3 Patriots players stepping up big to help save the season

1. Adrian Phillips

There were plenty of narratives to dissect heading into the Patriots’ meeting with the Chargers. Mac Jones vs. Justin Herbert, the chess match between Brandon Staley and Bill Belichick, and Harris’ encounter with a porous Chargers run defense were all viewed as key battles going into the game.

Yet nobody was billing this one as the Adrian Phillips revenge game.

That was what it proved to be as Phillips recorded two interceptions against his former team, the second all but sealing the victory for the Patriots as he made a diving fourth-quarter grab and returned the pick for a touchdown after a miscommunication between Herbert and tight end Jared Cook.

Successful Patriots teams down the years have gotten key contributions from a variety of unheralded players on both sides of the ball and they will need more efforts akin to Phillips’ performance on Sunday if they are to make a return to the postseason.

It remains to be seen whether the safety can have such a significant impact again this season but, for now, he can bask in having substantially boosted the Patriots’ hopes of making the playoffs while denting the prospects of the team that let him walk in 2020.