PatsFans.com Menu
PatsFans.com - The Hub For New England Patriots Fans

New England Patriots > Patriots Blog

Patriots Week 17 Report Card in 38-3 Drubbing of the Jets

Steve Balestrieri
Steve Balestrieri on Twitter
January 1, 2019 at 7:00 am ET

Patriots Week 17 Report Card in 38-3 Drubbing of the Jets(PHOTO: Winslow Townson - USA TODAY Sports)

🕑 Read Time: 6 minutes


The big question on everyone’s mind today and a legitimate one is how much can we really gleam from the Patriots blowout win over the Jets yesterday? I mean, it was obvious the Jets mailed it in, there was no fire in that team.

However, the Patriots had a lot to play for and what we were looking for from them was to look like a team that is getting ready for the playoffs. And in yesterday’s game, they appeared to be just that. A team that very much appeared to be the Patriots team we’ve all been accustomed to watching for quite some time.

So, check out our grades and see how the team fared in this week’s blowout win:

Quarterback: A-

This week Tom Brady shook off his late-season doldrums and looked like… vintage Tom Brady. Hurt knee? Not from my vantage point. He looked like he was moved well in the pocket and stepped into his throws. Brady waited, slid in the pocket and rolled right to hit Phillip Dorsett in the end zone for a nine-yard TD.

Bailing early on his throws? Nope. He showed great patience on several throws and got lit up on one play by LB Jordan Jenkins as he let it go. On his 17-yard touchdown to James White, Brady gave the play time to develop and then waited as the pocket slowly collapsed before hitting White.

Noodle Arm? Child please. He zipped a laser to Edelman for 18 yards that should answer that silliness. He passed for 250 yards, 4 TDs, 0 INTs and had a passer rating of 133.8. The one pass he’d love to have back is the play where Chris Hogan was all alone in the end zone and he badly overthrew him.

Running Backs: B

As Tom Brady is fond of saying, when the offense is clicking it makes it hard for the opposing defense to cover everyone. And that was apparent on both the TD catches by Rex Burkhead and James White.

The Jets were in their base package to counter the two-back look and to stuff the run that they assumed was coming with Develin in the backfield  But Brady had Burkhead split wide and the Jets looked unsure. He was mismatched with LB Avery Williamson and Burkhead had two steps on him running down the seam. Brady dropped a perfect pass in the bucket for an easy 18-yard score, that looked like the TD he had last year against the Saintes.

The running game was okay but not great. The Jets did a decent enough job up front but they were bringing a safety up at the snap to help with the run defense, sacrificing the coverage in the passing game.

Sony Michel had a decent game with 50 yards on 14 carries and was oh-so-close when he burst thru the line in the second half to breaking a long touchdown run, but was taken down with a shoestring tackle. Yesterday was a good effort all around and showed their versatility.

Wide Receivers: B

Yes Chris Hogan IS still on the team and for the first time in over 2 months was targeted more than twice. In fact, he was targeted 11 times and had six catches, he should have had another one where Brady missed him wide open in the end zone. Phillip Dorsett was targeted five times and made five catches including a nine-yard touchdown.

Julian Edelman had a very solid game with five catches for 69 yards and a touchdown. He’s picked his game up a notch down the stretch. He and Dorsett did a nice job on the Jet sweeps, Edelman ran two for 24 yards and Dorsett ran two for 16, keeping the Jets’ defense off balance.

Tight Ends: B-

Rob Gronkowski and Dwayne Allen were both good in the run blocking department, being able to handle the Jets edge players is a big positive and their value in the running game can’t be overlooked. On one play, Allen lined up as a fullback and crushed LB Neville Hewitt where Michel burst thru the hole for a big gain.

Gronkowski finished finished with just two receptions for 24 yards but his best play was called back for a penalty on Allen of all people. It was a catch and run for 30 yards and on that play, the big man looked like vintage Gronk.

But he wasn’t a big part of the game plan yesterday, he was only targeted twice, three times if you count the penalty.

Offensive Line: A-

The offensive line had an outstanding day overall in pass protection. Far too often for the Jets, Brady had time to survey the field and go thru his progressions and he made them pay.

Brady was sacked just once, by Leonard Williams where he just blew by Marcus Cannon. Trent Brown was solid but had another holding penalty and allowed one QB hit.

The OL did a good enough job in the running game, they still ran for 136 yards before Hoyer did three kneel downs at the end of the game. But credit the Jets for doing a good job of game planning on how to slow the running game down.

Patriots Defensive Line: A

The Patriots defensive line had an outstanding, not good, outstanding game, dominating the Jets OL along the line of scrimmage. At one point in the first half, Elijah McGuire had nine carries for nine yards, one of which went for 17.  That means his eight other carries went for -8 yards.

Danny Shelton easily had his best game in quite some time, he was the immovable object in the middle and blew up several running plays, he stuffed McGuire for a loss on one and on another, he blew it up which allowed the LBs to come in and clean it up. Maybe sitting him down for a few weeks lit a fire under him. He looked like a totally different player yesterday. If he can play like that in two weeks, the run defense will be in very good shape.

Lawrence Guy had a tremendous game, when playing next to a two-gapping run stuffer, he can (and did) make plays everywhere, including a sack. Trey Flowers continues his hot streak down the stretch with outstanding play. He punched the ball out of McGuire’s hands for a forced fumble that McCourty recovered. The Patriots scored soon after. He blew by tackle Brent Qvale for a third-down sack of Sam Darnold early in the second half. Even Derek Rivers got into the act, recording the first sack of his career.

Linebackers: A-

Kyle Van Noy was all over the field, he set the edge on one running play, giving McGuire nowhere to run and Roberts flew in and dropped him for a loss. He did a good job of staying with the smaller, speedy Trenton Cannon on a wheel route deep down the sideline. In the same series, after Adam Butler knocked the ball out of Darnold’s hand, Van Noy alertly scooped it up and raced 46 yards for a touchdown.

Elandon Roberts was a heat-seeking missile in the running game. He had a tremendous game as he too was all over the field. When Roberts can play that downhill style, he’s incredibly effective and yesterday he hit McGuire at least five times at or behind the line of scrimmage. Dont’a Hightower flashed on a couple of plays as well.

Secondary: A-


Stephon Gilmore smothered Jets WR Robby Anderson. The Jets were short-handed due to injury and the Patriots matched up their best with the Jets best. Yesterday it was no contest. Gilmore was credited with two passes defensed but he blanketed Anderson all day and held him to just 3 catches for 24 yards and one of those wasn’t even on him. Anderson had averaged 104 yards per game in the last three weeks, but Sunday was Gilmore’s day. Darnold targeted him eight times.

UDFA J.C. Jackson continues his stellar play and is now firmly in the #2 corner slot opposite Gilmore supplanting Jason McCourty. Fellow rookie Keion Crossen was beaten for two big pass plays of 25 and 22 yards by Deontay Burnett but one of those was just a terrific catch by the Jets young WR.

The safeties were also very solid, holding talented TE Chris Herndon to just one catch for 8 yards.

Special Teams: B


At first glance it would appear Ryan Allen wasn’t at his best averaging just 39.8 yards per punt, but he was angling his punts toward the sideline, allowing the dangerous Andre Roberts nowhere to run. It was a good, solid job.

Stephen Gostkowski was perfect nailing all five extra points and his only field goal attempt. The return game was so-so with no KRs and four punt returns by Edelman for 28 yards. The coverage units were okay but did allow Roberts 32 yards on one kickoff return.

Coaching: A

Bill Belichick had the troops ready for this one and they showed up ready to play and took care of business. He said it best when summing up the season when he said, “We won next week because we won today.”

Josh McDaniels called an excellent game, the Jets made it clear that they were going to bring a safety into the box for run support so he attacked their linebackers in coverage. The touchdown passes to White and Burkhead were prime examples of that. The only hiccup was the 4th and 1 run at the end of the 1st half. Since they were gashing the Jets in the passing game, that looked like a prime opportunity for a play-action pass against that green secondary.  

Brian Flores kept things simple, the Jets were short-handed at WR, so he put Gilmore on their best wideout and once he was erased, everything else fell into place. They held Darnold to 167 yards passing and sacked him four times. Jets RBs gained just 76 yards.

Like this article?
Support Steve and buy him a coffee.

READ NEXT:
Patriots Fourth And Two Podcast: The NFL Playoffs For The Patriots This Season

About Steve Balestrieri

A former US Army Special Forces NCO and Officer, Steve has been following the Patriots since their days at Fenway Park. Steve has worked in the film industry and wrote as an Military Editor at SpecialOperations.com, 1945.com as a reporter for the Millbury Daily Voice, Millbury-Sutton Chronicle, and the Grafton News. He's also a member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA)


Posted Under: 2018 Patriots Regular Season
Tags: Bill Belichick Chris Hogan Danny Shelton James White Julian Edelman Kyle Van Noy New England Patriots New England Patriots Defense New England Patriots Offense New York Jets Rex Burkhead Rob Gronkowski Sony Michel Tom Brady Trey Flowers Week 17 Report card

  • Comments are closed.

  • More Patriots News Headlines:

    Wednesday Patriots Notebook 3/27: News and Notes

    Wednesday Patriots Notebook 3/27: News and Notes

    By: Ian Logue
    New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft said on Tuesday that 'we're going to be open to whatever can come our way,' heading into next month's…
    21 hours ago
    Tuesday Patriots Notebook 3/26: News and Notes

    Tuesday Patriots Notebook 3/26: News and Notes

    By: Ian Logue
    It's been interesting to hear the reactions following Jerod Mayo's press conference on Monday, and at the rate things are going, it's likely that he'll…
    2 days ago
    TRANSCRIPT: Patriots Owner Robert Kraft at the Owner’s Meetings 3/26

    TRANSCRIPT: Patriots Owner Robert Kraft at the Owner’s Meetings 3/26

    By: Ian Logue
    Here's the full transcript of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft's meeting with the media on Tuesday, March 26, 2024.
    2 days ago
    Monday Patriots Notebook 3/25: News and Notes

    Monday Patriots Notebook 3/25: News and Notes

    By: Ian Logue
    Head coach Jerod Mayo took some time on Monday to talk to the New England media, addressing a variety of topics as he attempted to…
    3 days ago
    TRANSCRIPT: Patriots Head Coach Jerod Mayo Coach’s Breakfast 3/25

    TRANSCRIPT: Patriots Head Coach Jerod Mayo Coach’s Breakfast 3/25

    By: Ian Logue
    Here's the full transcript from Jerod Mayo's AFC Coaching Breakfast for Monday, March 25, 2024.
    3 days ago

    Share via
    Copy link
    Powered by Social Snap
    Search For Links: - CLOSE
    For searches with multiple players
    add commas (Ex: "Bill Belichick, Devin McCourty")