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 "We made the plays when we needed to make them and that was the
important thing," Brady said after two fourth-quarter drives powered
the Patriots (6-0) to a 30-23 victory over the New York Jets.
Brady's 48th (counting postseason) career fourth-quarter comeback
brought New England out of a 20-16 hole to the win -- their 47th
victory in their last 51 home games and their 77th straight when
leading at halftime at home.
It also spoiled the return of Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis to New
England.
Brady, who never threw at Revis all day, had over 300 passing yards
for the 68th time in his career. He hit wide receiver Danny Amendola
for an 8-yard touchdown pass with 7:16 left and got the ball back
after a Jets punt. New England then drove again and Brady was 6 of 8
on the possession, beating an overload blitz over left tackle with
an easy 15-yard TD pass to tight end Rob Gronkowski to put the
Patriots up 30-20 with 1:13 remaining. It was Gronkowski's 60th
career touchdown catch.
Facing a 10-point deficit, the Jets (4-2) opted for Nick Folk's
third field goal of the game, a 55-yarder with 18 seconds left, and
Jets wide receiver Brandon Marshall then recovered an onside kick at
the New England 48 with 15 seconds remaining. But after a completion
to the Patriots' 40, Marshall was not set when quarterback Ryan
Fitzpatrick spiked the ball with one second remaining. That penalty
resulted in a runoff to end the game.
Marshall, who caught four passes, dropped a touchdown pass in the
fourth quarter that forced the Jets to settle for a field goal.
Patriots receivers dropped 12 passes, six of them by Brandon LaFell,
playing his first game of the season, and Brady overcame a pair of
drops by his teammates on the final drive. Still, he was able to
pull out a game that saw his team ignore the run with running backs
Dion Lewis and Brandon Bolden and several offensive linemen inactive
for the game with injuries. In fact, Brady led the team in rushing
with 15 yards on four carries, including an 11-yard scramble that
brought the ball to the 2 and set up a touchdown.
It was the first time in his career that Brady, who was 34 of 54 for
355 yards and two scores, led his team in rushing.
"I should enjoy this because it will probably never happen again,"
he said, adding that he "rumbled towards the goal line."
Gronkowski caught a career-high 11 passes for 108 yards, his 18th
career 100-yard game, while Stephen Gostkowski kicked three field
goals and has made 24 in a row.
On defense, the Patriots held Chris Ivory, the league's top rusher,
to just 41 yards on 17 carries, Ivory missing time during the game
with leg problems.
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"We are very happy with the win," said defensive end Rob Ninkovich,
who batted down four Fitzpatrick passes. "It's a good feeling, but
we gotta turned the page right away (the Miami Dolphins visit on
Thursday night)."
Fitzpatrick was 25 of 39 for 295 yards and two touchdowns -- with
wide receiver Eric Decker catching six passes for 94 yards on
cornerback Malcolm Butler.
"We were just a few plays away," said Jets fullback Brian Bohanon,
who had two catches for 36 yards. "We will correct those on film and
we will get back at it."
Asked what he could take from the loss, first-year Jets coach Todd
Bowles said, "Nothing. We lost. It was our fault. We fought until
the end and it wasn't good enough. They played better situational
football than we did. We will watch the film, correct the mistakes
and move on."
New York center Nick Mangold was injured in the final minute,
suffering an apparent head injury. He walked off the field after
getting attention but was taken by cart to the locker room.
Bowles said Mangold will have X-rays taken of his neck.
NOTES: With P Ryan Quigley out with a bruised shin, the Jets called
former Giants P Steve Weatherford on his cell phone while he was
doing a Saturday radio show and offered him the job. "I'm
baaaaaaaack!!!!" Weatherford posted on Instagram. Weatherford did
not have a good game, his late 33-yard shank leading to the last New
England touchdown. ... Patriots WR Brandon LaFell, just off IR,
caught two passes but dropped six, saying, "If I had to give myself
a grade, it would be an 'F.'" ... QB Tom Brady made his 213th start,
breaking a tie with Bruce Armstrong to take the franchise lead in
starts. ... Both coaches called for and were successful on
first-half ball placement challenges. ... The Jets visit the Oakland
Raiders next Sunday.
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