For the first time since October 22, 2023, the Patriots walked into their home locker room after the game a winner.
New England beat the Jets 25-22 to secure their second win of the season, coming from behind in the fourth quarter on the back of nine-year veteran Jacoby Brissett.
Yes, you read that correctly.
Starting quarterback Drake Maye exited the game in the second quarter with a head injury, and was later ruled out for the remainder of the day with a concussion. Maye was replaced by Brissett, who started the first five games of the season for New England.
The Patriots moved to 2-6 on the season, snapping a six-game losing streak that was the longest of Robert Kraft’s ownership.
Here are your “Ups & Downs” for Week 8. Let’s start positive:
Ups:
- Drake Maye: Until leaving the game with a concussion, the rookie flashed a lot of promise yet again.
On the second drive of the game, Maye flashed both big play ability with his legs, as well as a football IQ that helped keep the drive moving all the way to the end zone.
On the first play of the drive, Maye hit wide receiver DeMario Douglas on a short pass that went for 9 yards, making the smart, correct read to give his team positive momentum to start their second possession.
Two plays later, with no one open downfield, Maye rolled out left and threw the ball lefty to tight end Hunter Henry, who was being held by former Patriots cornerback Jalen Mills. The five yard penalty gave the Patriots a first down, and wouldn’t have been called if Maye hadn’t made the savvy throw towards his tight end to highlight the mistake by the Jets defensive back.
Two plays later on 3rd and 5, Maye looked towards Henry again. This time, it was an 11-yard completion good for a Patriots first down.
Two plays later, Maye’s legs picked up a first down on 2nd and 7, as the rookie scrambled for 11 yards to push the ball past the Jets’ 30 yard line.
Three plays later, the legs were at it again.
This time, it was Maye rolling out right and scoring a touchdown on the ground, taking a perfect angle towards the pylon for a 17-yard score.
Extra point from kicker Joey Slye was good, and the Patriots were up 7-0 with 5:18 left in the first quarter.
The stadium was excited, as fans were treated to yet another peak into what the future of this team will look like with a healthy Maye at QB.
…key word there is “healthy.”
Maye’s gifts with his legs could ultimately be a detriment in the long run if he doesn’t protect himself in the open field.
On the second-to-last play of the first quarter, the rookie took a helmet-to-helmet hit from Jets linebacker Jamien Sherwood while sliding after an 18-yard scramble. No penalty was called, and Maye played the rest of the drive.
When the hit happened, and even more so after the injury was announced later in day, Patriots fans across the internet loudly proclaimed that this hit from Sherwood should have been flagged for an illegal hit to the head.
I would whole-heartedly agree with that assessment.
I would also say that had Maye gone with a traditional QB slide, he would have had a much better chance of avoiding this blow from the Jets defense.
A tough lesson to learn for the rookie, but hopefully one he takes seriously moving forward as the Patriots rely on his athleticism to win games in the coming years.
- Hunter Henry: The tight end made plays all game long for an offense that was in desperate need of them after Maye exited the ballgame.
Henry had 5 catches for 45 yards on 6 targets, including a massive 12-yard catch on the game-winning touchdown drive at the end of the fourth quarter.
Maybe his biggest play of the day was called back in the third quarter, but we’ll touch on that later on in the column.
And a quick tip of the cap to his fellow tight end Austin Hooper, who had 3 catches for 15 yards on 4 targets. Obviously not a huge output, but Hooper along with Henry have continued to be a nice safety valve for the quarterbacks all season long.
- Jacoby Brissett: It wasn’t perfect, but the veteran QB did just enough to get his team a much needed W on Sunday.
Brissett was 15 of 24 for 132 yards, and made multiple big plays on his team’s final drive of the game that led to Rhamondre Stevenson’s game-winning 1-yard rushing touchdown:
- On 2nd and 10 from the Patriots 30, Brissett found Henry for a 12-yard catch along the sideline that saw the veteran tight end use great body control to see-in the ball while taking on a lot of contact.
- Three plays later on 3rd and 9 from the Patriots 43, Brissett got mobile, scrambling for 14 yards and picking up a massive first down to keep the drive alive.
- Three plays later on 3rd and 10, Brissett found second-year wide receiver Kayshon Boutte for 34 yards in the middle of the field. Brissett stepped up in the pocket and hit Boutte for a clutch play that set up the Patriots on the Jets 9 yard line with 1:14 left in the ballgame.
- Two plays later, Brissett found both Stevenson and Boutte on consecutive plays for a total of 6 yards, setting up New England with a 4th and goal opportunity from the 1 yard line with 25 seconds remaining in the game.
Outside of that final sequence, the number that’s most-telling of a positive day for Brissett’s big return:
1 sack for a loss of 11 yards.
So much of this team’s pass protection issues during his five games as the starter were on the veteran QB’s inability to get rid of the football. On Sunday, Brissett did a good job of making quick decisions, as well as moving in the pocket under pressure.
- Kayshon Boutte: You’ll see his name again later, but I’m going to give the young player credit for having the two clutch catches down the stretch to help his team win the game.
Boutte finished the day with 3 catches for 46 yards on 6 targets.
We’ll talk more about two of those targets in “Downs.”
- Secondary: With Kyle Dugger out of the game with an ankle injury, along with Jabrill Peppers’ continued place on the Commissioner Exempt List, the Patriots were without two of their best players in the backend of their defense.
Dugger’s absence forced Jonathan Jones into playing a lot more over-the-top than he normally does, and the secondary adjusted around that shift accordingly.
The unit held Jets’ pass catchers to 233 yards in the air, and never allowed Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers to get in a rhythm as a passer. The four-time MVP was just 17 of 28 through the air, and wasn't making huge plays while rolling outside the pocket like he was in their Week 3 win at MetLife.
While one aspect of the secondary’s game will pop up in “Downs,” they deserve a ton of credit for the game they played.
- Rhamondre Stevenson: At 20 attempts for 48 yards, 2.4 yards per carry would typically see Stevenson landing on the other side of this column.
But with the veteran running back punching in 2 touchdowns, including the game-winner that was no gimme, you have to give the guy his flowers for how hard he ran in the effort.
With Maye going down, the Jets were cheating up on the run game. With Brissett’s limited ability as a passer, the Patriots were still in need of Stevenson to be a part of the offense, despite the New York sideline knowing he was going to get the ball.
Good for Stevenson for having the game he had given the circumstances.
He also added 3 catches for 17 yards to his stat sheet, which is always a welcome addition to a QB’s passing tree.
- Marcus Jones: On the first possession of the second half, the Jets went three-and-out.
Veteran punter Thomas Morestead skyed a ball 52 yards to the New England 12 yard line, giving the speedy Jones enough space to make a play.
Jones found the hole, made some guys miss, and picked up 62 yards on his way to the Jets 26 yard line.
Five plays later, Stevenson was taking the ball into the end zone from 3 yards out to give the Patriots their first lead of the game.
This punt return, plus him playing out of position for much of the game because of the shuffling going on in the secondary, lands Jones in “Ups” for the first time this season.
- Christian Elliss: The fourth-year linebacker out of Idaho had a huge game on Sunday, leading the team in tackles (9), recording a sack, and breaking up a pass.
Elliss’ energy was evident throughout the entire game, but was especially apparent during the waning moments of the game.
As the season progresses, it appears Elliss’ role with this team has continued to grow.
Downs:
- Undisciplined: Another day where the flags, at least early in the game, were an issue.
On the Jets’ first touchdown drive of the game, three penalties in pass coverage by the Patriots’ defense kept the ball moving for New York:
- Marcus Jones was called for an illegal hands to the face penalty on 1st and 10 that pushed the ball up 5 yards to the Patriots 45 yard line
- Three plays later, Christian Gonzalez was called for defensive pass interference on Davante Adams on 3rd and 9, turning a third down stop into a 1st and 10 from the Patriots 22 yard line
- Three plays after the DPI from Gonzalez, Elliss was called for a third down DPI of his own, moving the ball to the Patriots 2 yard line
On the ensuing play, Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers threw a 2-yard touchdown pass to tight end Tyler Conklin.
Kicker Greg Zuerlein missed the extra point, but it didn’t matter. The Jets had completely answered the Patriots’ first quarter touchdown drive with one of their own, in large part because of penalties by New England’s defense.
- Untimely Mistakes in Pass Coverage: While the Patriots secondary only allowed 233 yards in the air, it was the types of plays they didn’t make that ultimately landed this unit in this section today.
We’ve already gone over the two penalties from the secondary from New York’s second possession, so no need to re-hash there.
In the second quarter, on 1st and 10 from the New England 28, Rodgers hit standout wide receiver Garrett Wilson on a pass all the way down to the Patriots 1 yard line. One play later, the Jets threw a 1-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Xavier Gibson to give the Jets a two-touchdown lead.
In the third quarter, on 2nd and 10 from the New England 35, Rodgers hit his buddy Adams for a 15 yard catch, getting pushed out of bounds on the New England 20 yard line. This was the play that allowed the Jets to get into field goal range, inevitably resulting in 3 points for New York to give them a 16-14 lead with 7:54 left in the third.
In the fourth quarter with the Jets down 17-16, Rodgers hit Wilson for a gain of 22 on 2nd and 7 that brought the ball from the Jets 45 to the Patriots 33. Not only did that play keep the drive moving, it almost guaranteed New York field goal range on that drive.
Three plays later, Rodgers found Adams open in the middle of the zone coverage for 17 yards, bringing the ball to the Patriots 3 yard line.
Field goal range was now touchdown range, and two plays later New York punched it in for 6, taking a 22-17 lead with 2:57 remaining in the game.
- Kayshon Boutte: Boutte is back to pay off that tease from “Ups,” making a rare double appearance in the “Ups & Downs” column.
In both the first and second half, Boutte dropped balls that hit him in the hands that would have resulted in first downs for his offense.
Both those drops coming in a week where the LSU product told the media he was frustrated about having to ask for the football had Boutte exclusively in the “Downs” section until his late-game heroics.
Credit to him for not compounding those mistakes by making the big plays late, but we’re still going to acknowledge the early mistakes in “Downs” as a way to get the whole picture on Boutte’s ballgame.
- Offensive Line: This was far from their worst game, so I almost feel a little dirty putting them in this section.
But there was one set of plays in the second half where they directly impacted their offense’s ability to capitalize on real momentum after a big play.
On their second possession of the third quarter, on 1st and 10 from their own 41, Brissett hit Henry for a beautiful 39-yard pass that would have brought the Patriots down to the Jets 20 yard line.
After opening the second half with a touchdown from Stevenson, it was looking like the Patriots were about to completely take over the game.
Unfortunately for New England, guard Michael Jordan was called for holding, and 1st and 10 from the Jets 20 became 1st and 20 from the Patriots 31.
Two plays later, center Ben Brown got beat up the middle by star defensive tackle Quinnen Williams, leading to Williams and Javon Kinlaw bringing Brissett down for a sack.
This led to a punt on 4th and 25.
All that promise was washed away by two missteps by the offensive line.
In a game with two bad teams where both sides leave the door wide open for their opponent to take advantage, a sequence like this will land you on the wrong side of the “Ups & Downs” column.
The 2-6 Patriots will try to make it two in a row in Week 9, as they will head to Tennessee to take on the 1-6 Titans.
Tennessee lost badly in Week 8, falling on the road in Detroit 52-14.