Sunday's win over Houston was by no means an artistic masterpiece, but there was one area that stood out in the second half, and it's an area that hasn't been a strength of the team in recent years.
Over the past two-plus seasons the Patriots run defense hasn't exactly been stout. Even going back to the 12-4 campaign in 2019, New England's defense had trouble containing opposing running backs, a fact that was perfectly illustrated in the wild card loss to Tennessee when Derrick Henry ran wild in the Titans victory.
Bill Belichick, a defensive purist at heart, obviously recognized this and decided he'd seen enough.