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Seahawks Super Bowl hero Kenneth Walker was in Kansas City on Monday night, not in Seattle last Wednesday night.
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Instead, it was rookie Jadarian Price and the Seahawks chopping up the Patriots for 5.2 yards a clip on the ground in the opener.
Staring down the (double) barrel of the Pittsburgh Steelers running game – with Jaylen Warren and Rico Dowdle – the New England Patriots understand that playing soft on the defensive front is just not an option on Sunday at Gillette Stadium.
Williams impressed by Steelers
“They’ve got two solid backs. Warren is a really strong guy. Rico Dowdle, I played against him a couple times, really strong back, patient, can get downhill and punish you if you let him,” said Milton Williams, the Patriots anchor on defense.
New England could not be happy with the way Seattle was able to dictate pace. New England spent much of the night with a safety in, or at least right on the edge of, the box, with limited success, if any.
Safeties have to impact on ground
“We play multiple coverages. We play split-safety looks, and we play post-safety looks. I think that the biggest thing is just trying to find the versatility that those guys have that they end up having to cover, being able to come in there and tackle and fit on the run game, but also playing a deep part of the field,” said coach Mike Vrabel of his safety tandem of Kevin Byard and Craig Woodson.
“So, I think that there has got to be a level of athleticism playing a deep part of the field. There has to be a level of physicality.”
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Run-stuffing is their game
Both safeties are comfortable coming forward and playing in the box. It is where each is more effective. But that has to translate.
A year ago against the Steelers, the Patriots held Pittsburgh running backs to 63 yards on 22 carries. It didn’t translate on the scoreboard because of five Patriots’ turnovers.
Still, keep the Pittsburgh ground game in low gear, and victory will come much easier this time around.
A good way to do that will be for the Patriots to get Williams back on his “A” game. New England’s prized free agent of the 2025 season wasn’t very impactful in a two-tackle performance vs. the Seahawks.
“I’m tired of being close man. I had a couple plays versus Seattle, I was close,” Williams said. “I don’t know what I’ve got to do to finish those plays – grow a little bit, just try to finish.”
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This story was originally published September 17, 2026 at 4:30 AM.