FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- The New England Patriots successfully neutralized Buffalo Bills tight end Dalton Kincaid, who had entered Week 4 leading all NFL players at his position with 263 receiving yards (which included six plays of 20-plus yards). Kincaid was held to one catch for 7 yards in New England's upset win on Sunday that evened the Patriots' record at 2-2 and "got them back in the race."
But can New England be tight-end tamers again when Brock Bowers and the 3-1 Las Vegas Raiders visit Gillette Stadium this upcoming Sunday?
"Brock is as elite as they come at that position," Patriots coach Mike Vrabel said Monday. "So, we'll have a huge challenge."
Bowers has totaled 192 career receptions, surpassing Jason Witten (188) for the most catches by a tight end under the age of 24 in NFL history. With 2,076 receiving yards, he has also tied Hall of Famer Kellen Winslow Sr. (31 games) as the second-fastest tight end in league history to reach 2,000 career receiving yards, behind another Hall of Famer in Mike Ditka (30 games).
The Raiders have been one of the NFL's surprise teams, and a key part of their winning formula has been feeding Bowers and fellow tight end Michael Mayer. But the Patriots' defense can put the clamps on opposing tight ends, as it showed on Sunday.
Vrabel cited "awareness" as one critical factor to the unit's success. He highlighted a fourth-quarter play in which Kincaid aligned next to right tackle Spencer Brown -- something he doesn't do often -- and how linebacker Robert Spillane reacted on his deep over route to take Kincaid away as a go-to option for quarterback Josh Allen. That coverage forced an incomplete pass.
The tone was set on Bills' third play of the game, when Allen targeted Kincaid on one of his patented extended plays down the field. Veteran safety Kevin Byard successfully stabbed at the ball to knock it away and force a punt.
"Felt like good coverage all day, being able to mix zone and mix man," said Vrabel, whose defense might have also benefitted from the Bills' plan that limited Kincaid to 17 pass routes. "Having an awareness of where he is and not letting him just run free."
Another example came in the third quarter, when outside linebacker Dre'Mont Jones dropped out of the pass rush into a short zone but not before jamming Kincaid right off the line of scrimmage to disrupt the timing of his route. Allen once again had to look elsewhere, sailing an incomplete pass out of bounds along the left sideline.
Whether the Patriots adopt a similar game-plan against Bowers -- or dedicate a specific defender to him on a more regular basis -- is one of the more compelling subplots to Sunday's matchup. Vrabel said coaches were beginning to devise their game plan on Monday afternoon.