Patriots Stock Report: Shane Vereen Lifts Sluggish Offense

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Well, that was close. It wasn’t pretty, but the Patriots got the job done.

Thursday Night Football continues to be an ugly affair, as the Patriots won a sloppy contest by a final score of 27-25. The Patriots had to play catchup on a pair of occasions, but were able to answer when they needed to make a play on offense.

The defense was once again gashed on the ground, giving pause to the idea that their woes have been cured. These problems existed before Jerod Mayo was placed on injured reserve and look like they will persist now that he is done for the year.

The Patriots needed a blocked field goal by Chris Jones at the end to seal the win.

Here’s a look at some players on the rise and some others who have some work to do.

Stock Up:

Shane Vereen: The Patriots offense didn’t have much of a spark in the first half, but what little they were able to accomplish was thanks to running back Shane Vereen’s two touchdown catches. Vereen finished with five catches on eight targets for 71 yards, and was also the lead rusher for the Patriots, with 11 carries for 43 yards.

Rob Gronkowski: If it wasn’t official before, it is now. Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski is back to full-on Gronk as he continues to make catches and break tackles, “smashing and dashing” his way to big plays. He finished the night with five receptions on 10 targets for 68 yards, and made Jets defenders look silly on a consistent basis by bouncing off them.

Rob Ninkovich: The Patriots defense wasn’t generating a lot of pressure on Jets quarterback Geno Smith, but the one most responsible for the pressure was Rob Ninkovich, who flushed Geno out of the pocket on at least two occasions.

Danny Amendola: The Patriots may finally have a kickoff returner. Danny Amendola picked up 105 yards on his four kickoff returns (26.3 yards per return), providing a spark on special teams that the Patriots have lacked for years. He also had an aerial touchdown catch, climbing over cornerback Antonio Allen for the 19-yard grab. He would have had another catch, were it not for yet another offensive pass interference penalty by wide receiver Brandon LaFell. Amendola also recovered the onside kick to help the Patriots seal the win.

Stock Down:

Run Defense: Can’t single anyone out here; any time your defense allows 218 yards on 43 carries (5.1 YPA), it’s not a good day for the front seven. Casey Walker logged his first NFL sack, but was moved off theball in the running game. So was Vince Wilfork, despite making a few plays of his own (shed a block to stop Chris Johnson for three yards 9:17 in second quarter). The Patriots had a particularly hard time stopping Smith scrambles, seven of them for 37 yards.

Brandon Bolden: With Stevan Ridley done for the season, it looked like tonight could be a big night for Brandon Bolden. That was not the case, and Bolden did not get his first touch until the fourth quarter, a catch on a checkdown. Bolden was also flagged for an illegal block in the back on special teams that sent the Patriots back after a big return by Danny Amendola.

Follow @ErikFrenz