maye, who's taking the top off the NFL in his sophomore season, and his offense are being put in a hole from the start. While he's proven capable of leading his team out of that morass, the better option is to stone opposing offenses early, ring up a lead, and then coast to an easy win.
The defense has managed to rebound from early deficiencies. Yet against the top NFL teams, putting the team in that situation is a prescription for disaster. It's incumbent upon both the coaching staff and the defense to be ready to play when the whistle blows. Thus far, it hasn't been.
Mike Vrabel has to take responsibility for his defense's slow starts
Mike Vrabel has done a splendid job thus far as the Patriots' coach. One of owner Robert Kraft's best decisions in years, Vrabel has not only transformed a lackluster roster in one offseason into a contender, but also has the team heading for the playoffs.
Yet, as Patriots.com writer Evan Lazar points out, early on in games, his defense is terrible.
Some crazy splits for the #Patriots defense in the first two drives compared to the rest of the game.
— Evan Lazar (@ezlazar) October 28, 2025
They've given up points on six of their eight opening drives on defense. But are a top-10 defense outside of the script. pic.twitter.com/GaumASjAXb
The Patriots' defense has not been ready to play from the outset of their games. The offense has been placed into early deficits as a result. It's time for this to change, and to mete out responsibility and accountability where it belongs to get fixed.
The Patriots' defense isn't ready to play when the ball is kicked off
It's the coaching staff's responsibility to get the team ready to play, not for 45 or 50 minutes but for the full 60 minutes of every NFL game. Thus far, Mike Vrabel, who as Head Coach is the lead dog in all this, has flopped. His defense hasn't been ready to play from the whistle.
Whether Vrabel's pre-game speeches are flat, his players aren't physically warmed up enough, or they aren't mentally primed, they just haven't been ready at the beginning of drives of games. The Patriots have been a tale of two defenses. The defense has been out of kilter early in games, but eventually they get into the flow and plays well.
Whatever comments or other gimmicks Vrabel is using to try to get his D ready to play aren't working. Vrabel had better change his pre-game routine and fast. The Head Coach has the singular responsibility to get his team ready to play from the first kickoff. Vrabel's grade on that aspect of his defense is a D. He has to get it ironed out.
Another component of bringing a team up to readiness is the responsibility of the defensive captains. Whatever Vrabel does to try to get his team ready, the captains should also get an opportunity to rile up their respective units. If they can't, they aren't worthy of being captains.
The defensive captains are linebacker Robert Spillane, edge Harold Landry III, and defensive back Marcus Jones. To date, they've dropped the ball in getting their unit ready to play from the outset. If they can't, then Vrabel should make changes and find captains who can.
The 2025 Patriots have the potential to do great things. But if their defense can't get untracked early and stop opposing offenses from the first kickoff, they risk blowing what could be a truly epic season. It's time for Mike Vrabel and the captains to get that glitch fixed quickly, before it costs them big-time.