Patriots' Coach Defends Embattled Captain

A New England Patriots coach has launched a defense of one the team's top defenders after a rough game against the Miami Dolphins.

Dec 18, 2022; Paradise, Nevada, USA; New England Patriots safety Kyle Dugger (23) celebrates with linebacker Jahlani Tavai (48) after scoring on an 18-yard interception return against the Las Vegas Raiders in the third quarter at Allegiant Stadium. The Raiders defeated the Patriots 30-24. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The New England Patriots put together a terrible all-around showing against the Miami Dolphins last Sunday, falling 34-15 in an embarrassing loss.

While the Patriots were essentially bad all over the field in Week 12, some performances were more noticeable than others.

One player who is now in the crosshairs is safety Kyle Dugger, who was absolutely brutal in coverage throughout the affair, taking odd angles to the ball and being late in help over the top.

Dugger is a team captain and one of New England's best defenders, so it could have just been a case of one of those days for the veteran.

Pats defensive coordinator DeMarcus Covington came to the defense of his star player ahead of the Patriots' Week 13 matchup with the Indianapolis Colts and seems to think that Dugger will be just fine.

"No, I'm not concerned," Covington said, via Mike Reiss of ESPN. "Kyle has done a lot of great things for us. So for me to be down on Kyle on anything, no. I think he's going to continue to do some good things for us for the future. He's one of our leaders. He's one of our top communicators and knows the defense inside and out."

New England selected Dugger in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft.

Since then, the 28-year-old has established himself as one of the Pats' best defensive players. Last year, he racked up 109 tackles, 1.5 sacks, a couple of interceptions, a forced fumble and seven passes defended in what may have been his most productive all-around campaign to date.

In eight appearances this season, Dugger has totaled 44 tackles, a sack and a forced fumble.

We'll see if the Lenoir-Rhyne product puts forth a better effort against the Colts this Sunday.

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