Patriots' defense absolutely dominates Colts and Sam Ehlinger in 26-3 rout before bye week

FOXBORO -- The Patriots may not be nearly as mighty as they were during their dynastic days. But they showed on Sunday that they're still capable of putting an opponent in a blender when a bad team makes a trip to Gillette Stadium.

This time, it was the free-falling Indianapolis Colts who came to Foxboro, fresh off firing their offensive coordinator and one week removed from handing the starting quarterback job to the tremendously inexperienced Sam Ehlinger.

Things went about as well as you would have expected for them, with the Indianapolis offense struggling mightily all day long in what ended up as a 26-3 Patriots victory.

Mac Jones had 147 passing yards and one touchdown, while the New England ground game struggled as well. But the Patriots' defense was so dominant that it didn't matter.

The Patriots' defense recorded nine sacks, tying a franchise record for the most sacks in a single game. Matthew Judon had three of those sacks, as did Josh Uche. Raekwon McMillan and Ja'Whaun Bentley had one sack apiece, while Deatrich Wise and Jahlani Tavai each had a half-sack.

Through their first five possessions, the Colts gained 14 total yards on 17 plays. Each drive, obviously, ended with a punt.

And the fifth one was blocked.

The Patriots' defense let off the gas a bit before halftime, allowing the Colts to gain 44 yards on nine plays. That's not a remarkable number, but considering Indianapolis had gained 20 total yards on six previous possessions, it was significant enough.

The Colts would have liked a touchdown, obviously, but Ehlinger couldn't escape Josh Uche on a third-down scramble, resulting in a shove to the boundary for the Patriots' fifth sack of the half. So the Colts settled for a field-goal attempt from 39 yards out ... but kicker Chase McLaughlin hooked it wide left.

The Colts headed to the locker room with zero points, with just 64 yards of offense, and with no answers for the Patriots' defense.

Of course, the major difference between these Patriots and the Patriots of old comes on offense. And New England wasn't overly impressive in that regard in the first half vs. Indy.

That being said, the Patriots shook off an ultra-sluggish start (11 total yards on 12 plays) to put together consecutive field goal drives to take a 6-0 lead. The blocked punt recovery at the 2-yard line allowed them to score two plays later, extending their lead to 13-0. They'd take that lead into the locker room at halftime.

Mac Jones' stat line of 8-for-13 for 62 yards and one touchdown wouldn't look overly remarkable, if only the other side of the ledger didn't show Ehlinger at 5-for-12 for 52 yards.

Matt Judon and Josh Uche had two sacks apiece, while Ja'Whaun Bentley also had a sack. Judon also registered another quarterback hit and he also drew an illegal hands to the face penalty on tackle Braden Smith. In the defensive backfield, Jalen Mills had two pass defenses.

Prior to last week, Ehlinger had taken 18 snaps, without being asked to throw a pass. Historically, this has been a recipe for disaster for visiting QBs in Foxboro, and though many things have changed over the past few years, that trend held true for this one.

The Colts finally got on the scoreboard midway through the third quarter, thanks largely to a Jakobi Meyers fumble at the New England 40-yard line. Judon came up with a sack -- his third -- on a third-and-7 at the 13-yard line, before McLaughlin successfully kicked a 40-yard field goal with 8:00 left in the third quarter.

The Patriots countered that drive with a field-goal drive of their own, though, marching 42 yards on nine plays before Folk kicked his third successful field goal of the day to give New England a 16-3 lead.

The Colts opted to go for it on a fourth-and-1 near midfield to open the fourth quarter, but Judon and Jabrill Peppers combined for a stop at the line of scrimmage to force a turnover on downs.

The Patriots were able to drive to the Colts' 2-yard line but moved backward from there, settling for a field goal to take a 19-3 lead.

The Colts' last attempt to make a game of it was thwarted rather aggressively, with Jonathan Jones making a finger-tip interception on an Ehlinger pass and returning it 17 yards for a defensive score. The PAT made it 26-3 Patriots with 3:59 left to play.

Ehlinger's deep pass on fourth-and-2 near midfield on the ensuing possession was broken up by Myles Bryant, forcing another turnover on downs.

The Patriots now head into their bye week with a 5-4 record. They'll host the Jets in two weeks at Gillette Stadium.