Eddie Jones said England "put Ireland to the sword" but believes his side can still get better after a dominant Six Nations win at Twickenham.
Grand Slam-chasing Ireland were out of sorts from the off and costly dallying saw George Ford and Elliot Daly score to put England in command by half-time.
Robbie Henshaw reduced the arrears with a five-pointer and Andrew Porter touched down right at the end after Luke Cowan-Dickie scored England's third try but the home team were much the better side in a 24-12 win.
"I thought they were outstanding in that first 40 minutes – we put Ireland to the sword. They were going to do this, going to do that," England head coach Jones told BBC Sport.
"We played really well, and we know they're a good team so had to play well to beat them."
England are right back in contention for the championship having lost their opener in France before grinding out a win in tough conditions versus Scotland last time out.
Jones felt England came in for too much flak after the France setback and has praised their response since then.
"They're a good team, this England team, and any time we have a small mishap it's the end of the world, the whole world's falling in," he added.
"The players get a lot of criticism, and I'm really proud of what they did."
After the battle #ENGvIRE #GuinnessSixNations pic.twitter.com/c5R73lYYur
— Guinness Six Nations (@SixNationsRugby) February 23, 2020
England now face a crunch home fixture with Wales on March 7 before rounding out their campaign against Italy in round five.
Jones was not altogether too pleased with England's second-half showing and said more is to come, while aiming a cheeky dig at those who have questioned his team selections.
"We were disappointed with the second half, but when you are playing against a side like Ireland you expect them to get some possession. We had to defend pretty well," he added to ITV.
"We know we can get better than this. Maybe next week we'll pick six locks to give you guys something to talk about..."