The New England Patriots rose to the occasion for an upset Week 1 win by embracing the values they beat their team on.
A power running game and an opportunistic defense stifled the Cincinnati Bengals in a 16-10 win to deliver Jerod Mayo's first win as the franchise's head coach.
Former Patriots receiver Julian Edelman gave plenty of credit to New England's new regime to sticking with what they are as a team given the state of the roster and grinding to an important win.
"With the game that the Patriots played to come out Week 1 and have a big victory against a team they probably should've lost to, it's great for that building," Edelman told FS1's Colin Cowherd on "The Herd" on Tuesday. "Because that coaching staff, Jerod Mayo, everything that this staff has been preaching to the team in organized team activities, minicamp, training camp. Everything that they'd been preaching just showed that it worked."
Edelman continued: "That's how you get guys to buy in. That's how you get your confidence to grow bigger. That's how you get guys to come in a little earlier because everything that they work hard on, they got some production out of it. They got a little taste of what it tastes like to win and be 1-0."
The Patriots hope to bring that momentum to Gillette Stadium on Sunday when they host the Seattle Seahawks for the home opener in Week 2.
"If they play the game the way they played last week, they'll win this week," Edelman added. "They'll be 2-0. Mistake-free. Get a couple turnovers. Win the special teams battle. Win on third down. They did every single one of those things."
