Rodney Harrison didn't mince words when asked by our Tom E. Curran about the New England Patriots' poor defensive effort in the AFC wild-card game vs. the Buffalo Bills.
The Patriots' 2021 season came to an end that night with a 47-17 defeat. Bills quarterback Josh Allen put on a historic performance with 308 passing yards, 66 rushing yards, and five touchdowns.
"It hurt to see the Patriots defense just get run over, just get pushed, just get bullied," Harrison told Curran on a recent episode of the Patriots Talk Podcast.
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Patriots inside linebackers coach Jerod Mayo joined Curran on the latest episode of the Patriots Talk Podcast and responded to Harrison's remarks.
Patriots Talk: Jerod Mayo responds to Rodney Harrison's comments about the Patriots defense | Listen & Subscribe | Watch on YouTube
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“They outcoached us, outplayed us, it was a tough game," Mayo said. "I'm not going to sit here and offer excuses. What I will say to Rodney --- because this is like the third time this has come up as far as what Rodney has said in this regard --- if you zoom out and look at the season as a whole, we ended up third in points per game, which is really the most important thing, and I think sixth or seventh as far as yards per game. If you go into a season saying you're gonna have these numbers -- obviously the expectation is always to be number one -- but number three and number seven ain't bad.
"And so, when he says things like the Patriots defense is soft and isn't good, it's like, alright, buddy. I know that’s what you're supposed to do, but at the same time, let’s look at it from a season-wide perspective and not just a playoff perspective."
Also discussed in this episode: What role do coaches play in making sure a player is ‘ready’ for a game? Mayo shares his experience interviewing for head coaching positions and his thoughts on the frustrations of Black coaches. Who is actually in charge of the Patriots' defense? And what do the Patriots need to do defensively to stack up against the NFL’s elite QBs and offenses?
Check out the latest episode of the Patriots Talk Podcast on the NBC Sports Boston Podcast Network, or watch on YouTube.