FOXBORO -- While Albert Haynesworth remains a convenient punching bag for the ills of the New England defense over the first half of the season, he wasn’t the only new defensive lineman who has had an underwhelming start to his career with the Patriots.

Whether it has been because of age (the 34-year-old is the second-oldest player on the roster, trailing only guard Brian Waters) or injury (he underwent hip surgery in the offseason, and recently suffered a rib injury), Shaun Ellis hasn’t lived up to the lofty expectations that were placed on him when he signed with the Patriots in August. Through eight games, he has eight tackles (five solo) and one quarterback hit, and while he’s been a more reliable presence than Haynesworth, his play hasn’t matched the one-year deal worth $4 million ($1.5 million base salary; $750,000 signing bonus and $1.75 million roster bonus) he inked with New England this summer.

Ellis’ acquisition was met with excitement. The veteran enjoyed torturing the New England offense the last few seasons (he had two sacks in the Jets’ playoff win over the Patriots in January), and was even described by his former defensive coordinator Mike Pettine as “Patriot killer.” But when the Jets could only offer him the veterans minimum this offseason, he bolted for New England, and on Aug. 8, he said that New England, “feels like home.”

“It feels like a place that’s all about winning, like they have been [winning]. I’m just happy to be a part of it,” he said when he showed up at Gillette Stadium. “[The] first thing that comes to mind is winning, you know, championships. I don’t have one and I want to get one before it’s all said and done. This is the best opportunity for me to do it and I joined and I’m ready to get in line with the rest of the guys and play my role.”

After joining the Patriots, he spent some time during training camp on the physically unable to perform list because of offseason hip surgery. He had a decent start to the season with a pair of solid performances out of the gate -- his high point likely came in Week 2 against the Chargers, where he played 46 of a possible 72 snaps and picked up a pair of quarterback pressures in New England’s win over San Diego.

But lately, Ellis sightings have been few and far between. In a Week 4 win over his old team, he was in on 27 of 54 snaps, and just nine snaps over the last two weeks after suffering an injured rib early in the Patriots’ loss to Pittsburgh on Oct. 30. While he’s been at practice on a regular basis since the injury -- he was limited at Wednesday practice because of the rib -- he’s been out of sight in the locker room during media availability.

His teammates talk about him in positive terms, and it’s clear he’s done nothing to diminish his rep as a positive influence in the locker room. And his willingness and versatility to play both in a three-man front and four-man front can give the Patriots an added dimension up front. But when it comes to on-field numbers, the Patriots have gotten amazingly similar value out of the recently released Haynesworth, even though Ellis has played 239 snaps over the course of the first eight games, while Haynesworth played 132.

Consider the numbers from Pro Football Focus:

•PFF has Ellis with six tackles and Haynesworth with two. (In the Patriots’ stat pack, which goes by coaches’ film review, Ellis is credited with eight tackles and Haynesworth with six.)

•Pass defense: The two are tied in quarterback pressures (eight) and sacks (zero), while Haynesworth has a 2-1 lead in quarterback hits. Overall, PFF has Haynesworth with a pass rush grade of +4.6 over the first eight games, while Ellis is a -4.1 in the same department.

•Run defense: In defensive stops (classified as the number of solo defensive tackles made that constitutes an offensive failure), Ellis has four while Haynesworth has been credited with two. PFF has Haynesworth at a +0.5 and Ellis at -0.9 in run defense.

It’s important to note that there is plenty of time left in the season, and this week is as good a time as any for Ellis to turn things around, as the Patriots will be traveling to meet his old team at MetLife Stadium for a key divisional clash Sunday night in New Jersey. Maybe after Sunday, Ellis will have done enough to earn a new nickname from his old defensive coordinator.