{"id":3906,"date":"2015-12-28T08:54:50","date_gmt":"2015-12-28T13:54:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/?p=3906"},"modified":"2015-12-28T08:54:50","modified_gmt":"2015-12-28T13:54:50","slug":"7-things-we-learned-in-the-patriots-loss-to-the-jets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2015\/12\/28\/7-things-we-learned-in-the-patriots-loss-to-the-jets\/","title":{"rendered":"8 Things We Learned In the Patriots Loss to the Jets"},"content":{"rendered":"

Here’s a quick rundown with some thoughts on what we learned during Sunday’s disappointing 26-20 overtime loss to the Jets:<\/p>\n

1) The final two minutes of the first half on Sunday was one of the more bizarre sequences we\u2019ve seen in quite some time. \u00a0With 1:53 to go in the half and two timeouts in their possession, the Patriots inexplicably opted not to be aggressive in going after points to close out the quarter and the way they handled it could have potentially cost them another key player. \u00a0\u00a0After clearly showing they were content to run out the clock, New England dodged a major bullet on a play where another key member of their offense took an unnecessary big shot from a Jets defender. \u00a0With under 40-seconds to go, the Patriots opted to run a slant play to James White, who was absolutely drilled by Calvin Pryor III after the catch and they were lucky he popped back up. \u00a0Given that they hadn\u2019t turned the ball over or made any big mistakes offensively, why they didn\u2019t try to close out the half with points is certainly head-scratching to say the least. \u00a0And if they weren\u2019t going to do so, they should have just taken the kneel-down and kept White and the rest of the offensive players out of harm\u2019s way.<\/p>\n

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James White took quite an unnecessary shot at the end of the first half Sunday.<\/font>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n

2) It was another strong performance for wide receiver Keshawn Martin, who finished Sunday\u2019s game as New England\u2019s leading receiver after catching seven passes for 68 yards. \u00a0He\u2019s continued to be a pleasant surprise for a receiving core that needs some additional depth and it\u2019s going to be fun to see how productive he could be once Julian Edelman is healthy and this offense starts to click in the postseason. \u00a0Martin handled both the kickoff and punt duties, handling two kickoffs and two punts and has done well. \u00a0His contributions here have been mentioned previously but given their lack of consistent talent down the depth chart at the receiver position, it\u2019s certainly nice to see a player like Martin emerge in an offense that, considering their injury issues, can definitely use the depth.<\/p>\n

3) Ryan Fitzpatrick hasn\u2019t been a player who has enjoyed much success against New England, but he finishes the 2015 regular season with pretty impressive numbers. \u00a0His 26-of-41 performance for 296 yards and 3 touchdowns was another strong outing, with Fitzpatrick finishing with nearly the same number of passing yards as the 295 yards he passed for back in October. \u00a0Taking his numbers from Sunday, coupled with his performance from back in October, he completed 48-of-80 (60%) for 591 yards and five touchdowns, with no interceptions. Brady hinted at the fact it\u2019s possible these two teams could meet again in January and as much as you hate to admit it, given what we\u2019ve seen this season, the Jets quarterback is playing well and obviously has had success against them this season. \u00a0That would certainly have to make any Patriots fan nervous, regardless of whether or not the Jets would have to win in Foxboro.<\/p>\n

4) There\u2019s obviously a lot of respect between Patriots head coach Bill Belichick and former Patriots receiver Kenbrell Thompkins, who was carted off the field on Sunday after a non-contact injury where he went down clutching what appeared to be his knee. \u00a0Thompkins caught four passes for 27 yards for the Jets on Sunday and played fairly well, with three of his four catches coming on third down, including two first downs. \u00a0Thompkins went down with just under seven minutes to go in the fourth quarter, and as he sat on the cart, Belichick came over and shook the hand of his former player:<\/p>\n

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Belichick's respect for KT is real. pic.twitter.com\/EIk3SpUMGf<\/a><\/p>\n

— Will D. (@WAD1980) December 27, 2015<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n