Week 3 stock watch: Patriots emphatically stomp Jets at home

The New England Patriots took care of business versus the New York Jets, giving the team their second victory over a division rival in as many weeks.

The New England Patriots improved to 3-0 on the year after their 30-14 win over the New York Jets. Similar to last week when the team took on the hapless Miami Dolphins, the opponent never really stood a chance on Sunday; New England jumped out to an early lead and never looked back.

The Patriots played well overall. However, this win was not as dominant as it could have been. The Jets were playing without some key players on both sides of the ball. That said, New England still won this contest by a comfortable margin, and the Jets never threatened to make it a close game.

New England’s defense picked up where they left off last week against Miami, looking dominant from start to finish. The defense still has yet to allow an opposing offense to score a touchdown this season.

Tom Brady and the Patriots offense started the game red-hot: they were able to get into the end zone on their first three possessions of the first half.  However, the biggest story of the first half would come late in the second quarter, when Julian Edelman headed into the locker room in pain.

According to the Patriots, Edelman suffered a chest injury. The reigning Super Bowl MVP would not return to the game, but Patriots fans shouldn’t worry too much. NFL.com insider Ian Rapoport later reported that the results of Edelman’s X-rays were negative.

The offense was not as sharp in the second half without Edelman. While the initial X-ray results are encouraging, Edelman’s status for the Patriots’ Week 4 matchup versus the Buffalo Bills is worth monitoring.

For the most part, New England has looked superb through the first three weeks of their 2019 campaign. Still, there are certainly areas that they need to improve upon as the season progresses.

Here are the top takeaways from Week 3:

Stock Up

Tom Brady

The 42-year old looks as good as ever. At this point, saying he makes it look easy would be a massive understatement. The GOAT continues to impress.

Brady was close to perfect in the first half. He led the offense on three straight drives that resulted in touchdowns to start the game. He capped off two of those drives with touchdown passes.

Despite all the pre-season speculation that New England would be a run-heavy team, Tom Brady is still the engine of this offense. It was another excellent showing from the six-time Super Bowl champion.

Jamie Collins

Jamie Collins has consistently stood out on defense. Last week he showed off his coverage ability by grabbing a pair of interceptions and returning one of them for a touchdown. This week Collins displayed that he can be just as effective as a pass rusher after recording a pair of sacks.

In addition to his two sacks, Collins finished the game with seven total tackles, including three tackles for loss. The versatile linebacker is the team’s leading tackler through three weeks. He’s quickly become an important part of New England’s defense in his second spell with the team.

Phillip Dorsett

Now that the Antonio Brown saga in New England has come to an end, Dorsett has been elevated to the third option at receiver. He had a huge game in the opener against the Steelers, and after a quiet showing versus the Dolphins, he again put together another solid performance against the Jets.

Dorsett reeled in six of his seven targets for 53 yards and a touchdown. It’s also worth noting that in a game where the Patriots struggled to run the ball, Dorsett contributed 12 yards on the ground on two carries.

Even Dorsett’s longest and strongest supporters have to be pleasantly surprised with his production so far this season. With Julian Edelman’s Week 4 status currently unknown, the Patriots will need Dorsett to remain a key part of their passing attack.

Defense

Another week, another dominant performance by New England’s defense. The group has now gone three weeks without allowing an opposing offense to reach the end zone. That’s an incredible accomplishment, even if it has come against some underwhelming offenses.

The Patriots defense limited the Jets to 105 total yards of offense and 0-12 on third-down attempts. New York’s offense hardly ever crossed the 50-yard line. This defense is deep and versatile at all three levels.

Stock Down

Sony Michel

Michel has struggled to get it going on the ground this season. He only accounted for 11 rushing yards on his nine carries against the Jets on Sunday. Michel remains absent in the passing game as well; he has yet to record a single reception this season.

New England shouldn’t need Michel to contribute much as a pass catcher with James White and Rex Burkhead on the roster. However, getting him involved more as a receiver may open things up for him as a runner. For now, defenses will continue to treat him as a one-dimensional back.

The second-year running back is averaging just 2.4 yards per carry through the first three games of 2019. This is a far cry from the Sony Michel who was known as a home-run hitter during his college career at the University of Georgia. Hopefully he will improve as the season progresses.

Jarrett Stidham

The rookie quarterback didn’t look great in his NFL regular season debut. Usually when a backup quarterback is brought into the game for mop-up duty, you expect him to finish the game. That wasn’t the case on Sunday.

Stidham completed a couple of passes, but he also took a sack and then air-mailed a throw to a running back in the flat that was intercepted and returned for a touchdown by Jets safety Jamal Adams. Brady reentered the game on the Patriots’ next offensive possession and finished the game under center.

Gunner Olszewski

The undrafted rookie free agent made a big mistake on special teams when he muffed a punt deep in his own territory. Olszewski couldn’t secure a punt late in the third quarter and the Jets recovered the ball in the Patriots’ end zone for their first points of the game.

If Olszewski gets a second chance and remains on the roster, he’ll have to be smarter late in games. His main job is to catch the punt; any return yardage is just a bonus. Hopefully he gets a mulligan this time around, because Olszewski has quickly become a fan favorite in New England.