A look at the snaps played by Patriots defenders in the team’s 17-10 win over the Bills, while tracking defensive trends (as charted in the press box, small margin for error):
CB Leigh Bodden – 60 of 60
ILB Jerod Mayo – 60 of 60
S Brandon Meriweather – 60 of 60
CB Shawn Springs – 59 of 60
S James Sanders – 57 of 60
OLB/DE Tully Banta-Cain – 53 of 60
ILB Gary Guyton – 45 of 60
DL Mike Wright – 42 of 60
DL Jarvis Green – 40 of 60
OLB Adalius Thomas – 33 of 60
DE Derrick Burgess – 30 of 60
NT Ron Brace – 30 of 60
CB Jonathan Wilhite – 24 of 60
S Brandon McGowan – 23 of 60
DE Rob Ninkovich – 18 of 60
ILB Junior Seau – 15 of 60
OLB Pierre Woods – 10 of 60
DL Titus Adams – 1 of 60
(Snaps include four penalties that aren’t official plays: defensive offside, offensive illegal block above the waist, and two offensive holding infractions.)
ANALYSIS: At safety, Sanders started over McGowan for the second straight week and the only time he came off the field was in the seldom-used nickel package (5 defensive backs) when the Patriots subbed in McGowan, probably for more of a run-stopping presence. … Bodden, although in coverage on Lee Evans’ fourth-quarter touchdown, gets a tip of the cap for battling through pain and going wire to wire. He was competitive in a game in which the Patriots mostly played their safeties deep to protect against the big play … The Patriots went just six deep at defensive back, with rookies Pat Chung and Darius Butler the odd men out. That might have been a result of the coaching staff favoring experience with one of the top concerns protecting against the big play with Terrell Owens and Lee Evans. ... Thomas was not part of sub packages, playing only in the base 3-4 alignment. … Although his primary role was to rush the passer in sub packages, Burgess came on in the base 3-4 three times and played in a three-point stance, which was a different wrinkle. … Part of what made Wright’s performance impressive was his production vs. playing time. In 42 snaps, he totaled 10 tackles, 2 pressures and 1 sack. … The Patriots were in their no-defensive linemen “walk around” sub package 18 times. … Adams’ lone snap came in the short-yardage set, as he was primary backup at all three spots on the line.