Patriots vs. Jaguars stats: Mac Jones bounces back, and other takeaways from New England’s 50-10 win

Having lost two straight games, the New England Patriots bounced back with a vengeance in Week 17. The Patriots steamrolled the visiting Jacksonville Jaguars to the tune of a 50-10 victory, improving to 10-6 and officially earning themselves a spot in the playoffs.

The game was a total domination, so let’s take a look at some of the early statistics to come out of the contest.

Patriots vs. Jaguars: Team statistics

New England left the Jaguars no chance, with the first series on each side of the ball already setting the tone. The Patriots forced a three-and-out to open the game and replied by driving 70 yards in 11 plays to take an early lead. They never looked back.

The statistics reflect this. Whether you look at yards, time of possession, third downs or red zone opportunities, Bill Belichick’s team buried its opponent.

Patriots individual statistics

Coming off two disappointing performances, Mac Jones bounced back against the Jaguars. Sure, Jacksonville’s pass defense is one of the worst in the league, but the rookie still did what he was supposed to do: dominate a bad team. Jones ended up completing 73.3 percent of his passes for 227 yards as well as three touchdowns.

Backup quarterback Brian Hoyer also entered the game late, throwing three completions on four attempts for 63 yards.

Just a few days after returning from the Coronavirus reserve list, Rhamondre Stevenson ran all over the Jaguars. The rookie ended the game with 107 rushing yards — the second 100-yard outing of his career — as well as a pair of touchdowns.

Damien Harris also found the end zone twice, but finished with only 35 yards on nine carries before leaving the game late due to a hamstring injury.

Jakobi Meyers looked very good, catching a team-high eight passes for 73 yards and a touchdown. The star of the day from New England’s perspective, however, was Kristian Wilkerson: a practice squad member who was elevated to take a spot in the lineup previously held by former first-round rookie N’Keal Harry, Wilkerson caught the first four passes of his career. Two of those ended in touchdowns.

New England’s front seven looked good on Sunday. Not only did the unit look much improved against the run, it also put pressure on Jaguars rookie Trevor Lawrence. Two players — Dont’a Hightower and Christian Barmore — came up with sacks.

The Patriots’ secondary dominated a bad passing game and receiving corps. Led by J.C. Jackson, who caught his eighth interception of the season, the group ended up with three takeaways: Jackson had one pick, while Myles Bryant and Kyle Dugger each had one as well.

The Patriots’ special teams issues continued in Week 17. While no punts were blocked, the Jaguars were able to get their hands on a Nick Folk extra point attempt in the third quarter.

To make matters worse, a second point-after try never materialized because of a bad snap: holder Jake Bailey had to scramble with the football on what was officially listed as a two-point conversion attempt. Obviously, he did not succeed.

The Patriots did a lot of kicking off on Sunday, but their coverage team held its end of the bargain. The group limited Jaguars returner Chris Claybrooks to only 17.6 yards per runback. The team was no less successful returning punts: Tavon Austin gained three yards on his lone return.