Unconventional Preview: Brady’s appearance on injury report adds mystery to Patriots-Jets clash
Patriots quarterback missed practice Wednesday. Good luck finding out the exact reason why.
COMMENTARY
Welcome to Season 5, Episode 11 of the Unconventional Preview, a serious-but-lighthearted, occasionally nostalgia-tinted look at the Patriots’ weekly matchup that runs right here every weekend.
Well, thanks to some injury-report suspense, it turns out there’s a little more unease attached to this matchup of the 8-2 Patriots and 3-7 Jets than one might expect from the won-lost records.
Tom Brady did not participate in Patriots practice Wednesday. He did not practice Thursday, either. He did return Friday, at least for the portion in which the media was permitted to attend, but is listed as questionable with a knee injury for the game. When asked if he would play, he was coy, saying, “We’ll see.” It was a predictable response. It was not a terribly reassuring one.
Presumably, Brady’s absence was due to a lingering aftereffect of the blow to the quad he endured from Seahawks safety/human missile Kam Chancellor two Sundays ago — if you saw the replay, good heavens, did Brady barely dodge another Bernard Pollard situation on that hit.
Presumably, there’s nothing to worry about long-term. Brady’s performance against the Niners Sunday was his standard stellar effort (24 of 40 in sloppy conditions, 280 yards four touchdowns) and he moved around in the pocket well, even picking up 12 rushing yards. That he played that well the week after the Chancellor hit was encouraging.
Then again, wasn’t listed on the injury report before that game. And now he is, for a game two weeks later? What’s the piece of information that we’re missing? Did he tweak something against the Niners, or during a workout early this week? Brady isn’t one who wants to miss a snap in practice, let alone two days of snaps.
I suppose we’ll have an answer the closer we get to kickoff, though Bill Belichick is more liable to joke about the infamous buttfumble four years ago than to explain in detail what is going on. For now, Brady’s status is suddenly more concerning than Rob Gronkowski’s, who reportedly has made the trip to New Jersey
I believe Brady’s situation is nothing serious. But I want to know it’s nothing serious. All we can do for now is stay tuned.
Kick it off Gostkowski, and let’s get this one started.
THREE PLAYERS I’LL BE WATCHING NOT NAMED TOM BRADY (WE WILL BE WATCHING BRADY, RIGHT?)
Ryan Fitzpatrick: A few semi-related thoughts on the Jets’ decision to start the erratic veteran Fitzpatrick over second-year quarterback Bryce Petty against the Patriots.
- If the Patriots’ defense, which is tied for 26th in the league with just five interceptions this season, can’t force Fitzpatrick into a mistake or two or a half-dozen — he does have a six-pick game on his resume this season — then it’s officially time to worry about whether this defense will ever force a turnover when it needs one. (It doesn’t have one in three games, and just nine on the season.) In eight games, Fitzpatrick has 13 picks this season. Only one defense in the league, the Chiefs, has as many interceptions as he has thrown. How about a pick-six this week, Malcolm Butler?
- Joe Namath is the best quarterback in Jets history. That’s undeniable, even if he did throw 47 more interceptions than touchdown passes in his career and is one of the most overrated Hall of Famers in football history. Abundant charisma, a laser-rocket arm, the New York media push, and a certain guarantee went a long way. But who is second-best? Chad Pennington? Richard Todd? Ken O’Brien? The Jets’ decades-long quest to find competent quarterback play is a reminder not just to appreciate Tom Brady, but predecessor Drew Bledsoe as well.
- All of that said, Fitzpatrick is right choice for the Jets, and not just because coach Todd Bowles obviously believes he’s the best hope to save his job. Petty, who made his first career start in a 9-6 loss to the Rams two weeks ago, isn’t ready. Rookie Christian Hackenberg, a controversial second-round choice, may never be ready. Geno Smith is hurt, and not because a teammate punched him in the face this time. Fitzpatrick actually has had decent success against the Patriots recently, throwing for 591 yards and five touchdowns without an interception in the teams’ two meetings last year. Career-wise, though, it’s another story: In nine starts, he’s 2-7, with 18 touchdown passes and 17 interceptions.
Dion Lewis:
Looked pretty good, didn’t he? In his first game since tearing his ACL 377 days previous, the dynamic if injury prone running back returned to action against the Niners last Sunday and immediately offered a reminder of how much he can enhance this already loaded offense. Lewis had three catches for 26 yards, including a welcome-back 9-yarder on the third play of the game. He also ran five times for 23 yards while looking like a distinct upgrade on James White, who has grown into a versatile and capable back in Lewis’s absence. I’m not sure the Patriots, who have had the patience to gradually ease him back, expected him to contribute 59 yards of offense in his return, especially on that rain-soaked field in San Francisco. This week, however, it would make sense to expand his role into a fuller one. The Jets, who allow just 3.5 yards per carry and 85.4 rushing yards per game (fourth-best in the league), are the type of defense that can handle LeGarrette Blount-type backs. Lewis’s versatility and elusiveness would seem to prove much more of a challenge. I’m putting him down for at least 15 touches and 90 total yards — conservatively.
Darrelle Revis: I’ll admit it if you will. I thought it was a legitimate blow to the Patriots when Revis returned to the Jets after the 2014 season, accepting a $75 million deal that included $39 million guarantee. He was the best and boldest cornerback the Patriots had since Ty Law’s heyday, and even though paying a cornerback like a quarterback is typically a fine way to mess up your salary cap, Revis seemed like he might be the worthwhile exception. That Sports Illustrated cover was sweet, and it seemed like the Jets had won a big one for once. Well, here we are, two years later, and Revis looks like an out-of-shape safety trying to fool people into believing he’s a cornerback, with few falling for the ruse. Revis has just two passes defensed and not a single interception this year, and it’s not because quarterbacks are avoiding him. Revis Island has become a popular tourist destination for opposing offensive players looking to have a good time.
GRIEVANCE OF THE WEEK
Should Alan Branch miss the next four games for violating the league’s drug policy, he has no one to blame but himself. He violated the policy, apparently testing positive for marijuana for the fourth time, and he has to face the consequences. But as he awaits word on his appeal — good luck with that one in front of Roger Goodell and his trusty ball peen hammer of justice — my issue isn’t with Branch letting down the Patriots so much as it is with the absurd policy. Given the hell that NFL players put their bodies through — especially giants like Branch who have spent years in the trenches — I cannot believe the league still nails players for smoking pot when there are far more damaging and addictive ways for trying to ease the physical pain that comes with the brutality of their job. Branch violated the rule. But man, what a rigid and heavy-handed rule.
PREDICTION, OR DON’T EXPECT ‘BUTTFUMBLE: THE SEQUEL’ …
Great point by the Globe’s Ben Volin this week: Since the infamous Thanksgiving buttfumble four years ago, the last six Patriots-Jets games have been decided by one score, four by a field goal or less. The Patriots annually have a superior team to the Jets, but the Jets have had a knack for hanging around when we expect that they won’t. It’s tempting to predict a blowout — something has to give between turnover-prone Fitzpatrick and the turnover-phobic Patriots defense — but I’m going to give the Jets the respect that they’ve sporadically earned. But nothing more than that. Patriots 28, Jets 20.
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