New England Patriots defense is historically great this season

The New England Patriots defense held their opponent off the scoreboard for the second straight week on Sunday as they lay claim to be one of the best units ever

Luke Falk could’ve hoped for an easy game to make his first career start on Sunday. Instead, he got the New England Patriots, and the New York Jets’ young quarterback never stood a chance.

Falk, thrust into duty after Sam Darnold came down with mono and Trevor Semien suffered an ankle injury, finished the game in Foxborough with just 12 completions on 22 attempts for 98 yards and an interception. Swarmed all day by the Patriots defense, he was sacked five times.

Running back Le’Veon Bell, meanwhile, was held to 35 yards on 18 carries, gaining 1.9 yards per attempt. The Jets offense reached New England territory just twice in 12 drives and ran five plays beyond the 50-yard line all day. Held off the scoreboard, only a special teams touchdown and an interception return by Jamal Adams kept the score a respectable 30-14 as the Patriots improved to 3-0.

Tom Brady and the Antonio Brown saga get all the headlines, but the Patriots defense has been the best unit in football so far this season. They’ve surrendered only three points in three games and shut out their last two opponents, the Miami Dolphins last week and the Jets on Sunday. It’s not only been a dominant start to the year for Bill Belichick’s team, it’s been a historic one.

The Patriots are the first team since the NFL-AFL merger in 1970 to not allow an offensive touchdown through the first three weeks of the season. They’re the first to do it in any three-game stretch since the 2014 St. Louis Rams. They held the Jets to just 105 total yards on Sunday, a week after surrendering 184 yards to the Dolphins. It’s the first time a defense hasn’t allowed at least 185 yards twice within the first three weeks since 2008 when the Baltimore Ravens did it.

The 105 yards allowed to Falk and company are the fewest the Patriots have allowed in a game since 1988. They’re also the first team since the 2000 Titans not to allow more than three points on offense in three straight games. In fact, the Patriots have now done it four straight games after holding the Jets to three points in a Week 17 matchup at the end of last season. And that’s not even including a 13-3 win over the Rams in the Super Bowl. They’re the first team to do that since the 1988 Vikings.

The Patriots are on pace to give up 91 points this season, which would shatter the NFL record. That clearly won’t hold up over the course of a 16-game schedule, but it illustrates just how stingy this unit has been. They’ve sacked opposing quarterbacks 13 times, led by Adam Butler and Jamie Collins with 2.5 each, and are tied with the Jaguars for the most in the league. They lead the NFL with six interceptions, two of which have been returned for touchdowns.

Sure, their competition hasn’t been great. The three teams the Patriots have faced so far this season — the Steelers, Dolphins and Jets — are a combined 0-8. The Dolphins and Jets, in particular, are historically inept. But the Patriots have the potential to keep this run going for a few weeks. After playing the 3-0 Bills in Buffalo next week and a trip to Washington in Week 5, the Patriots play the Giants and rookie quarterback Daniel Jones in Week 6 before a rematch with the Jets the following week.

By then the Jets should have Darnold back under center. They better hope so, because Falk didn’t look up to the task of facing the Patriots on Sunday. But based on how they’ve played so far, there might not be a quarterback in the league who could figure out this defense.