The New England Patriots extended their win streak to a ludocris eight games on Thursday night after toppling the Jets by a score of 27-14. While the defense was lockdown for the most part, they did struggle in some ways.
While it could be chalked up to the game being a divisional matchup on a short week, the Patriots' impressive run defense doesn't have the once-in-a-decade level stats they had earlier in the year. After holding opposing running backs to under 50 yards in each of the first nine weeks, they gave up 53 to Sean Tucker last week, while Breece Hall hit that mark on Thursday.
The run heavy offense of the Jets likely meant Hall was going to eclipse 50 yards no matter what, but Justin Fields's stat line is far more concerning for the Patriots' future. On his 11 carries, he rushed for 67 yards and a touchdown, averaging out to 6.1 a carry. Fields has the most rush yards of any individual player the Patriots have faced this season.
The Patriots struggle against scrambling quarterbacks
While running backs have been bottled up against New England, quarterbacks have had some more success. Fields is only the second high volume rushing quarterback the team has faced this year, the first being Josh Allen. His nine carries for 53 yards (5.9 per carry) led the Bills in their losing effort, and was his second highest rushing total on the year.
Fields is a special runner of the football, and it's why he's continued to get chances as a starter despite his horrific passing history. While playing against last season's MVP or a rusher like Fields won't be an every week occurrence, but it's a weakness the Patriots will need to be aware of, especially in the coming weeks.
Prior to their bye week, the Patriots will face off against the Giants and rookie standout Jaxson Dart, who's been excellent as a rusher. Dart has 317 rush yards and seven touchdowns in nine games averaging 5.6 a carry. He's had five games in which he's ran for more than 50 yards, and has had a rushing touchdown in each of the last five weeks, including two against the Bears most recently.
Come Week 16, the Patriots will face the league's best rushing quarterback ever, Lamar Jackson. Aside from having the most rushing yards ever for a quarterback and two MVPs to his name at just 28, Jackson's escapability is undeniable. His ability to extend plays that result in passes downfield is as ridiculous as his rushing ability, and with the Ravens 2-0 since his return and looking to make a push for the AFC North, December 21 could determine Baltimore's playoff future.
Whether it's against rookie Dart's powerful running or Lamar's MVP acumen and escapability, the Patriots will need to clean up their contain and scrambling defense, particularly against two quarterbacks that are far better passers than Fields is.