Tyreek Hill has torched the New England Patriots in their previous two meetings.
The Kansas City Chiefs receiver has 130-plus receiving yards and 1-plus receiving TD in each of his two career games against the Patriots.
Week 1, 2017: 7 receptions, 133 receiving yards, 1 receiving TD
Week 6, 2018: 7 receptions, 142 receiving yards, 3 receiving TD
Hill has averaged the most receiving YPG (137.5) against the Patriots of any opponent since 1970.
The speedy wideout has a 75-yard receiving TD in each of his two games against the Patriots. His eight career 75-plus yard TDs is tied for the most in NFL in the last 10 seasons (DeSean Jackson), and his 16 50-plus yard TDs in the last five seasons are the most in the NFL over that span (four more than Jackson).
The Patriots know Hill's speed kills. They've seen it first-hand.
"You've just got to do your best," defensive back Devin McCourty said Wednesday. "You can turn on the plays throughout the whole season over and over again. Everyone knows he's fast. It's on the scouting report, it's on the film but he's still able to make plays, he's still able to run by guys. It's awareness, it's knowing where he's at, it's trying to get the film study to understand what he's doing when he's at different places. But I think in their offense they do a great job of he's at number one, he's at two, he's at three, he's in the backfield, he's going on speed-motion so it's very difficult the way they use him. But it's a team effort. It's not going to be one guy that you just say go cover him. It's going to be a team effort of just trying to know where he's at and gang-tackle him and get as many guys to him."
As the Boston Herald's Kevin Duffy points out, the Pats have gotten burned by Hill mostly when caught in zone coverage. New England was at its best slowing Hill in man coverage with a safety shaded over the top.
With the emergence of rookie corner J.C. Jackson as a reliable weapon on defense, the Patriots employ better options to stick in man versus Hill in Sunday's rematch.
No team adjusts as well as Bill Belichick to cover up weaknesses, especially in a rematch. While slowing down Hill will be vital, the coach knows he's not the only weapon Andy Reid and the Chiefs possess.
"Yeah, well, that's what every team's dealt with all year with them," he said of facing the combo of Hill and tight end Travis Kelce. "So, that's what it comes down to -- figuring that out, trying to balance it, between rush and coverage and how you want to cover, and there's plenty of other good players out there, too. So, you just have to decide how you want to handle it. [Chris] Conley, [Sammy] Watkins -- you know, you don't want to be light on those guys, either. So, they have a great offense, they have a great set of players, and again, Andy does a great job of putting the defense in compromising positions where you have to make choices, and the quarterback makes choices based on that. They're hard to stop. That's why they lead the league in points, lead the league in yards, lead the league in scoring, lead the league in everything. They're really good."
