The bottom fell out of the New England Patriots on Thursday night.
Jerod Mayo’s team suffered a 24-3 road loss to the New York Jets in a game that wasn’t that close. New England’s offensive line absolutely cratered, with neither the passing game nor the rushing attack having any chance of success.
The Patriots finished with 139 yards of total offense — an embarrassing number. They also earned just 11 first downs — the Jets had 27 — and went 2-for-11 on third downs. New England was charged with five penalties, but I lost count of others that were either negated or declined.
Jacoby Brissett took an absolute beating while completing 12 of 18 passes for 98 yards and zero touchdowns. New England ran 15 times for 78 yards, including just 23 from Rhamondre Stevenson, who dealt with a finger injury and lost a fumble.
The Patriots gave Drake Maye his first game snaps late in the fourth quarter, likely to give Brissett a breather after a painful evening. The rookie nearly was picked off on his first pass but completed four of eight passes for 22 yards while taking two sacks.
It was a gross performance, albeit one somewhat predictable given the mounting injuries on both sides of the ball. The Patriots really need to take advantage of the mini-bye week.
On the other side, Aaron Rodgers put on a vintage performance while completing 27 of 35 passes for 281 yards and two TDs. He added 18 yards on the ground while helping the Jets rack up 400 yards of total offense.
Tight end Ty Conklin led all Jets pass catchers with five catches for 93 yards, while Garrett Wilson and Allen Lazard both caught touchdown passes. Breece Hall and Braelon Allen combined for 109 yards on 27 rushes.
G5 G5 G5 G5 G5 G5 G5 G5 G5 G5 G5 G5#NEvsNYJ on @NFLonPrime pic.twitter.com/yDB13TZbBQ
— New York Jets (@nyjets) September 20, 2024
The Patriots dropped to 1-2 with the loss, while the Jets improved to 2-1 with the victory. New England will now enjoy an extended break before visiting the San Francisco 49ers in Week 4.
Let’s look at three studs and three duds from a rough night at MetLife Stadium.
Best Players for Patriots in Loss to Jets
WR DeMario Douglas
The Patriots finally got DeMario Douglas involved after targeting the speedy slot just four times in the first two games.
Douglas finished with seven catches on nine targets for 69 yards while adding one carry for 9 yards.
His numbers weren’t eye-popping, but Douglas reminded everyone he’s the most dangerous pass-catcher in New England’s offense.
.@popshotta3 getting out in space.
📺: @NFLonPrime pic.twitter.com/PdZeMUgGjA
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) September 20, 2024
If the Patriots were able to scheme up these touches against the Jets’ defense, why couldn’t they do the same thing against the Cincinnati Bengals and Seattle Seahawks?
LB Anfernee Jennings
One of the more consistent players on New England’s defense, Anfernee Jennings finished with six total tackles, including two for a loss.
He, like most of the front seven, must generate more pressure on opposing quarterbacks, but Jennings arguably is the best run defender on the team.
P Bryce Baringer
It was really, really hard to come up with a third “stud” — so the honor goes to Baringer.
The second-year punter continued his strong start to the season with five punts for 245 yards (49.0 average), with a long of 57 yards.
Baringer also didn’t kick any balls into the end zone. He’s been great.
Honorable mentions: Antonio Gibson
Players Who Struggled in Patriots’ Loss
Offensive Line
This was another wretched showing for arguably the worst offensive line in football.
Yes, the Patriots were playing with backups at left tackle and left guard, but the entire line struggled. Caedan Wallace, Michael Jordan, David Andrews, Layden Robinson, and Mike Onwneu all had issues.
there goes that man @WILL_JUN1OR❕#NEvsNYJ on @NFLonPrime pic.twitter.com/i3chPhEM3E
— New York Jets (@nyjets) September 20, 2024
Wallace got flagged for an illegal formation in the first half and would’ve committed consecutive holding penalties in the third quarter if Brissett hadn’t been ruled down on the second. Even Andrews committed a holding penalty.
Brissett took three sacks and was hit six times in the first half. Things weren’t any better in the second half when he took two more sacks and four additional hits.
The Patriots have to figure this out over the next 10 days… right?
Linebackers
Yeah, this unit misses Ja’Whaun Bentley.
Raekwon McMillan might prove to be a serviceable replacement, but he’s struggled with missed tackles in each of the last two games. The usually cerebral Jahlani Tavai committed a boneheaded unnecessary roughness penalty in the first half. Both players appeared to struggle with coverage and defending the run.
Bentley could miss the rest of the season due to a torn pectoral, so the Patriots might have to live with their current linebacker group.
Everyone Responsible for Missed Tackles
I saw the following players miss tackles, and I’m sure I missed a few:
- Jonathan Jones
- Christian Gonzalez
- Alex Austin
- Jaylinn Hawkins
- Brenden Schooler
- Raekwon McMillan
- Joe Giles-Harris
- Joshua Uche
woah there, @BraelonAllen! @KyleBrandt… angry run???#NEvsNYJ on @NFLonPrime pic.twitter.com/tuycKURDVN
— New York Jets (@nyjets) September 20, 2024
And those were just the blatant missed tackles that resulted in decent gains. The film review surely will reveal additional missed tackles in the trenches.
You expect some sloppiness in Thursday night games, but this was over the top.
Honorable mentions: Run defense, Daniel Ekuale, Alex Austin, Brenden Schooler, Christian Gonzalez, Joshua Uche