Takeaways from the Patriots’ 25-22 win over the Jets as Drake Maye leaves with a concussion

FOXBORO — The one thing Patriots fans feared most when Drake Maye was cast as the starting quarterback happened on Sunday. Novice got injured in Sunday’s 25-22 victory over the Jets.

However, the Patriots’ typically leaky offensive line wasn’t the cause of Maye’s concussion. The young quarterback charged, bounced off a defender and kept running before sliding into the box at the last minute and getting hit in the back of the head by Jets linebacker Jamien Sherwood with 1:09 left in the first quarter. He slowly got up from the pitch, signaled to the referee that everything was OK and stayed in the game.

But after the series, Maye entered a blue pop-up medical tent on the Patriots’ sideline and after exiting, he went to the locker room. Maye was initially deemed unlikely to return due to a head injury, but he was officially ruled out after the break with a concussion.

However, the Patriots did not give up after losing their starting quarterback.

Veteran quarterback Jacoby Brissett relieved Maye and he completed 15 of 24 for 132 yards and three carries for 11 yards. He also added a two-point conversion.

He led the Patriots on 11 plays with 70 yards rushing to take a 25-22 lead. Running back Rhamondre Stevenson completed a one-yard touchdown run and a two-point conversion reception.

The Patriots opened the scoring on the second play of the game when Maye went 17 yards for a touchdown on a 10-play, 77-yard run. Maye picked up 28 yards with his feet and 23 with his legs.

The Jets scored on a 2-yard pass from quarterback Aaron Rodgers to tailback Tyler Conklin, but kicker Greg Zuerlein missed the extra point to make it 7-6.

Maye suffered a head injury on an 18-yard field goal attempt on the Patriots’ next drive. However, he only left the game after the Patriots were hit.

The Jets responded with another touchdown, with Rodgers hitting wide receiver Xavier Gipson from one yard out.

The Patriots forced the Jets to attack coming out of the half. Returner Marcus Jones completed a 62-yarder to the Jets’ 26-yard line. Running back Rhamondre Stevenson capped off a five-play, 26-yard drive with a 3-yard touchdown run for a 14-13 lead. The Jets quickly got back on track with a field goal and took a 16-13 lead.

The Patriots took a 17-16 lead midway through the fourth quarter when Brissett led the offense on 14 plays for 61 yards, culminating with a 23-yard field goal by kicker Joey Slye.

However, it did not last long. The Jets then had a 10-second, 70-yard drive, then ran down the field, scored on a two-yard run from rookie Braelon Allen, and took a 22-17 lead after a failed two-point conversion attempt.

To go

Patriots accept Mayo’s challenge

Patriots players said this week that after Week 7 they will use Jerod Mayo’s message when he called his team “soft” as motivation or challenge. So how did it go, using Mayo’s definition that a strong team can stop the run, run with the ball and cover kicks?

The Patriots allowed 111 yards on 28 carries, good for 4 yards per attempt, which is an improvement over recent weeks. Their running backs carried the ball 25 times for 55 yards and three touchdowns, so they still can’t always run the ball. The Patriots allowed a 40-yard punt return.

The Patriots didn’t always play well on Sunday. But they didn’t give up.

It didn’t look like a weak team.

Wide receivers don’t support calls

The Patriots’ young wide receiver discusses the big game during the week and can’t back it up on Sunday. This week’s stat lines:

Kayshon Boutte: three catches, 46 yards, two downs
Tyquan Thornton: two catches, 20 yards, one down
DeMario Douglas: two catches, 12 yards, drop
WR Kendrick Bourne: No catches, one drop
WR KJ Osborn: no holds barred

To his credit, Boutte was a big factor in the Patriots’ winning effort with two key catches.

Coverage uneven

With both defensemen Kyle Dugger (ankle) and Jabrill Peppers (commission exempt list) missing, defenseman Jonathan Jones played deeper in Sunday’s win. As a result, Christian Gonzalez played on Davante Adams for most of the game and Marcus Jones on Garrett Wilson.

Gonzalez played exceptionally, but Jones passed over 100 yards in a difficult matchup with one of the league’s better wide receivers.

Ups

QB Drake Maye: Before leaving the game, UNC was 3 of 6 for 23 yards, but two of those incompletions were the result of wide receivers Tyquan Thornton and Kayshon Boutte going down. Maye also had three rushes for 46 yards.

CB Christian Gonzalez: Yes, Gonzalez was penalized for defensive pass interference, but it was a bad call. Otherwise, Gonzalez recorded a pass breakup and had a great performance against Jets wide receiver Davante Adams.

RB Rhamondre Stevenson: Sure, Stevenson only averaged 2.4 yards per carry on Sunday, but he scored two rushing touchdowns and a two-point conversion.

PR Marcus Jones: Jones set up the Patriots for a touchdown on a 62-yard punt return. In turn, his defense…

Falls

CB Marcus Jones: Jones put up a tough challenge against Jets wide receiver Garrett Wilson and returned for over 100 yards.

WR Tyquan Thornton: Thornton has been a healthy scratch for two weeks in a row. On Sunday, he got another chance and dropped off Maya.

LB Christian Elliss: For the second time this season, Elliss was assessed a costly penalty for defensive pass interference. This set up the Jets for their first touchdown. He also missed an important defensive game but was sacked for a key reason.