Patriots-Jets report cards: Grading Mac Jones first full game back as starter

NFL box scores are often misleading in painting an accurate picture of how well a player performs in a game. Sometimes, it leaves out the most important stuff.

That was the case for Mac Jones in the New England Patriots win over the New York Jets on Sunday. Going by the box score, the stats were OK. But none of it was particularly reflective of how Jones actually played — for good and bad.

It was an up-and-down performance all across the board at MetLife Stadium. So lets dive past the box score and really dig into how shined and who struggled on Sunday. Enter your email address here to receive MassLive’s Patriots newsletter every Monday and Friday.
      

Quarterback

Stats: 24-of-35, 194 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT, 79.9 passer rating

Heres the wild part of Jones game. The box score only has him down as being responsible for one interception, which is partly on the offensive line, which allowed his arm to get hit on the throw. However, the box score does not include the abysmal pick-six he threw to Michael Carter before halftime (due to it being wiped out due to a roughing the passer penalty).

Jones had a roller-coaster afternoon. He had a series of huge throws on third down, making good decisions to move the chains and keep drives alive. He was a huge part of why the Patriots sustained most of their drives.

He did all of that while working behind a porous offensive line and took six sacks and eight QB hits on the day.

However, some of those hits, including his strip sack, were a result of him holding onto the ball too long.

This wasnt a particularly prolific day for Jones. It was mostly a grind. But thats what you need from a quarterback sometimes, especially when hes taking a series of huge hits from a defense thats teeing off in the pass rush.

This grade may be a little higher than what some others may give (especially my own colleagues at MassLive). But I think he earned it given the toughness and poise he showed throughout the game.

Grade: CRELATED: Interested in sports betting? Sign up for news, advice and promos with our free newsletter

Running Back

Rhamondre Stevenson is a budding star in the Patriots offense. He took 16 carries for 71 yards (4.4 yards a pop). The crazy thing is that Pro Football Focus credited him for 81 rushing yards after contact. Its a statistical anomaly thats a result of Stevenson hitting defenders in the Patriots backfield and bowling ahead — and also getting taken down for some losses due to missed blocked.

Stevenson also had seven catches for 72 yards as Jones dumped off short for much of the game.

Damien Harris had a pedestrian afternoon, gaining 19 yards on seven carries.

Grade: B+

Wide Receiver

Jakobi Meyers remains the go-to receiver for New England, catching six passes for 60 yards on 12 targets. He was the guy Jones found on multiple occasions to move the chains, especially early in the game.

Outside of that, it was a quiet day for Patriots receivers. DeVante Parker left the game early with an injury. Nelson Agholor caught a single screen pass that didnt go anywhere.

Really, the only non-Meyers bright spot was Tyquan Thornton, who gained 13 yards on a nifty comeback route. He was also quick to get into the mix in defense of his quarterback after a hit on the sidelines.

Kendrick Bourne remains MIA. He finished with one target on the day.

Grade: C-

Tight End

Jonnu Smith had three catches, which is nice. However, they only totaled 10 yards, which is disappointing.

Oddly enough, Smith added a kick return to his resume, scooping up a short kickoff and bringing it out to the 38-yard line.

Meanwhile, Hunter Henry hasnt been logging a ton of catches lately, but he did a lot with the one he got Sunday, taking it 22 yards.

Grade: C

Offensive Line

Ouch.

So, here are the positives: Trent Brown and Mike Onwenu played pretty well today. They didnt have much in terms of glaring errors.

Otherwise, it was a disaster up front.

Isaiah Wynn started at right tackle and got benched after getting destroyed by Jonathan Franklin-Myers on a sack. He came back in for jumbo packages and later on at left guard when rookie Cole Strange struggled.

Strange had probably the worst game of his career so far, committing a pair of holding penalties and also giving up a sack.

Marcus Cannon was spotty in his time at right tackle. Hes stout but can get torched by athletic rushers. We saw that when Bryce Huff blew past him to hit Jones arm, leading to an interception.

Then there was fill-in center James Ferentz, whos well-liked in the Patriots organization. Unfortunately, he had a rough day trying to anchor the inside of the offensive line Sunday. This team needs David Andrews back.

The final tally: 6 sacks allowed, 8 QB hits allowed.

Grade: F

Defensive Line

This group performed admirably with Christian Barmore still out. Deatrich Wise logged a key pass deflection, batting down a pass on third down. Meanwhile, Lawrence Guy was the first Patriot to finally corral Zach Wilson for a sack.

The Jets didnt have a ton working up front, averaging just 3.4 yards a carry Sunday. This was an underrated effort here.

Grade: B

Linebacker

JaWhaun Bentley had one of the biggest plays of the game, becoming the first player on the day to pick off Wilson.

Elsewhere, the Patriots linebacker group did a good job getting into the backfield and pressing Wilson but struggled to actually get sacks.

Josh Uche finally did got one late in the game. However, the linebackers still had a major effect, as pressure was a large part of multiple turnovers by Wilson on the day.

Grade: B

Secondary

This was a weird game for the secondary. Yes, Devin McCourty had two interceptions. However, those were more a result of terrible plays by Wilson than great coverage (although McCourtys first pick was a great catch).

As mistake-prone as Wilson was, he still moved the ball a ton and finished 20-of-41 for 355 yards, two TDs and three INTs.

Thats a bonkers passing line, considering the yardage he put up while completing fewer than half his passes.

Jalen Mills got burned badly on Garrett Wilsons 54-yard catch on third down, continuing a troubling trend there. Meanwhile, Jack Jones had a bad tackle attempt on Denzel Mims, letting him continue running for 63 yards.

Still, the safety group stepped up with Kyle Dugger out to provide physicality, especially Jabrill Peppers, who had a team-high eight tackles.

Grade: C

Special Teams

Nick Folk was the MVP of the game, going 5-of-5 on field goals, including a 52-yarder.

Jake Bailey bounced back from some rough performances with a nice outing. He pinned two punts inside the 20. His one touchback should have been pinned short as well, if not for a mistake by rookie by DaMarcus Mitchell while downing th eball.

Marcus Jones had a killer punt return, taking a kick back 32 yards, thanks to a key block by Peppers.

Speaking of Peppers, the defensive back was all over the Jets late onside kick attempt. Peppers quickly jumped on the attempted misdirection onside kick, landing on the ball and preventing a repeat of last weeks onside kick blunder.

Grade: A-