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New England Patriots: Winners and losers Week 6 vs New York Jets

By Kenneth Teape

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - OCTOBER 15: Tom Brady #12 of the New England Patriots leads his team onto the field against the New York Jets before their game at MetLife Stadium on October 15, 2017 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)
EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - OCTOBER 15: Tom Brady #12 of the New England Patriots leads his team onto the field against the New York Jets before their game at MetLife Stadium on October 15, 2017 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images) /
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New England Patriots: Winners and losers Week 6 vs New York Jets
EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ – OCTOBER 15: Tight end Rob Gronkowski #87 of the New England Patriots celebrates his touchdown with quarterback Tom Brady #12 and teammates against the New York Jets during the second quarter of their game at MetLife Stadium on October 15, 2017 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images) /

Offensive Line

The biggest winner this week against the Jets was the Patriots offensive line. The Jets do not have a dominant defense by any means, but the Patriots offensive line has struggled no matter the opponent thus far this season. Week 6 was arguably their best performance of the season.

The game plan changed for the Patriots this week and it paid off. The same starting lineup was used, but some personnel packages were changed and they worked. James Devlin played a season-high 24 snaps, as the Patriots went with more two-running back sets against the Jets. We also saw Nate Solder play some tight end in packages, with LaAdrian Waddle coming in to play tackle.

It resulted in a strong performance on the ground from the running game. The running game has been inconsistent this season, but they got the job done against a Jets team that ranked No. 30 in stopping the run coming into the game.

This is something we could see more of going forward. Taking the pressure off Tom Brady makes sense, as he has been getting clobbered at times this season. Having a strong run game would go a long way in accomplishing that.

Brady was hit 10 times but did not take a sack, an improvement on the beating he took against the Carolina Panthers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers the previous two games.

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