Through the Patriots first eight games, they have recorded more yards from scrimmage and have scored more points than any team in the NFL while being led by a quarterback who thinks they have room for improvement. Tom Brady, in an interview with the Boston Herald, said that he hopes that the Patriots make some improvements over their bye week.
“There’s still a lot of football left. We’re 5-3 so that tells you we’ve been a little bit up and down. It hasn’t been terrible. It hasn’t been great and we have a lot of room for improvement, so we’ll see how that goes over the course of the next eight weeks. […] We have to go out there and do it. We have to go out there and earn it. That’s part of why we play. The enjoyment of playing is to go out there and do something about it, not just talk about it.”
As things currently stand, Brady is leading the NFL with 2,408 passing yards. Wes Welker is second in the NFL in receiving yards and tight end Rob Gronkowski is leading the NFL at his position with 580 receiving yards. It’s hard to imagine this offense being much more efficient, but that’s why he’s Tom Brady and we’re, well, not.
What the Patriots do need to improve on is their defense. They’re ranked 23rd in the league in total defense giving up 370 yards per game. They’ve tried to shore up their pass defense by trading for the Buccaneers cornerback Aqib Talib.
The Patriots have a bye this week and come back with home games against the Bills and the Colts.
