One of the main reasons why the New England Patriots beat the Buffalo Bills last Sunday was their defense completely shut down Dalton Kincaid.
He entered Week 4 as the NFL’s most productive tight end with 14 receptions for 263 yards and a touchdown through the first three games.
But he failed to make any kind of impact against the Patriots. Kincaid caught only one pass for seven yards on two targets. How did the Patriots limit his effectiveness?
“I think awareness,” Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel said at his Monday press conference. “I think that [Robert] Spillane did a nice job. On one play, they tried to hide him over there on the line of scrimmage. It’s not where he usually hangs out, and so he ran the over, and Spillane was able to carry him, I think, just long enough for Josh to go in a different direction. Felt like good coverage all day, being able to mix zone and mix man. But having an awareness of where he is and not letting him just run free.”
The Patriots passed their test versus Kincaid, but a much tougher challenge awaits Sunday.
The Las Vegas Raiders are coming to Gillette Stadium for a Week 5 matchup. They have the best tight end duo in the league in Brock Bowers and Michael Mayer. Keeping this tandem in check will be pivotal to the Patriots’ chances of winning.
“They’re feeding their tight ends,” Vrabel said Monday. “They have a great group. Certainly different play styles, but Brock is as elite as they come at that position. So, we’ll have a huge challenge. We’ll just be getting started here in a little bit.”
No team targets tight ends more than the Raiders. A whopping 38.7 percent of the Raiders’ targets go to tight ends, which is the highest of any team. Raiders tight ends — Bowers, Mayer and Ian Thomas — have been targeted a league-high 53 times. They have tallied 39 receptions for 414 yards and four touchdowns as a group.
Bowers is the star. It’s not early (or crazy) to say he is on track to be a Hall of Famer. He recently became the second-fastest tight end to eclipse 2,000 career receiving yards, and he has the most career receptions (192) for a tight end before his 24th birthday.
Bowers torched the Patriots defense last season with five receptions for 103 yards in Week 1.
He missed the first two games of the season due to injury, but he’s been almost uncoverable since returning. Bowers caught 10 passes for 116 yards and a touchdown in a Week 3 victory over the New Orleans Saints.
He followed that up with six receptions for 86 yards and one touchdown in a loss to the Kansas City Chiefs last week.
Despite only playing two games, he’s the only tight end in the league this season to tally 10-plus catches, 100-plus yards and at least one touchdown in a single game.
Being aware of where Bowers lines up will be critical for the Patriots defense. He doesn’t stay in just one spot. He has lined up wide for 61 snaps, in the slot for 45 snaps, inline for 16 snaps and in the backfield for two snaps. He’s especially dangerous in the slot.
Bowers isn’t only a great pass-catching tight end. He blocks at a high level, too. He was the seventh-best pass-blocking tight end last season, per Pro Football Focus.
The other half of the Raiders’ two-headed monster at tight end is Mayer. Bowers’ return to the lineup hasn’t taken away snaps from Mayer. In fact, he has actually seen an increase in snaps since Bowers came back, including a season-high 80 snaps last week.
Mayer has 20 receptions for 169 yards and a touchdown in four games. He’s a tough cover at 6-foot-4 and 256 pounds.
The Raiders are a good team. They’re 3-1, and their only loss was a three-point defeat to the undefeated Kansas City Chiefs. Kirk Cousins is a competent quarterback, Ashton Jeanty is a good running back, Bowers and Mayer are the league’s top tight end duo, and Maxx Crosby is an elite edge rusher.
The Patriots got a much-needed win and confidence-booster against the Bills last week. But the positive momentum built from that victory could be short-lived if they don’t bring their “A” game against the Raiders. Taking Las Vegas lightly would be a huge mistake. And the top priority for New England’s defense must be finding a way to slow down the Bowers/Mayer duo.
