Taking a look at a few numbers that stood out from the Patriots' 16-9 victory over the Oakland Raiders on Sunday:
2.4
The total yards per carry on the ground for the Patriots on Sunday. The Raiders have one of the worst run defenses in the NFL and were without two of their starting linebackers. The Patriots should have been able to run it down their collective throat, but instead managed a paltry 83 yards on 29 attempts (not counting the Brady kneel downs). Stevan Ridley ran hard, and it's difficult to blame him for the poor showing. It's on the offensive line.
6.3
Yards per attempt for Tom Brady. Brady's completion percentage was at 73% on aimed passes, but once again the offense struggled to get the ball down the field. In fact, it was almost as if they had given up on the deep ball all together. Brady had just one throw 20 or more yards down the field.
87.5%
Tom Brady's accuracy in the intermediate passing game (10-19 yards down the field), which is a positive sign. Brady turned to a quick three step drop in the second half, and was able to pick up some solid gains. A pair of throws to Tim Wright and Kenbrell Thompkins stood out in particular.
9-18
The Patriots third down efficiency. This was a marked improvement from the first two weeks of the season.
1-4
The Patriots red zone efficiency. The team was also 0-2 in goal to go efficiency. The Patriots were hurt by terrible clock management at the end of the first half and dropped passes / poor execution in the second half.
0
Sacks for the Patriots defense. They had two quarterback hits. Part of this was due to the quick throws / reads that the Raiders deployed for Derek Carr. But overall, not a great showing here. Chandler Jones did swat two passes though.
1
Missed tackle for the defense. Not a bad number considering the early season struggles here. The team really did a nice job of limiting yards after the catch in the passing game (I'm looking at you, Dont'a Hightower) and gang tackling in the running game.
241
Total net yards for the Raiders offense. The Patriots didn't allow a gain of more than 29 yards (a pass to Andre Holmes that was really well covered). In total, the Raiders average just 3.0 yards per carry and 5.1 yards on the average pass play. However, their total 4.3 yards per play still outdid the Patriots' 4.2. But yeah, how about that defense?