Foxborough, MA â Although it wasn't always pretty and injuries keep piling up, the Patriots won their third straight game in a 26-19 victory over the Jets at Gillette Stadium on Sunday.
Over the course of 17 games, not every one is going to be a Picasso, especially in division play. My score prediction coming into the game was a 27-14 Patriots win, and the final score was close enough to say this game went about as expected. The Jets were hyping this game all week as a possible statement for a team looking for a spark. They wanted in on the AFC East race with the Bills and Patriots, with a solid defense and a veteran quarterback who wasn't giving games away.
Earlier this week, star WR Garrett Wilson called it a "big [expletive] game" for the Patriots' longtime division rival. The Jets hit on many of their keys to victory in the first half by controlling time of possession (19:10 to 10:50), running the ball with decent efficiency, and a mix of miscues by the Patriots offense and good Jets defense made this a competitive game, right down to New England surviving an onside kick attempt that was momentarily up for grabs.
"We're lucky to win is probably where I'd start, but we're happy that we won. We'll enjoy it for about an hour, and then we're going to focus on the next task," head coach Mike Vrabel said following Sunday's game. "We just didn't play very well. We tried to beat ourselves, but we made enough plays in critical situations to help us get through here today."
Along with the Patriots sloppiness, which included two lost fumbles on offense, the injury bug continues to plague New England. The Pats finished the game down three offensive linemen, with RT Morgan Moses (ankle), LG Alijah Vera-Tucker (hamstring), and RG Ben Brown (knee) leaving early. Brown was already filling in for injured starter Mike Onwenu (IR), while WR Romeo Doubs injured his shoulder on a diving 42-yard touchdown catch in the first quarter.
The Patriots will now need to figure out who will be available on a short week, with a Thursday night trip to Chicago on deck. Ultimately, I'm not going to be a doomer about the Patriots almost "beating themselves," as Vrabel put it. They had opportunities to make plays, which is better than an anemic offense, and sometimes you just have to get out of division games with a win.
"We'll just have to figure out who we have available and find 48 to put out there. It's just hard to say, but it's a short week. If you don't finish the game, that's a quick turnaround," Vrabel said.
Here are eight takeaways as the Patriots improve to 4-2 with a win over the Jets in Week 6.
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1. Play of the Game: Drake Maye Connects with WR Romeo Doubs on 42-Yard TD Pass
Although Doubs injured his shoulder on the play, Vrabel called his diving touchdown grab in the first quarter "one of the huge plays" in Sunday's game.
"That play Rome made, looking back at it, is one of the huge plays of this football game, and unfortunately he wasn't able to return. But to be able to hang on to that football, I give him a lot of credit," Vrabel said.
The Maye-to-Doubs touchdown perfectly captured a few key takeaways from Sunday's game. First, the Jets blitz-happy defense pivoted away from its aggressive style, blitzing Maye only nine times (26.5%). New York's defense entered the game with the NFL's second-highest blitz rate at 52.4%. The lack of blitzing was a departure from the Jets typical brand of defense, so credit to Jets head coach Aaron Glenn for backing off.
However, Maye remained patient in the pocket on several occasions, as the Jets relied mostly on a four-man rush (67.6% of drop-backs). New York also mixed in a few "drop-8" change-ups, which they hadn't shown much on film, and Maye didn't get antsy in a clean pocket while surveying the field to find Doubs on the big touchdown catch early in the game.
"Romeo made a great catch. I kind of sat in the pocket. I think they rushed maybe three. I had AJ over the middle late, and I just don't want to throw over the middle late, so I kind of just saw Romeo throw the hand up and start running, so I tried to give him a ball to catch," said Maye. "I could've put it more on him and not have him dive, and then he goes down. So those are things that I'm mad at, but it's football."
There were several times Maye stayed patient in clean pockets, which led to good results on Sunday, including touchdown passes to Doubs and WR DeMario Douglas. Overall, Maye was 18-of-32 for 235 passing yards and three touchdowns, adding +0.39 expected points per drop-back in another efficient performance. After the game, the Pats QB said he's trying to improve his patience in the pocket.
"I've grown up with brothers and always want to be on the move and just be doing something, not just hanging around. So, it's the same thing in the pocket. I feel like I got time. I'm still a little bit antsy in there and antsy to move," Maye said. "I felt like when I got time in there, the past two weeks we've had two good plays when I've sat in there and just kind of kept my eyes downfield."
The Patriots quarterback's ability to keep his eyes downfield while Doubs made a great play on the ball was a key early turning point in Sunday's game.
2. WR A.J. Brown Struggles vs. the Jets in Return From Injured Reserve
After a four-game absence due to a high-ankle sprain, Brown returned to the lineup in his first game at Gillette Stadium on Sunday. Unfortunately, Brown's first game back didn't go as planned, with the Pats wideout catching just 3-of-10 targets for 27 yards. Brown also dropped two passes and muffed the Jets onside-kick attempt, putting the ball up for grabs (recovered by TE Eli Raridon). Obviously, it wasn't the performance the Patriots were hoping for from Brown.
"There are no excuses," Brown said after the game. "Ankle or not, I should make those plays."
Although Brown struggled, the silver lining is that he was getting open. He looked explosive, with the separation twitch on underneath routes and pull-away speed to stack defenders on vertical routes. One of Brown's failed catches came on a 40-yard go ball, where Brown created vertical separation vs. Jets CB Azareye'h Thomas. Brown also had two missed opportunities where Maye's throws were off target, including on a stick-nod route in the back of the end zone that should've been six.
According to NextGen Stats, Brown only had one tight-window target with an expected completion percentage of 66.4%. Brown makes the catches he dropped in his sleep, and if he tracks the deep ball better over his shoulder, it's a huge play we've seen him make countless times. The same goes for Maye on the errant throws. From this perspective, it would be far more alarming if Brown wasn't creating separation, so Brown's issues on Sunday weren't all that concerning as a one-off performance.
3. Play of the Game II: Patriots CB Charles Woods Intercepts Jets QB Geno Smith
Entering the week, Jets QB Geno Smith had yet to throw an interception on 147 pass attempts. Pats coaches and players discussed the positives and negatives of Smith protecting the football, with Vrabel lauding his ball security. At the same time, S Kevin Byard III said Smith avoided risks by passing up tight-window throws to keep the ball out of harm's way. Either way, the Patriots defense got Smith to throw his first interception of the season in a big spot.
With the Jets driving to the NE 48 in a 23-13 game, Smith dropped back to pass with 12:29 left. New York ran the "bow" concept, with Smith's initial read being an underneath hitch that tries to open a zone void for a second-level dig. The Pats cover the initial read well while DT DaQuan Jones gets home on an interior stunt as OLB Gabe Jacas collapses the pocket. Smith makes a rare mistake by throwing late, and Woods intercepts the pass.
4. Despite Several Injuries, Patriots O-Line Holds Jets Defense Without a Sack
Last week, the Jets defense came after Browns QB Deshaun Watson, sacking Cleveland's quarterback eight times in a win. This week, the Pats were already down a starting guard (Onwenu), then lost three linemen to injuries in Sunday's game (Moses, Vera-Tucker, Brown). Despite all the injuries, the Jets registered zero sacks against Maye with a 35.3% pressure rate (NGS). All things considered, that's very impressive.
Over the last two weeks, first-rounder Caleb Lomu has been called upon to play both tackle spots, with starting LT Will Campbell (knee) and RT Morgan Moses (ankle) banged up. On Sunday, Lomu played 59 snaps at right tackle, allowing zero pressures while facing Jets top rookie David Bailey 16 times. Above, Lomu puts Bailey into the ground with a snatch-trap technique when the No. 2 overall pick tries a spin move.
"Just felt his momentum coming forward and was able to get his momentum to work against him," Lomu said of his impressive block on Douglas's touchdown. "Coming into the week, we watched all his tape. I knew him in college too, how he played, so I was a little familiar with his game."
If Moses can't go on Thursday night, the Patriots first-rounder might be called upon to make his first NFL start vs. the Bears. Over the last two weeks, Lomu has been up for the challenge.
5. Patriots Ride the 'Hot Hand' with RB Corey Kiner Closing Out a Week 6 Win
Along with crediting a banged-up offensive line for holding up in pass protection, the Patriots offense also executed a classy clock-killing drive in the fourth quarter, with third RB Corey Kiner carrying the ball eight straight times on the 13-play field goal drive. The Pats also took 6:08 off the clock while making it a two-score game. Kiner had eight successful runs, adding +0.15 EPA per rush on his 11 attempts. Overall, the Pats 41% rushing success rate (61st percentile) was solid, especially given the O-line injuries.
"He runs hard. He runs hard, and it's the same way he's selling the kickoff returns. We got three capable backs and you ride the hot hand," Vrabel said of leaning on Kiner in the fourth quarter.
6. CB Christian Gonzalez Shadows Jets WR Garrett Wilson in Return to Lineup
Along with Brown, the Patriots also got star CB Christian Gonzalez back from a two-game absence due to a shoulder injury. Like Brown, who played 52 snaps (most among WRs), Gonzalez wasn't limited in his snap count on his return, while the Pats top corner faced 17 coverage matchups against Jets star wideout Garrett Wilson. On those 17 passing plays, Gonzalez allowed just two catches for 20 yards to Wilson, who did get the Pats CB for a third-down conversion. Since entering the league, Gonzalez has dominated this matchup, holding Wilson to 10 catches for 92 yards and a touchdown on 68 routes over four games.
7. Patriots Pass Rush Continues Strong Season with Three-Sack Performance
With Gonzalez anchoring the back end vs. Wilson, the Patriots continue to get contributions from the pass rush, which logged three more sacks on Sunday. The Pats pressured Jets QB Geno Smith on 36.4% of his drop-backs and got timely pressure, including a big third-down sack in the red zone that forced the Jets to settle for a field goal.
On the play, the Patriots used a four-man rush with OLB Elijah Ponder and LB Robert Spillane running a stunt over the left side. Spillane does well to pick the left tackle as the back comes over to block him, which allows Ponder to loop around for the sack. Ponder now has 5.5 sacks through the first six games, a career high in just six weeks.
"We just had a great game (stunt). Spill picked the tackle, and I came free. So the play was there, and I just made it," Ponder said post-game. "I don't think there's really anything about it. When the plays are there, you gotta make them. That's pretty much it."
8. Patriots Kickoff Return, Kickoff Coverage Provide Boost in Win Over Jets
Lastly, the Patriots kickoff return and coverage units were also clear positives. On six kickoff returns, the Jets averaged only 21.3 yards per return (26-yard long), with TE Cameron Latu as a standout in kickoff coverage. As Vrabel said, Kiner also had a 37-yard return that gave the Pats good field position, while P Mitch Wishnowsky rescued an off-target snap to boom a 54-yard punt downed at the NYJ 3. The lone blemish on special teams was a missed extra point by K Andy Borregales, but the other units provided a spark.
The Patriots will now quickly turn the page on a short week to a Thursday Night Football matchup against the Bears, with all eyes on New England's lengthy injury list before the team travels to Chicago on Wednesday.
DISCLAIMER: The views and thoughts expressed in this article are those of the writer and don't necessarily reflect those of the organization. Read Full Disclaimer
