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CLEVELAND — On the second play from scrimmage Sunday, the Browns called a play-action pass the Patriots didn’t prepare for once in practice.
It started with Jacoby Brissett faking a hand-off left and three tight ends aligned to the right. The inner-most tight end sprinted upfield on a deep corner route angled toward the near sideline while the other two blocked. After dragging the entire defense left with his play fake, Brissett booted back right looking for his deep tight end.
He fired.
Five seconds later, Patriots safety Kyle Dugger was celebrating with his teammates and Brissett’s pass in hand. Although the play fake had pulled Dugger forward, his mind, carrying a faint memory of old Browns film he’d recently studied, yanked him backward. Dugger had seen this play before, and knew where the ball would go.
“He literally watches film 24/7,” said Pats safety Adrian Phillips. “You don’t really see that from a lot of young guys, but the fact that he takes it so seriously and it’s showing on the field, it’s cool to see.”
The play had tested Dugger in the same way his coaches had tested him all week, forcing him to play pass first within a game plan designed to stop the run. The Patriots intended to halt Cleveland’s league-leading run game with a personnel package featuring four defensive linemen, three linebackers and just one cornerback, which meant Dugger had to assume full-time coverage duties instead of playing pseudo linebacker on early downs. Once the Browns declared their three-tight end formation on their second play, his duties became serving as a de facto outside corner.
“I was just trying to get back into phase as the deep player, and I got my head back once I kind of caught up with him and got even,” Dugger recalled of the pick. “And turned around and caught it.”
Dugger’s interception not only killed Cleveland’s opening drive, but provided strong field position for the Pats’ first possession. Bailey Zappe and Co. quickly marched all the way to the Browns’ 1-yard line before kicking a field goal. Zappe later stole most headlines, as he threw for more than 300 yards in his second start.
But the second play typified a defensive performance that allowed the Patriots offense enough time to work out its growing pains around him. At halftime, the Pats led just 10-6, thanks not to a Zappe passing touchdown but Rhamondre Stevenson rushing touchdown on third-and-10. Defensively, the Pats trusted an atypical game plan would carry the day.
“I felt like I’d be too slow to fit the run,” Dugger said, “so (I) definitely had to work on it throughout the week and just trust that I’ve got to do my job.”
Eventually, the Patriots held Cleveland’s high-powered running game to 70 total yards, with Pro Bowl back Nick Chubb gaining just 56.
“We tried to just stop them and we put all of our eggs in one basket,” Pats outside linebacker Matt Judon said.
And the Pats succeeded, thanks to their personnel, starting with the 4-3 package and Dugger’s work in their more regular groupings. He finished with a team-high eight tackles and two pass deflections. The interception marked his first turnover of the season; a function of dedicated film study and smart game-planning executed by players who see a formula for more success in the coming weeks.
“We know that when we do what we’re supposed to do, we can be really good,” Phillips said. “We have to be able to lock in each and every day and each and every game for us to get those results. But if everyone buys into that plan, and we execute the plan the way we’re supposed to execute the plan and nobody deviates, then we can be really good.”
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