2 winners and 3 losers for the Patriots in Week 3 loss to the Jets

After being handed an avoidable loss against the Seahawks on Sunday, there was some hope that the Patriots would be able to play as well as they did a week before against the Bengals as they quickly turned around to face the Jets on Thursday Night Football.

Although the Week 2 loss was due to many issues, they still lost by only a field goal in overtime, which brought optimism for the rest of the way. It didn't hurt that the Jets weren't looking too impressive to start the season, either, and looked like a team that could be beaten.

All of that went down the toilet almost immediately as the game started on Thursday night, and it didn't get better as the game went on. In fact, it seemed to get worse.

The concerns we came into the season with were front and center throughout all four quarters. The Patriots looked like the team that analysts believed wouldn't win more than three games this year. They were dominated in every aspect of the game, in all three phases, and didn't look like the team we saw showing promise over the last two weeks.

Instead, they were a mess, making it incredibly difficult to think of anything positive to discuss after the fact.

2 winners for the Patriots in Week 3 loss to the Jets

WR DeMario Douglas

The Patriots struggled to incorporate much of the passing game at the start of the season, which could be blamed on the offensive line's inconsistent performance and Jacoby Brissett's discomfort with a new offense.

Based on how much it became a conversation after their Week 2 loss to the Seahawks, especially the lack of DeMario Douglas usage, there was hope he would be incorporated more into the game plan, especially after his impressive rookie season last year. So it wasn't shocking when that's exactly what happened.

Douglas became the boost the offense needed on a night filled with struggles to move the ball down the field. He recorded seven receptions for 69 yards, averaging 9.9 yards per catch. He might not have gotten into the end zone, but he proved he could be a solid weapon for Brissett, which is why he should've been used much more a lot sooner.

P Bryce Baringer

You know it's a rough night when one of the team's top performers is the punter; that basically describes the Patriots' Week 3 outing.

While Bryce Baringer's status as a top performer isn't new for the Patriots, his performance was even more critical on a night that required him to take the field after five failed offensive drives. He continued to impress by averaging 49 yards per punt, totaling 245 yards on the night, none of which were touchbacks.

It is a sigh of relief to know the special teams are getting better, and the team has finally found a reliable punter after all the issues they dealt with at the position last year and the dramatic fall of Jake Bailey the year before.

3 losers for the Patriots in Week 2 loss to the Jets

Offensive line

It seems fair to label the 2024 offensive line doomed, with no sign of the gloom ending any time soon. The group started the year without their right guard, Sidy Sow, which has proven costly for their efficiency. This week, every starting lineman was added to the injury report leading up to the game.

Making matters worse, backup left tackle Vederian Lowe suffered an injury that sidelined him for Week 3, forcing rookie Caedan Wallace to replace him. He eventually sustained a knee injury during the game, creating even more shuffling amongst the group.

All of this, plus their questionable performance, made for an incredibly rough showing for the Jacoby Brissett offense. By the end of the night, the group allowed seven sacks for a loss of 59 yards,15 quarterback hits, and 22 pressures.

It was a hostile environment for Jacoby Brissett, who barely had time to blink before a defender was running right toward him. By the time he was relieved by Drake Maye, he had started to get up slower every time he hit the ground.

RB Rhamondre Stevenson

Unlike the others who deserve blame for this brutal loss, Rhamondre Stevenson isn't on this list for that reason. The main aspect that has him listed as one of the biggest losers from this game is the return of the fumbling problem he seemed to eliminate last year.

Because he fumbled against the Jets, it marked the third time this season that he dropped the football. Fortunately, it was just the first time he or one of his teammates could not recover it. In this game, it led to the Jets scoring a field goal to increase their lead to three touchdowns.

This issue plagued Stevenson early in his career, and it is showing all the signs of returning just as he was proving to be the best performer on the offense. It would be best if he could get this under control sooner rather than later, or the Patriots might be in more trouble offensively than anyone thought.

Tackling

The easiest way to address one of the biggest issues from this game would be to broadly discuss the atrocious missed tackling that allowed the Jets to do almost anything they wanted on Thursday night.

It was an aspect of the defense that had gotten better in recent years and hadn't been a concern yet this season. But without Ja'Whaun Bentley, one of their better performers, it created ample opportunity for opposing running backs to break through and make big runs, Rodgers to run long on fourth downs, and receivers to make splashy plays.

Maybe the short week contributed to the extra sloppy performance, or Bentley's absence will have a bigger impact on their hopes of continuing to be dominant this season. Whatever the case, it would be better if it could be cleaned up quickly.

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