National Football League

Wilfork inspires youthful defense

Published Oct. 19, 2010 10:17 a.m. ET

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The Patriots' young defense was shredded with the regularity of cheese in an Italian kitchen during its first four games.

It gave up at least 374 yards three times, including at 400 or more to both the Bengals and Dolphins. It was the worst team in the NFL at getting off the field on third down, which allowed opposing offenses to finish in the black in the red zone.

Add it all up and you've got a unit ranked 29th in yards allowed and, more importantly, 26th in points allowed.

Things weren't much better yesterday as the Baltimore Ravens came to town for an enticing matchup of one-loss teams and a rematch of a wild-card playoff game here last season that ended with the Patriots getting smoked by 19 points.

The Ravens piled up 296 yards through three quarters and extended their lead to 10 points with a field goal on the second play of the fourth. Quarterback Joe Flacco, who misfired on 10 of his final 16 passes against an injury-ravaged Denver defense the week before, was 20 of 23 for 226 yards and two touchdowns on this sunny afternoon at Gillette Stadium.

The situation appeared dire, but big Vince Wilfork never got down. He made sure his defensive mates, who included four rookie starters, didn't either.

"I didn't see the doubt (in their eyes)," Wilfork said. "I just didn't want them to have any doubt. I see these guys work every day and they wouldn't be on the field if we didn't have confidence in them.

"As young guys, you might not understand Bill Belichick at the time. But for the guys who have been around, we understand him. It's just one of those things where you want to make sure they're on the same page.

"So you go tell them, `Hey man, keep your head up. We still have got plenty of football left. Don't worry about it.' It means a lot to some people, they need to hear it."

Turns out there was a lot more football left. The defense rose up and displayed fortitude where none had been before, and stoned the Ravens over the final 14:53 of regulation and first 11:37 of overtime as the Patriots rallied for a 23-20 victory.

Baltimore was limited to 81 yards and, more importantly, zero points over the last 26-plus minutes of the game. The key was the Patriots' ability to make stops on third down.

The Ravens were denied on all three of their third-down plays in the fourth quarter and were 1 for 4 in overtime. Compare that not-so-successful rate of 14 percent with the first three quarters when the Ravens cashed in at 44 percent (4 for 9), including converting on a third-and-10, a third-and-9 and a third-and-11.

"We responded," Wilfork said. "We made the plays when we needed to make them. In the fourth quarter, when we needed to get off the field, we got off the field. You can win with a team like that."

Arguably the biggest stop in the fourth came right after the Patriots had cut the lead to 20-17 on Deion Branch's touchdown reception.

It was third and 1 at the Baltimore 47. The Ravens called for a quarterback sneak, not a bad idea when yours checks in at 6-foot-6 and 238 pounds.

But Wilfork and Gerard Warren, who switched spots yesterday with Wilfork moving to end and Warren to the nose, stood up Flacco for no gain.

"We called it and I went with it," Flacco said. "They did a good job and brought some guys over the top and had it balled up right over the middle. I really couldn't get my feet going at all and they did a good job, they stopped it.

"We didn't convert there. If we convert there, you never know."

The Patriots certainly know a little more about their rookie defenders after what can only be termed a monumental victory. And it's all good.

Brandon Spikes brought spirit and stoutness (14 tackles) at inside linebacker while fellow Florida alum Jermaine Cunningham used his crazy length to make all manner of plays (6 tackles, sack, forced fumble) on the outside. Defensive end Brandon Deaderick, a seventh-round pick, had a sack in his first start while helping limit the Ravens to 2.9 yards a rush.

But it was No. 1 pick Devin McCourty who displayed remarkable resiliency. The cornerback did his best imitation of a Gridiron Griller while repeatedly getting cooked by Baltimore's talented receivers, including picking up a pass interference penalty late in the first in which he was totally lost while trying to cover T.J. Houshmandzadeh.

"I had some bad plays earlier in the game, but I just told myself to keep fighting," the stand-up McCourty said.

After repeatedly taking punches, McCourty landed a lethal one as Baltimore looked at third and 6 from the New England 48 on its second possession of overtime. Flacco lofted a long ball for tight end Todd Heap down the right side, but the only player to get a hand on it was McCourty.

"It just felt good to come back and make a play," he said.

How this all plays out in the weeks to come remains a mystery because this was a small sample of success for a defense that had done little right up to this point.

But maybe, just maybe, we saw the Patriots and their young defense grow up. If that's the case, this is a team that just might be onto something here.