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The New England Patriots’ undefeated season continues seven weeks in: the team went on the road to take on the New York Jets in primetime and celebrated a decisive 33-0 victory. The Patriots’ defense was once again outstanding throughout the contest, while the offense also had some stretches of very good play. With that out of the way, let’s take a look at some of the men that stood out during the contest.
Winner: The Patriots defense
For the third time all season, New England’s defense shut out an opponent. After not giving up a single point against the Miami Dolphins in Week 2 and the Jets in Week 3 (the 14 points scored that day came off a muffed punt by Gunner Olszewski and an interception by Jarrett Stidham), the team again remained a clean sheet and limited its opponent to just 154 yards of total offense while registering five turnovers. In fact, the Patriots defense out-scored the Jets’ offense 2-0 thanks to a safety.
With that out of the way, there are six defensive players that still deserve special mention:
FS Devin McCourty, FS Duron Harmon and SS Terrence Brooks: Jets quarterback Sam Darnold threw four interceptions against New England’s secondary, and three of them were caught by the safeties — even with Patrick Chung inactive, the group played well. Devin McCourty stands out as he played a big role on defense and also pressured Darnold into throwing his third pick of the night, that was caught by:
CB Stephon Gilmore: The All-Pro cornerback deserves special mention not just for his interception in the third quarter, but also because he erased another wide receiver from the equation. Just like in Week 3, the Jets’ Robbie Anderson was stranded on Gilmore Island. Darnold threw his way five times with Gilmore in coverage and completed only one 10-yard pass while also throwing said pick.
LB John Simon and LB Kyle Van Noy: The two linebackers combined for one of the biggest plays of the day for the Patriots, a sack-fumble-recovery trifecta that gave the team the football in prime field position and set up a score. Simon pressured Darnold around the edge and Van Noy was quick to react after the football came loose. Another big play by the so-called “Boogeymen.”
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Winner: WR Jakobi Meyers
With Josh Gordon out because of knee and ankle injuries, the Patriots turned to undrafted rookie Jakobi Meyers to step into the third wide receiver role — and he did just that in impressive fashion. On the day, the 22-year-old caught all five of the passes quarterback Tom Brady threw his way for a combined 47 yards. On top of it, he also delivered a key block on a Julian Edelman rushing attempt on third down and drew a pass interference penalty to convert another third down.
Winner: WR Phillip Dorsett II
After missing last week’s game because of an ankle injury, Phillip Dorsett returned to the field against the Jets and quickly proved his value as a second/third option within the offense. The former first-round draft pick was targeted four times and finished the day with three receptions for 46 yards — including a beautifully executed 26-yard touchdown catch. As he was all year before his injury, Dorsett again found himself on the same page as Tom Brady.
Loser: CB J.C. Jackson
It may be nitpicking to single out a player as a “loser” in a 33-0 rout, but J.C. Jackson had some issues against New York with penalties — a familiar theme that also plagued him at times during his 2018 rookie season. The second-year man was was responsible for three of the Patriots’ seven accepted penalties, with one hold and two pass interference calls on his name. Jackson was good in coverage, but his penalties stood out.
Winner: RB Sony Michel
While Sony Michel’s raw numbers did not stand out — he carried the football 19 times for 42 yards and a 2.2-yard average — the former first-round draft selection did play an important role in New England’s win: he scored three of New England’s four touchdowns, and proved himself a capable short-yardage back against the Jets. This stands out as the Patriots opted to give fellow running back Brandon Bolden considerable goal-line snaps over the last few weeks.
Winner: OL James Ferentz and LB Elandon Roberts
The Patriots use the “the more you can do”-approach to roster construction, and offensive lineman James Ferentz and linebacker Elandon Roberts proved just that on Monday night. The two, after all, saw some snaps at a fullback position that will move forward without the injured James Develin and Jakob Johnson. Ferentz and Roberts actually delivered key blocks on two of Sony Michel’s touchdown runs.
Winner: TE Benjamin Watson
New England’s tight end position played only a limited role in the offense over the first six weeks of the season, but recently re-signed Benjamin Watson quickly made his mark in his first game with the team. With both Ryan Izzo and Matt LaCosse out because of injury, the veteran saw considerable snaps at the position and was targeted five times in the passing game — catching three of the passes for 18 yards, including one conversion each on third and fourth down. An encouraging start.
Winner: The place kick operation
After starting inconsistently into his tenure as Stephen Gostkowski’s replacement, kicker Mike Nugent — as well as his holder Jake Bailey — had a perfect game against the Jets. The team brought the in-season addition onto the field for five place kicks and he made all of them: Nugent hit four extra points from 33-yards out as well as one field goal from 34. While not the most impressive outing, the performance was a positive one to build upon.