The Patriots have crushed the Jets 14 straight occasions, they usually’d higher make it 15 straight on Sunday

Any encouraging vibes that lingered from the loss to the Eagles evaporated in final Sunday’s 24-17 loss to the Dolphins, throughout which the Patriots’ opponents as soon as once more seized an early double-digit lead and grueling uphill makes an attempt to return again had been left unfulfilled.

And so the Patriots are 0-2 — not totally a shock, however a irritating option to begin after a comparatively encouraging coaching camp. But the negativity and doubt, notably from the latest technology of followers who entered their 30s understanding nothing however Patriots success, have been amplified this week past perception.

Invoice Belichick has 329 profession wins as a head coach within the NFL, 18 behind all-time chief Don Shula. Listening to the sports-radio and social media static about Belichick this previous week, you’d suppose he had the identical profession document as David Shula, 19-52.

With the intention to quiet the noise, persuade doubters and only-happy-when-I’m-miserable varieties to cease hitting the panic button like some deranged recreation of Whac-A-Mole, and, oh yeah, really put a 1 within the win column three weeks into the season, the Patriots have to be at their finest Sunday.

They’ve a real probability to be. Coach Robert Saleh’s Jets have enviable high-end expertise, together with cornerback Sauce Gardner, receiver Garrett Wilson, and defensive sort out Quinnen Williams.

In addition they featured, fleetingly, one of many biggest quarterbacks of all time in Aaron Rodgers . . . for 4 performs, anyway. In nearly probably the most Jets factor ever, the entire offseason hype concerning the four-time MVP coming from Inexperienced Bay to New York to be the oddball model of Joe Namath ended minutes after it formally started when he suffered a season-ending Achilles’ damage on the primary collection.

That meant that Zach Wilson — the previous No. 2 total decide who has an enormous arm, good mobility, and never a single different attribute required of a reliable NFL quarterback — returned to the position that he flopped in final season.

In 4 profession video games in opposition to the Patriots, Wilson has accomplished 54 of 106 passes — or about 50 greater than he ought to have been allowed to try — for 2 touchdowns and 7 interceptions.

The Patriots won’t ever acknowledge it. However they may not be happier to see him on Sunday, in a recreation they need to and should win.

Kick it off, Ryland, and let’s get this one began . . .

Three gamers to look at apart from the quarterbacks

Cole Unusual: This isn’t meant to counsel that the stunning 2022 first-round decide is a bust, neither is it to counsel he’s the singular answer for what ails the Patriots’ offensive line. He’s merely emblematic of the issue, one which with well being and repetition must be — needs to be — repairable quickly.

That drawback: The road has no cohesion, and as irritating as it’s, as a result of it’s negatively affecting all the things on offense, it’s comprehensible.

Within the opener in opposition to the Eagles, rookies Sidy Sow and Atonio Mafi began at guard as a result of Unusual (who injured his knee within the first observe of coaching camp) and Mike Onwenu (who missed camp recovering from ankle surgical procedure) weren’t able to go. They returned and began in opposition to the Dolphins, however left sort out Trent Brown was sidelined with a concussion, which means 60 % of the road modified from Week 1 to 2.

The 5 linemen — which included tackles Vederian Lowe, acquired from the Vikings on Aug. 28, and Calvin Anderson, who handled an undisclosed sickness in camp that had him pondering retirement, and regular heart David Andrews — regarded like they hadn’t performed collectively, as a result of they hadn’t. Unusual, the left guard, wasn’t as egregiously dangerous as Anderson was at proper sort out, however he was responsible of lacking blocking assignments. Together with Brown, Onwenu, and Sow, Unusual popped up on the damage report once more this previous week, suggesting that there must be some concern a few lack of continuity as soon as once more on Sunday.

Whichever 5 linemen do begin should look extra related than they did per week in the past, in each the operating and passing video games. Rhamondre Stevenson has simply 75 yards speeding this season, a tempo of 638. He’s the Patriots’ finest offensive participant, and it’s unfair to maintain asking him to make one thing out of nothing.

And whereas Mac Jones has largely completed an efficient job of eliminating the ball shortly, the Jets — led by Williams — have a historical past of creating his life tough. The Jets took Jones down 12 occasions within the two video games final season, with six totally different gamers gathering a sack within the second matchup.

Garrett Wilson: The 2022 AP Offensive Rookie of the 12 months got here throughout as a team-focused and likable individual on “Laborious Knocks,” so he’d in all probability by no means acknowledge it, however he needs to be one of many Jets most bummed out by Rodgers’s state of affairs. Wilson was poised to turn into the subsequent Davante Adams. Now Wilson is again to catching passes from a quarterback so inept that he makes Jets followers lengthy for the times of Sam Darnold seeing ghosts. Wilson performed a terrific recreation — with the opposite Wilson at quarterback — within the Week 8 matchup final 12 months, catching six passes for 115 yards, together with a 54-yarder. The Patriots shut him down within the second assembly, a slog of a recreation that threatened to set again professional soccer offense by a number of generations, limiting him to 2 catches for 12 yards. It must be entertaining to look at Wilson battle Patriots rookie cornerback Christian Gonzalez, who got here up with a spectacular interception in opposition to the Dolphins and drew excessive reward from star receiver Tyreek Hill, who stated Gonzalez was “actual good” and a “very prolonged nook, had some actual good method and velocity about him.”

Demario Douglas: There’s some hesitation right here to count on the Patriots to lean closely on a rookie sixth-round decide who didn’t see one other snap on offense after getting the ball punched free by the Dolphins’ Bradley Chubb within the first quarter Sunday night time. However they need to, and right here’s hoping Douglas fled Belichick’s doghouse after a short keep, as a result of the Patriots are going to wish him. Douglas has a ability set — jitterbug quickness and the flexibility to burst by means of small home windows for lengthy positive aspects — that every one different Patriots receivers lack. Kendrick Bourne has made some very good performs and left others on the sector. DeVante Parker is rarely really open, which makes each throw to him high-risk. JuJu Smith-Schuster has been extra useful than he will get credit score for, however his previous burst is lacking. Douglas, who may provide a component of shock provided that there isn’t a lot recreation tape on him, has an opportunity to have an enormous day, particularly with Jones possible on the lookout for quick-hitters in opposition to the fierce Jets rush.

Grievance of the week

You imply moreover the suggestion that Belichick must be fired by individuals who can’t provide you with something attention-grabbing to say with out being disingenuous and hyperbolic? All proper, high quality, if we’re simply protecting this to soccer fairly than media caterwauling, how about this, the grievance of the season to date:

The Patriots must cease with the self-defeating errors — the Deatrich Sensible encroachment on the second play of the season, the Darius Slay pick-6 adopted instantly by the Ezekiel Elliott fumble within the Eagles recreation, the Douglas fumble final week, the drive-killing sacks on the most inopportune occasions, the massive and little errors that used to plague their opponents however have turn into in latest seasons a irritating a part of their very own id.

Matthew Judon is correct. The Patriots should not a foul crew. However they’re typically not going to be as purely proficient as their opponents given this brutal schedule. Some wonderful groups are going to beat them. If they’ll accomplish something this season, they’ve to interrupt this behavior of beating themselves.

The flashback

A recollection of a recreation, second, or efficiency from a earlier matchup.

The Patriots and Jets have met 128 occasions, together with three playoff video games, so there are many occasions and vignettes to select from of their historical past. (Most of you’d go along with the Buttfumble right here, wouldn’t you? Such a predictable, albeit timeless, alternative.) However for these functions, we’re going to return to the final assembly, when Marcus Jones’s walkoff 84-yard punt return gave the Patriots a 10-3 victory and offered an electrifying finish to a snoozer of a recreation that featured 17 punts. Jones’s punt return TD was simply certainly one of three within the NFL final season — the Lions’ Kalif Raymond and the Browns’ Donovan Peoples-Jones had the others. This season, there was one — a 65-yard walkoff by Jets rookie Xavier Gipson in time beyond regulation in Week 1 in opposition to the Payments.

Prediction, or Devin McCourty is retired and he nonetheless may decide off Zach Wilson Sunday . . .

The system is so easy, isn’t it? Don’t dig an early gap like they did in opposition to the Eagles (down, 16-0, after the primary quarter) and Dolphins (down, 10-0, deep into the second quarter). Play from forward, which can enable them to emphasise their strengths, which ought to embody getting Stevenson occurring the bottom and placing heavy strain on Wilson. Settle for all presents that Wilson makes an attempt to ship, as a result of he’ll throw not less than one move on to a Patriots defensive again for no obvious cause. Remove the undisciplined errors. Fail to do these issues, and the season is about to get lengthy after it’s barely even begun. However keep on with that affordable guidelines, and the primary win of the season will lastly be secured. Patriots 20, Jets 10.