Yes, it was a 24-point road win for the Patriots.
Yes, Tom Brady went another game without throwing an interception.
But the Patriots quarterback wasn’t as happy with the offense’s performance as a 30-6 win over the Dallas Cowboys might indicate.
“Offense, we made a few plays, but we can play better than that,” Brady said after he complimented New England’s defense.
Brady was sacked five times, knocked down eight, and the Patriots converted just 30 percent of their third-down attempts, compared with 60 percent in their first three games. Brady said he probably held onto the ball too long a few times, contributing to the Cowboys’ ability to disrupt the pocket and passing game.
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New England’s first possession resulted in a three-and-out and the first of four first-half punts, forcing adjustments on the fly.
“Yeah, it was a lot of adjustments today. I don’t think we practiced much of what they were doing,” Brady said.
Defensive end Greg Hardy, back from a four-game suspension, hit Brady five times, which included two sacks, to help hold the Patriots to 13 first-half points.
“They had some good personnel on defense,” Brady said. “I think they just played a few different fronts, a few different coverages, stuff they hadn’t shown. They came in with an approach and I thought we settled in and made some plays there to start the second half, but we got to play better.”
But it the second half, Brady completed 10 of 11 passes and had some help from Julian Edelman, who had a catch-and-run touchdown of 59 yards:
and Dion Lewis, who had a one-handed catch before zig-zagging around tacklers for a 10-yard score:
“I think he’s come in and made a huge impact on our team,” Brady said of Lewis. “I’m sure he had a lot of belief in himself and obviously missing a lot of football last year. He’s just been an amazing player for our team through four games.”
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Brady finished 20-of-27 passing for 275 yards, two touchdowns, and a rushing touchdown against the Cowboys. Through four games, he has thrown for 1,387 yards and no interceptions.
But, as he reiterated, the Patriots still have 12 games left. It’s along season.
“It’s four games into the year,” he said. “You can’t practice everything, so we’ll make the adjustments and hopefully be better next week.”
Follow Rachel G. Bowers on Twitter @RachelGBowers.