Kirby Lee/USA TODAY Sports

The Seattle Seahawks dealt the New England Patriots a tough blow on the road a week before, and the Pats were looking to make things right by taking it out on the circus of the division. But the Jets were anything but a laughingstock in this one, as Mark Sanchez led them to an incredible fourth quarter performance. They came into the fourth down 23-13, but Sanchez tossed a seven-yard touchdown pass to Dustin Keller and Nick folk knocked down two 43-yard field goals to give the Jets a 26-23 lead.

Now that’s scary. The Jets were leading 26-23 in Foxboro, and the Patriots had just 1:37 left to put some points on the board. Sanchez showed some clutch ability in giving the Jets a lead, but Tom Brady showed that he is the king of clutch drives by hitting up star tight end Rob Gronkowski for back-to-back 15 and 12-yard completions to set the Pats up at the 48. Then, Danny Woodhead took over and showed why he is one of the must clutch players in the league by reeling off a big 20-yard gain on his first reception, then putting Stephen Gostkowski into better field goal position by snagging a seven-yarder. Brady and the Patriots were incredible working out of the no-huddle in a clutch situation, and they were able to save their third timeout to give Gostkowski the chance to knock down the field goal with five seconds left.

Gostkowski was criticized for not performing in the clutch and missing late field goals, as some Pats fans were still upset over his miss against the Arizona Cardinals. I felt somewhat vindicated by standing by Gostkowski as a great kicker when he nailed the 43-yarder to tie it up at 26, but there was still work to be done.

The Patriots started off with the ball in overtime, and their drive was nearly killed off on third-and-seven with the ball at their own 44 after an incomplete pass to Aaron Hernandez, but a pass interference from Jets corner Kyle Wilson saved the Jets. Gostkowski had a second clutch field goal to attempt, and he delivered by also hitting a 48-yarder to give the Pats a 29-26 lead.

The Jets weren’t done, though, and they continued to scare the Patriots at home. Alfonzo Dennard committed a penalty of his own (holding) on third down to get the Jets going, and Sanchez hit up Jeremy Kerley for a 17-yard pass to get the Jets to their own 40. But that’s as far as the Jets would go, because Rob Ninkovich performed one of the most heroic plays of the Patriots season. He and Jermaine Cunningham teamed up for a 12-yard sack of Mark Sanchez, and Ninko (one of the best players in the league at forcing and recovering fumbles) pounced on the loose ball to give the Pats the win. Thus, the Pats won on a game-winning fumble.

Each week, I do a “What We Learned” post on Monday after the game, but I feel like we need to run through some stuff we “learned” from this game in context. So below are some bullet points on why this game was so significant.

1. We realized just how bad the Patriots pass defense was, and I think this is when the Pats realized they needed to get another cornerback. The Pats managed to make Mark Sanchez look good by allowing him to throw for 328 yards, 8.0 yard per attempt, and a 90.3 QB Rating. While those numbers are a bit inflated (his TQBR was below 50), Sanchez still looked a lot better than he should have. The Pats acquired Aqib Talib during the bye week following their blowout victory in London over the St. Louis Rams, but let’s just say that this too-close-for-comfort game against the Jets was the final straw. They realized that Kyle Arrington is a good slot corner, but he is terrible on the outside; Arrington had a terrible game against the Jets. It showed the Pats that they needed a true outside CB and someone who could lock down possession receivers, as they were unfairly playing Arrington out of position throughout the beginning of the year.

2. The fact that the Patriots were able to pull this game out and not completely blow it after the Jets near-comeback in the fourth quarter was a moral boost for this team. They really needed it after losing out at the end to the Seahawks, and this game against the Jets started a seven-game winning streak for the Patriots. This game taught the Patriots a real lesson, and that is to not discount any opponent. Tom Brady, Vince Wilfork, and other veterans will tell you this all the time, but it seemed like younger players like Dennard and Stevan Ridley needed to have that lesson ingrained into their minds.

3. Rob Gronkowski, Wes Welker, and Aaron Hernandez all did a solid job moving the chains, and they rose up to help Brady move the ball down the field in important situations. Gronk caught six passes for 78 yards and two touchdowns, and that’s the kind of dependability, solid production, and playmaking ability at the TE position that the Pats were making. He was their best playmaker last season, and the Pats lost a lot of schematic advantages when he went down.

4. We didn’t learn this, but if you watch this game again closely, you’ll once again be amazed at just how good the Patriots starting linebackers are. Dont’a Hightower looks like a solid LB for a long-time, Brandon Spikes is a true difference-maker on defense, and Jerod Mayo is indeed one of the best linebackers in the league right now. If you still think he is overrated, then you probably didn’t watch him as closely as you think you did this past season. He improved greatly in pass coverage (Hightower and especially Spikes still have some work to do in that regard, though) and looked lively against the run.

This “Look Back” series is driven by reader suggestions, and this piece was suggested to us by Musket Fire staff writer Cyrus Geller, who told me that this game was an extremely important one for the Patriots.

Past “Look Back” pieces

Patriots score 21 points in 52 seconds to help destroy the Jets.

Defensive end Chandler Jones debuts against the Tennessee Titans.

The Arizona Cardinals upset the Patriots in Week 2.

You can follow Joe Soriano on Twitter @SorianoJoe.

Mitch Stringer-USA TODAY Sports

That bodes well for the Patriots, who have the 29th pick in the draft and could use a pass rusher with Carradine’s talent. If he checks out medically to the Patriots liking on the visit and the Pats like his tape enough, I could see them pulling Carradine in the first round. Although that would mean the Patriots would have spent back-to-back first-rounders on defensive ends in addition to bypassing bigger needs at wide receiver and cornerback, teams don’t like to pass up on players who they view as special and who could fit smaller needs.

Chandler Jones has a great shot at breaking out and becoming one of the best DEs in the NFL by his third season, and he has the athletic  ability and excellent mix of pass rushing potential and current run-stuffing prowess to do this. However, Jones is the only consistent pass rusher on the Patriots. Rob Ninkovich is one of the best DEs in the NFL against the run, but his pass rushing ability is subpar because his pressure comes in bursts. This leads to high sack numbers, but Ninkovich’s pass rushing ability isn’t all that great. To me, though, the Pats can live with that if they can find a great interior pass rusher. Sylvester Williams has that potential, so we’ll see if the Pats decide to pluck the UNC guy in the first or hope for him to fall into the second.

With things stalled between the Patriots and John Abraham, there is a very real possibility of the Pats taking a defensive end like Tank Carradine in the 2013 NFL Draft. His pre-draft visit with the Pats will dictate the team’s interest, and this is a visit that I will be keeping close watch on.

You can follow Joe Soriano on Twitter @SorianoJoe.

Melina Vastola-USA TODAY Sports

A bigger corner with plenty of strength and excellent run support, Banks has traits that the Patriots value in a CB. However, he had a disappointing 4.61 forty time, and Banks did get burned more often than he should have last season. Still, Banks is good value with the 29th pick and fell too far as a result of the forty time. I don’t mind this pick for the Patriots.

2. Contrary to what Seattle Seahawks corner Richard Sherman thinks, New York Jets CB Darrelle Revis is not “irrelevant” and is still the league’s premier shutdown corner until proven otherwise. ACL tears are much easier than they used to be to come back from, and the only major concern I have with Revis is what type of a contract he wants. In case you didn’t see it yet, the New York Daily News had a picture of Revis in a Patriots uniform. Click here to see the pic and thoughts on Revis from Masshole Sports.

3. Missouri Tigers defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson showed off an impressive motor and great penetrating ability against some tough SEC programs last season at Mizzou. Richardson, who is expected to go to the Carolina Panthers, would certainly be on the Patriots radar if he fell all the way down to 29. Even though I can’t see that happening, WEEI’s article on Richardson and the potential of him being selected by the New England Patriots is an interesting read.

4. I’ve started a new gig frequently covering news on our general NFL site NFL Spin Zone, and I wrote an article yesterday about the Cincinnati Bengals decision to franchise Michael Johnson (before the news of the franchise became official). Now this is notable from a Pats perspective, because Johnson was expected to be a free agent on the Pats radar if he made the market. Johnson didn’t, and writers such as Greg Bedard tweeted about how Johnson could have been a target for New England. Johnson reminds me a little of Rob Ninkovich, because they are both mostly run-stopping DEs who get quick, rather than consistent, pressure. Johnson is the better player due to his athleticism and better pass rushing ability, but Ninkovich and Johnson seem too similar. If the Patriots are going to get a DE, I would prefer a speedy edge rusher in the rotation who can consistently add pressure.

5. Steve Young is one of my favorite quarterbacks of all-time, but I can’t believe he thinks Joe Flacco deserved the record-breaking deal he received from the Baltimore Ravens. Flacco’s contract will make it extremely difficult for the Ravens to keep guys like Anquan Boldin and Jacoby Jones in 2013.

You can follow Joe Soriano on Twitter @SorianoJoe.