Patriots at Jets: First Half Thoughts
So far through one half of play, it's been penalties and mistakes that have been the reason why this one remains close, as the Patriots lead is only 14-10.
Some things worth pointing out through two quarters of play:
- The Patriots committed 4-penalties for 40-yards, with one of the critical ones being a delay of game penalty on a field goal attempt, which nullified a 32-yard field goal and Gostkowski went on to miss the second attempt. Zoltan Mesko is officially the one who gets called for the penalty on that one.
- They had a scary moment after Patriots wide receiver Wes Welker got drilled by Jets safety Eric Smith on a 3rd-and-9 play where he was coming accross and Smith leveled him, striking him in the head with his helmet and forearm and forced him out of the game. Welker would later return to catch New England's first touchdown, and so far he has since stayed in the game and appears to be O.K.
- Rookie tight end Aaron Hernandez had a solid first half, catching four passes for 80-yards including a 46-yard reception to help set up a 34-yard one handed grab by Randy Moss for a touchdown to put them up 14-7. Moss beat Revis on the play, with the Jets defensive back immediately grabbing his hamstring after he realized that Moss made the reception.
- Moss vs. Revis: Edge goes to Moss thanks to the touchdown, but overall Moss has been held in check - with 2-catches for 38 yards, 34 of which came on his touchdown catch. He could have been much better, after having a couple of routes where he didn't extend and make the catch, and didn't appear to go all out once he knew Revis was still close to him. Hopefully the touchdown catch will give him more confidence in the second half, provided Revis returns after leaving with what appears to be a hamstring injury.
- Rob Ninkovich unoficially leads the team in tackles through two quarters, finishing with four during the first half and has done a decent job so far. He could have had a couple more after not wrapping up a couple of guys, but he's been respectable and has been solid.
- The pressure on Mark Sanchez has been good by New England's defense, as the Patriots have sacked him twice. Unfortunately he's still 12-of-16 for 121 yards and a touchdown, with a QB rating of 116.9.
The third quarter is set to start soon, so we'll have more shortly.
