The New England Patriots dropped a key game against a division rival last week, succumbing 34-31 in overtime to the New York Jets.  Although the loss drops the Patriots back into third place in the division (tied with Miami), the season is not lost.  Here are some things we learned.

With Thomas Out, Pats Still Have Players at LB

We said that losing Adalius Thomas would have, or at least could have, a huge impact on what New England can do with their linebacker unit.  With the Patriots relying more on a quicker defense to stop the Jets, it became obvious late in the game that no pressure on Bett Favre allowed him to scramble long enough to find the open man.  Jerod Mayo, Gary Guyton, Tedy Bruschi, Mike Vrabel and Pierre Woods all contributed for New England’s linebacker unit, but none have the size and speed Thomas used to bull his way past blockers. 

In Thomas’ role, Woods finished with 10 tackles (6 solo) and 2 tackles for a loss, a quarterback hurry and a sack. Not a bad showing for his first serious action of the season. In the middle, Jerod Mayo was a monster. Mayo had a game high 20 tackles (16 solo), two tackles for a loss and a pass defended.  Bruschi saw a bit more action, recording 10 tackles, while Vrabel and Guyton were on the field, but didn’t show up well in the stats column.

Mayo is for real compared to the two players the Patriots considered taking at linebacker in this year’s Draft; Vernon Gholston (Jets) and Keith Rivers (Bengals).  Gholston has been nearly invisible in the Jets defense, while Mayo dominates the Patriots stats with 85 tackles (66 solo). 

The Secondary Is A Work In Progress

With news coming out this week that CB Terrence Wheatley is done for the season, the Patriots secondary needs some healthy bodies to keep pace with the myriad of talented receivers they’ll face down the stretch.  The secondary gave up 258 yards (gross) against New York which isn’t terrible, especially for an OT game.  The alarming part of the defense was the inability to stop the pass on third and long.  The Jets converted 23 first downs for the night, 16 via the pass (approx 70%). The third down defense continues to plague this team, with New York converting 56% (9-16) of the time.  A key play was a breakdown in coverage on a third and 15 in OT, which allowed the Jets to move into field goal range to win the game.

The Jets Cranked Out Yards On The Ground

An emotional Thomas Jones was thrilled with his performance against New England, breaking down in the locker room after the game.  Jones stated the obvious after.

“It was emotional, this was a big game for us,” Jones recounted. “To be able to come up here and play New England in their house and win, it was just big for us. Now we are in first place in the division. This was just a very exciting game, and a very exciting team win.”

Thomas finished with 30 carries for 104 yards (3.5 avg.) and a touchdown.

A wildcat formation with Brad Smith netted a 17-yard gain.  The Patriots allowed the Jets to run 39 times for 140 yards (including 3 Brett Favre Scrambles). The Jets rushing attack  wasn’t devastating, but it was effective enough to keep the Patriots off balance in OT.

Cassel To Moss Is Improving

The Jets used recently signed Ty Law to man up on Randy Moss all night.  Many of the postgame coverage claimed Law was able to shut down Moss for most of the game.  That isn’t entirely true.  Moss was open, but Cassl went other directions to try to throw the Jets strategy out the window.  Judging by Cassel’s success, the Patriots were able to exploit New York’s decision to double Moss all night.  When it mattered most, Cassel was still able to to connect with Moss.  On a fourth down play with 8 seconds remaining, Cassel scrambled away from pressure, rolling ot his right and unloaded a classic throw to Moss in the corner of the end zone.  Moss shielded Law with one arm and caught the ball while leaning over the sideline.  After review the play stood and the Patriots were able to force overtime.  T

Though Moss only had three catches on the night, he was there when Cassel needed him most.  Cassel finished the night throwing 51 times, connecting on 30 for 400 yards and 3 touchdowns.  Now, he just has to find a way to get Moss some of those yards next week.

Sammy Returns

Sammy Morris made his way back to the lineup against New York.  After suffering a knee injury weeks ago, Morris has watched rookie BenJarvus Green-Ellis and Kevin Faulk fill in for the Patriots. All three contributed to the Patriots 125 yard performance, but it was Matt Cassel who led New England’s rushing attack with 8 carries for 62 yards (7.8 avg.).  Cassel took off straight upfield when the blocking broke down and nothing was open.  His athleticism allowed him to make plays with his feet when he could do the same with his arm.

With Morris back in the backfield, the Patriots will look for more from the veteran back in games where tough yards are needed.  FB Heath Evans had two short yardage carries against the Jets, but Evans isn’t the same runner Morris can be. 

Up Next

The Patriots face the Miami Dolphins on Sunday in a game that is crucial to win.  With New York holding a one-game lead in the division facing the undefeated Tennessee Titans, the winner of the Patriots – Dolphins game has a very good chance to be tied with New York for the lead.

Transactions

The Patriots made three roster moves on Monday.  Rookie Cornerback Terrence Wheatley was placed on reserve/injured list with a wrist injury.  He appeared in 6 games with one start for the Patriots.

The Patriots promoted Wheatley’s college teammate; tight end Tyson DeVree, to the active roster to fill the vacant spot. DeVree was invited to tryout with the Patriots at their rookie minicamp.  He was impressive enough to win a deal, but was released before the season.  He was resigned to the practice squad most recently on Sept. 17, 2008.

Linebacker Darrell Robertson was signed to the Patriots practice squad to take DeVree’s spot. 

One move not announced: Offensive lineman Jacob Bender was signed off the Patriots practice squad by the San Francisco 49ers.