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Do the New England Patriots Already Have A Run-Stuffing Solution In-House?
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- Do the New England Patriots Already Have A Run-Stuffing Solution In-House?
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The New England Patriots have had their fair share of issues defending against the run during the 2026 regular season, but recent strides made by their interior defensive line may be re-shaping the discussion surrounding the group with under one week until the trade deadline.
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Through eight games, New England has allowed the seventh-lowest average rushing yards against per game, 92.6, with that number continually dropping by the week. Analytically, the Patriots rank ninth in EPA/rush allowed (-0.12) and eighth in rushing success rate against (39.9%), but have been one of the NFL's worst at stuffing runs with an 18.0% stuffed run rate ranks that 27th in the league (per SūmerSports).
Another in a string of recent performances that have seen the team's defensive rankings against the run improve, New England's Week 8 win over the Miami Dolphins may have shown exactly what's been working for them: a breakout from defensive tackle Cory Durden.
Durden starred in Miami with four tackles, two tackles-for-loss, 1.5 sacks, three quarterback hits, and two defensive stops. His 1.5 sacks were the first regular season sacks of his career, but his value stretched far beyond his typical rotational pass-rushing role.
Entering the regular season, Durden was slated to assume the role of the Patriots' starting nose tackle, following the departure of Khyiris Tonga in free agency and the subsequent lack of acquiring a direct replacement. Considered undersized at 6'4", 305 pounds, Durden's profile and play-style as a penetrating interior defensive lineman doesn't fit the traditional mold of a two-gapping nose tackle who aligns directly over the center, and he's certainly taken his lumps growing into the position.
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Some metrics would suggest that's held true throughout the regular season. Durden's PFF run-defense grade of 34.0 ranks 124th of 130 qualifying interior defensive linemen in the NFL, but that doesn't paint the entire picture of his impact along the middle of New England's front.
Against the Dolphins, Durden's AVDT (the average yards from the line of scrimmage where a tackle was made) was -3.0, meaning he was three yards in the backfield, on average, when he was at or near the tackle of an opposing ballcarrier — his best mark of the fall, as were his four impact plays, two stuffed runs, and two runs stops. On the season, he's drawn double-teams on 59.0% of snaps, the third-highest mark on the team behind Milton Williams (61.6%) and DaQuan Jones (63.8%).
With Durden beginning to take on a more significant role in the defensive line, the results have followed — but they've taken some time to manifest themselves on the field.
In Weeks 1-4, the Patriots ranked 29th in the NFL with a defensive EPA/rush of +0.03 and 17th in the league with a 43.2% defensive rushing success rate. At that point, they were allowing 4.4 yards per carry (21st), 1.31 yards before contact per rush (20th), and ranked dead-last in stuffed run rate (11.2%).
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Since Week 5, the Patriots' boast the third-best rushing defense in the NFL in EPA/rush allowed (-0.26), and sixth-best in rushing success rate against (37.6%), while lowering their yards allowed per game to 81.3 and yards allowed per rush to 3.3 (third-best in the NFL). They've registered the fourth-lowest yards before contact per attempt (0.5), and have stuffed runs at the ninth-highest rate (24.5%).
In those four weeks, Durden has accounted for the second-most impact plays (nine) on the interior of New England's defensive line, trailing only Milton Williams (13), who ranks within the top-10 in the NFL during that span. Durden's 12.5% pass-rush win-rate, 56 run downs played, two stuffed runs, and three run stops also trail only Williams.
The marked improvements that the Patriots have made against the run over the last month have certainly been a collective effort — with great contributions from Christian Elliss and Robert Spillane at the second-level helping that cause — but Durden has slowly, but surely, worked his way into a prominent role on all three downs. In doing so, he's also earned a higher snap share (236) than Christian Barmore (204) since the start of the regular season.
As rumors swirl about the potential availability of Barmore at the trade deadline, Durden's emergence would help soften the blow of the departure. Against the run and pass, he's become a valuable commodity for a front line that's been in dire need of additional contributions to pair with Williams.
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Durden is still growing into the player he'll one day become, and if his recent performances are any indication, his ceiling is a high one.
Still, his small sample size of production and questions about the group's long-term sustainability leave the door open for an addition via trade. Affordable options could be found to more directly fill the nose tackle role with a "space-eating" style of player — with Tonga's addition last year serving as a prime example — while Durden continues to round into form as the penetrating interior pass-rusher that he's shown flashes of more frequently.
Thus, our conclusion here remains the same as it was entering the season: allow Durden to play to his strengths as a pass-rusher that can provide some value as a rotational defender on early downs. His growth has been a major boost for New England's defensive line; a more clearly defined development plan that better suits his strengths will only yield even greater results from the player in the future.
Do you think that Durden can be the Patriots' run-stuffing solution, or should the trade market still be explored? Drop your thoughts in the comments below and join the conversation on Patriots Roundtable.
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