After some casual excellence from Aaron Rodgers, Patriots’ opening victory feels like an outlier
The Patriots couldn’t do much of anything against the Jets, who must be feeling pretty good about themselves.
Welcome to the Unconventional Review, an instant reaction to standouts, stats, and story lines from the Patriots’ most recent game . . .
The Patriots’ first possession in their eventual three-touchdown loss to Aaron Rodgers and the Jets Thursday night offered a stark preview of the dull ineptitude to come.
First down: Jacoby Brissett, under siege, flings a completion to tight end Hunter Henry for no gain.
Second down: Rhamondre Stevenson spins his tires for 1 yard.
Third down: Brissett, under siege again, heaves an incompletion to nowhere. Punt team, activate.
It got no better. Often, it got worse. By the end of the first quarter, the Jets had eight first downs to the Patriots’ 1, and had outgained them, 106-12. Yes, 12.
Come halftime, the first-down tally was 17-4, Jets, and New York had piled up 252 yards to the visitors’ 40. Yes, 40.
Before the midway point of the third quarter, the Jets had 22 first downs. The Patriots had run 21 plays.
Mix in the poor tackling, some embarrassingly undisciplined penalties, and the hapless, hopeless pass blocking of a makeshift line, and . . . well, this is what having no chance looks like.
Even the lone scoring drive, which was punctuated by a 44-yard Joey Slye field goal late in the second quarter to cut the Jets’ lead to 14-3, required the aid of 49 yards worth of Jets penalties.
The Patriots couldn’t do much of anything on their own. Brissett, swept up in a tsunami of green and white just about every time he dropped back to pass, finished 12 of 18 for 98 yards before Drake Maye made (and survived) his NFL debut in garbage time.
The Jets must be feeling pretty good about themselves. They ought to be. They got an almost casually excellent performance by Rodgers — he finished the night 27 of 35 for 281 yards and 2 touchdowns — and have won two in a row against the Patriots after snapping a 15-game losing streak in last season’s finale.
As for the Patriots, that affirming season-opening win over the Bengals is starting to feel an awful lot like an outlier.
Some further thoughts, upon immediate review . . .
THREE PLAYERS WHO WERE WORTH WATCHING
Players suggested in the Unconventional Preview: DeMario Douglas, Breece Hall, Garrett Wilson.
Tyler Conklin: I suppose this is one for Elias to dig into, but I can’t imagine there has been another instance in NFL history where the first three catches made by a tight end in one game all went for exactly 22 yards.
Conklin did just that while emerging as the Jets’ unexpected weapon Thursday night. His first 22-yard grab came in the second quarter on a second-and-17 play, a drive that resulted in the Jets’ second touchdown and an insurmountable 14-0 lead. He added another on a third-and-9 later in the second quarter, and another on a third-and-2 play late in the third.
Overall, Conklin hauled in five receptions for a game-high 93 yards.
DeMario Douglas: Pleas for the second-year receiver to be more involved in the offense came from all corners this week — even Douglas made his own case. After just two catches for 12 yards through the season’s first two games, Douglas hauled in seven receptions on nine targets for 69 yards Thursday night, including a 22-yarder in the third quarter. Five of his catches and 56 yards came after halftime. On a bad night for the Patriots, his increased involvement counts as small progress.
Will McDonald IV: Coming off a three-sack performance last week against the Titans, the second-year edge rusher delivered a second straight impactful game. He finished with two sacks, one each of Brissett and Maye, and had four of the Jets’ 15 quarterback hits.
GRIEVANCE OF THE GAME
Pretty much everything that happened after the opening coin flip qualifies, but if you demand specifics, how about this one by a player who is usually one of the more reliable Patriot defensive players. Jahlani Tavai got called for a personal foul for driving Hall to the turf after stopping the Jets running back for no gain near midfield with just over 6 minutes left in the first quarter. That gave the Jets excellent field position at the Patriots 31, and perhaps a bit of a spark.
Four plays later, Allen Lazard collected a Rodgers pass, faked Patriots defensive back Alex Austin out of his spikes, and scored from 10 yards out for the game’s first points.
Tavai’s play wasn’t necessarily egregious, but it was emblematic of the sloppiness and lack of discipline Thursday night.
THREE NOTES SCRIBBLED IN THE MARGINS
Predicted final score: Patriots 20, Jets 18
Final score: Jets 24, Patriots 3
The running back position isn’t as prestigious as it used to be even a half-dozen years ago, but Jets rookie Braelon Allen sure looks like someone who should have been selected well before New York grabbed him in the fourth round in the April draft. The hard-running 20-year-old out of Wisconsin — who scored two touchdowns last week — outgained star runner Hall on the ground Thursday night, gaining 55 yards on 11 carries, including an 11-yard burst on his first touch. Hall finished with 16 carries for 54 yards . . . Christian Gonzalez did fine work covering the Jets other offensive dynamo, Wilson — the receiver finished with 5 catches for just 33 yards. Wilson did catch a 2-yard touchdown pass to put the Jets up, 21-3, in the third quarter. Gonzalez took a worthwhile gamble on the play that just didn’t pay off, jumping the route only to have Rodgers throw the pass in the perfect spot. Not the first time Rodgers has made a cornerback pay for being bold . . . You know things have turned grim when you’re halfway through the game and realize the Patriots’ most impactful player has probably been their punter. Bryce Baringer delivered another strong showing, placing three of his five punts inside the 20-yard-line, with a long of 57 yards and an average of 49.0 per boot. It’s kind of fitting that the player you don’t really want to see — the punter — was just about the only Patriot worth watching.
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