The New England Patriots started off their 2024 season, the first under head coach Jerod Mayo, with a 1-1 record, but things fell apart drastically on Thursday night, as they lost 24-3 to the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium.
It's tough to find any good in this game, as New York outclassed New England in nearly every aspect of this contest.
The Patriots have a mini bye week coming up to address things, and they'll need all the work they can get. Before they take the field again, let's take a look at some of the best and worst performances from the night.
WINNER: P Bryce Baringer
It's never a good sign when the punter is your best player on the field, but that was the case for the Patriots.
Baringer booted the ball five times for an average of 49 yards per kick. His longest went for 57 yards, and three of his punts were inside the 20-yard line. Having the second-year punter be able to flip the field should make things easier on the defense.
LOSER: Offensive line
New England entered this game without three starting offensive linemen due to injury (Cole Strange, Sidy Sow and Vederian Lowe). Caeden Wallace, Layden Robinson and Michael Jordan started in their place and didn't look great.
Jordan and Wallace were replaced late in the game by Zachary Thomas and Demontrey Jacobs, and things looked worse.
The group, as a whole, didn't provide any protection for their quarterbacks, with Jacoby Brissett and Drake Maye taking seven sacks combined. They also didn't provide many holes for the running backs, who rushed for just 57 yards.
WINNER: LB Anfernee Jennings
The defense is supposed to be the strength of this Patriots team, but they were abused by Aaron Rodgers and company on Thursday.
Jennings stood out as a lone bright spot, as he brought some pressure and held his own against the run, recording six tackles (two for a loss). He'll continue to play a bigger role with Oshane Ximines down for the year and Tavai playing in the middle.
LOSER: Coaching/preparation/Football IQ
New England missed tackles way too frequently. It's unacceptable that the Jets were getting extra yards on nearly every play on offense, making it easier for them to score.
The Patriots also committed many unforced penalties. They were called for unnecessary roughness, illegal formation, face mask and roughing the passer. They were also called for holding on three straight plays in the third quarter (two by Wallace and one by David Andrews).
Running back JaMycal Hasty also made a dumb decision to field this kickoff instead of letting it go out of bounds
Hasty should have let this ball go out of bounds pic.twitter.com/tdBdBWHwZP
— Ben Brown 🌻 (@BenBrownPL) September 20, 2024
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