New York Jets 28, New England 14
Offense
The New England Patriots looked like a solid team in the first half of their embarrassing 28-14 road loss to the New York Jets. Their problem from last year returned, as they were blanked in the second half and showed no signs of life. Quarterback Tom Brady had a mediocre day, throwing for 248 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions. I will add that Randy Moss did drop a touchdown pass and helped on Tom Brady’s second interception by tipping it around for safety Brodney Pool to pick off. The Patriots’ running game was nonexistent, as they mustered just 52 yards on 20 carries and never ran for more than 8 yards on a single play. The Jets’ run defense made the Patriots one-dimensional and simply played harder. Rookie tight end Aaron Hernandez led the receiving attack by hauling in 6 passes (6 targets) for 101 yards. This was a bright spot in the Patriots offense, as they’re willing to throw to a tight end. Ben Watson, as you all know, wasn’t a huge threat the past couple of seasons. Perhaps Hernandez was open a lot because Moss and Welker were ineffective, as they combined for just 8 catches, 76 yards, and 2 touchdowns.
Grade: C (A for the first half, F in the second)
Defense
Much like the offense, the defense was good in the first half and couldn’t seem to stop Mark Sanchez and the rest of the Jets in the second half. I am not a big Sanchez fan, but I have to admit he looked like a real quarterback yesterday. He completed 21 of 30 passes for 220 yards and 3 touchdowns. The running tandem of Ladainian Tomlinson and Shonn Greene combined for 26 carries and 128 yards. I will tell you that Tomlinson looks like he has regained some quickness, and maybe he looks better in NY since he has a good offensive line. He’s been more effective than Greene in both of New York’s games and should probably carry the load more often. On a positive note, rookie linebacker Brandon Spikes had 9 tackles.
Grade: C (A for the first half, F in the second)
Special Teams
The Patriots’ special teams were probably their best units of the day, which isn’t saying much. Brandon Tate averaged 24.6 yards per kickoff return, and Juilian Edelman averaged 13 yards per punt return. Meanwhile, the kickoff coverage units held the Jets’ return men to just 15 yards per return, and the Jets mustered only 5.5 yards per punt return. Patriots rookie punter Zoltan Mesko averaged 48.3 yards per punt, which is very good. Stephen Gotskowski missed his only field goal that counted, which occurred after he made his attempt but was called back due to a delay of game.
Grade: A-
