Patriots linebacker Jamie Collins said New England got a little complacent after its seven-game winning streak. Steve Milne/Associated Press
By the time the Patriots kick off Sunday, it will have been four weeks since their last win.
What changed?
According to linebacker Jamie Collins, they started getting “a little complacent”
“We started feeling ourselves a little bit, but it happens,” Collins said Friday via video conference. “We dug ourselves a hole, and we’ve just got to climb back out of it.”
Collins insisted there were no signs players had begun taking their foot off the gas after their bye week earlier this month. The Patriots’ seven-game streak finally snapped with a 27-17 loss at Indianapolis on Dec. 18, then they lost another game during which they never led last Sunday versus Buffalo.
“Coming off what we came off of, it’s only right to say we got a little lazy or whatever. But it happens, we’re not going to stop,” Collins added. “We’re always going to keep fighting and try to close out this season on a good note.”
As for fixes moving forward, Collins said the team needs to refocus. The Patriots are 16-point favorites against Jacksonville on Sunday and can clinch a playoff berth with a win over the Jaguars and a loss by the Dolphins or Raiders.
“We just need to focus on ourselves individually, as a team, and just try to find our swag, man,” Collins said. “Like I said, try to get back to what we were doing before these last two games. We definitely got a shot, so we’ve just got to put all that together.”
THE PATRIOTS’ DEFENSE has a number of key pieces listed as questionable for Sunday’s game.
Starters J.C. Jackson (elbow), Dont’a Hightower (knee), Kyle Dugger (hamstring) and Adrian Phillips (knee/illness) all popped up as questionable this week, along with rookie Christian Barmore (knee). Hightower and Phillips missed Friday afternoon’s walkthrough because of their ailments.
On offense, Nelson Agholor has been ruled out – he’s still in the concussion protocol – while Damien Harris (hamstring) and Jakobi Meyers (thigh) are questionable.
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