The rains came and went just as quickly as the offense for the New England Patriots in Sunday’s ugly 15-10 victory over the New York Jets.
New England was held to only a field goal in the entire second half of a game that they almost handed to the Jets on a silver platter. For a third straight week, the offense failed to close with the ball in their hands.
Buy Patriots TicketsFortunately for the Patriots, their elite defense led by sack-monster Matthew Judon locked things down in the end to avoid a humiliating road loss and earn a 15th straight victory over the Jets.
However, that victory didn’t come without a big scare on a Hail Mary throw from Wilson that reached the end zone and nearly landed in the hands of Jets veteran receiver Randall Cobb.
The Jets NEARLY had the Hail Mary. Went off the fingers of Randall Cobb. pic.twitter.com/pMDJ82BebX
— Henry McKenna (@henrycmckenna) September 24, 2023
The Patriots survived—but just barely.
It was mostly thanks to an incredible defensive effort, including this clutch safety sack by four-time Pro Bowl linebacker Judon. What else is new?
🚨 SAFETY🚨 @man_dammn comes through big time for the @Patriots
📺: #NEvsNYJ on CBS
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/UQdQ05hqXN pic.twitter.com/KQZriuEku2— NFL (@NFL) September 24, 2023
There are still concerns with the Patriots’ offensive line, which has mostly been banged up right out of the gates. The lack of explosiveness on the outside at receiver has also continued to show up.
JuJu Smith-Schuster hasn’t worked in the offense. He was targeted three times for five yards against the Jets. Meanwhile, Kendrick Bourne and DeVante Parker are savvy enough to make plays, but they aren’t the kind of elite playmakers that can consistently take a game over.
The Patriots had multiple opportunities to put points on the board or bleed the clock late in the game, and they constantly failed to do both.
This was a much-needed win for the team, but it’s hard to find optimism with a road trip to Cowboy Stadium to face a Dallas Cowboys team that looks like a legitimate Super Bowl contender next week.
Three games into the season, this Patriots team looks like it’s all defense and no offense.
