One week after the Patriots were bullied by the Jaguars, New England roared into Buffalo’s next stadium and gave the Bills their first loss there.
Appearing Tuesday on NBC Sports Boston, Patriots safety Kevin Byard explained coach Mike Vrabel’s strategy for giving the team a spark.
“He showed a video of the famous Allen Iverson, NBA Finals, making the three-point shot, stepping over Tyronn Lue,” Byard said. “So, at first, you don’t really know where he’s going with it. . . . I think the overall messaging was, ‘It’s time to start stepping over people.’ You know what I mean? It’s time to get back to where we’re stepping over people and making sure that we’re not about to be the team that’s gonna let people bully them. . . .
“So yeah, I think that was kind of the overarching message to, hey, we are physical. We are a tough team. Let’s, let’s start stepping over people kind of like how A.I. did in that video.”
It worked. The Pats were far more physical than they had been in Jacksonville, and in turn far more effective. The Patriots avoided a 1-3 start and a three-game hole in the AFC East. Instead, they’re only one game behind Buffalo — and they’ll have a chance to complete the sweep when the two teams meet again in Week 13.