The New England Patriots defense looked pedestrian at the hands of Cam Newton and Carolina Panthers offense last year.
With some help from current Pats receiver Brandon LaFell, Newton lit up New England's unit for three touchdowns, going 19-for-28 in the process, and also added 62 yards on the ground. He kept the defense on its heels and guessing for most of the night, which left the usually opportunistic group void of even one turnover.
Ahead of the Pats' rematch with Carolina this week in their third preseason game, discipline was the word of the day for veteran linebacker Jerod Mayo.
"Any time you have a quarterback that can run and throw, everyone has to be disciplined, stay in your rush lanes," Mayo said Tuesday, via Shalise Manza Young of the Boston Globe. "If you’re in pass coverage, stay in coverage. Until they pass that line of scrimmage, they can always throw the ball, there’s always a threat to throw the ball, so we all have to be alert."
The third preseason game is typically the one in which the starters see their most playing time, and New England hopes that plan won't be any different for Mayo. The 28-year-old missed practice last week with an apparent injury, though the details of that injury have not been released by him or the team.
Mayo did say Tuesday that he got some work in the day before and "feels pretty good," though his official status for Saturday remains to be seen. He did not play against the Panthers last season, as he was placed on Injured Reserve a little more than a month prior to the matchup with a torn pectoral muscle.
