The New York Jets’ 15th consecutive loss to the Patriots is one of their most heartbreaking yet
No offense … none taken, for the New York Jets.
The 15th time was far from the charm for the New York Jets, who once again fell to the hated New England Patriots. Their latest fall to the Pats was a 15-10 Sunday slog at MetLife Stadium one that saw the New York (1-2) muster only 171 yards of offense, overseen by Zach Wilson.
A matchup of quarterbacks struggling to find franchise clarity began on a predictable note, as offensive showcases were at a premium in the early going. Jones provided the necessary points for an early two-possession lead with a 58-yard tally to Pharoah Brown.
Mac Jones to PHAROAH BROWN for 58 yards and the touchdown! pic.twitter.com/WeGMhdJZE8
— Savage (@SavageSports_) September 24, 2023
New York’s lone points of the opening half-hour came when they took advantage of a relatively short field, going 33 yards in 10 plays to set up a 52-yard field goal for Greg Zuerlein.
Special teams continued to take the field over the game’s next portions: the Patriots were able to set Chad Ryland up for consecutive triple attempts on back-to-back possessions and the rookie was able to hit the latter at the onset of the third to put New England back ahead by two scores.
Six straight punts followed that triple before the Jets finally broke through on a 13-play, 87-yard trek in the middle of the final frame. Nick Bawden earned the final yard for six, shortly after Allen Lazard kept the drive going with a 21-yard haul.
A perfect connection from Wilson to Lazard. 🎯
📺: #NEvsNYJ on CBS
⁰📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/UQdQ05hqXN pic.twitter.com/6NkNRiyCPB— NFL (@NFL) September 24, 2023
NICK BAWDEN TD. WE'RE WITHIN 3.
📺 #NEvsNYJ on CBS pic.twitter.com/UvZzjRFlai
— New York Jets (@nyjets) September 24, 2023
New England (1-2) was more than content to give the Jets opportunities to win. Even a safety earned via a Matt Judon sack of Wilson wasn’t their death knell, as they got the ball back for one more desperation drive in the final seconds. Wilson was able to find Garrett Wilson for 29 yards to place the Jets near midfield, but further progress ended with a desperation heave that allowed the Patriots to avoid their first 0-3 start since Bill Belichick’s debut year in 2000.
Mattew Judon logs a safety that might just have won the game for the #Patriots.
Look at the spin move on #Jets LT Mekhi Becton pic.twitter.com/0uB1ngYmRw
— Henry McKenna (@henrycmckenna) September 24, 2023
The road gets no easier for the Jets, who now face a nationally televised get-together with the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs next Sunday night (8:20 p.m. ET, NBC).
Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJags