Rex: Pats D 'doesn't get credit it deserves'

FOXBORO -- Jets coach Rex Ryan saw the film of Sunday's Patriots game in Seattle in which they gave up two touchdown passes in the final eight minutes, blowing a 13-point lead in a 24-23 loss to the Seahawks. But Tuesday, in a conference call with the New England media, Ryan said he doesn't see the Patriots defense as weak or incompetent. 

"I think you have to be balanced," Ryan said. "I know New England, every year they get criticized for their pass defense, what they rank and all that. But it's not about that. The Patriots play complimentary football where obviously, you have the No. 1 offense in all of football, scoring offense, total offense, everything else offense. So, what you do is you try to win the turnover battle. 

"Their record when they win the turnover battle is phenomenal. That's something they do and I think it kind of gets overlooked. I know the offense - and deservedly so - gets a ton of credit but since 2008, for instance, when they win the turnover battle, they're 39-4. To me, that's a team thing. When they lose it, they're 8-10. So, I think the defense plays a part in that. Plus, when you get up that many points a lot of times, you're willing to give up some things underneath and get a tipped ball or force a tackle and fumble. I think their defense doesn't get the credit it deserves."

As for attacking the Patriots through the air and foregoing "ground and pound" as an offensive strategy, Ryan said he is leaning toward sticking with what the Jets do the best - running the football. They are 15th in the NFL in rushing but just 30th in passing coming into Sunday's game. 

"We know who we are," Ryan said. "Other people might not. We know who we are. We're a team, we believe in what we do. Sometimes, you're going to be able to run the ball better than other times. We're committed to running the football. We might not have great success but we're going to keep running it. We think that opens up our passing game for us.

"We don't play offense the same way New England does. We don't have the same players. We're built differently. We have excellent players; we're just built a little different. I think the job of any coach is to maximize the talent you have and put them in position to be successful. I think both our team and New England does that. Both teams do it a little differently."

For more, visit the Patriots team page at weei.com/patriots.