Patriots Beat Jets 27-14 Behind TreVeyon Henderson's Three Touchdowns, Extend Win Streak to Eight

The Jets won the coin toss, chose to receive, and marched 72 yards down the field at Gillette Stadium. It took them 14 plays. They ran the ball 11 times, converted four third downs, and capped it with a 5-yard touchdown run by Justin Fields at 6:56 of the first quarter. New England had already given up a score on the opponent's first possession in seven of its first ten games. Now it was eight of eleven. Defensive tackle Milton Williams also went down with an ankle injury during that drive.

The Patriots still came out of Thursday night with a 27-14 win, their eighth in a row, and a 9-2 record under Mike Vrabel. On paper the Jets were a mismatch. At the trade deadline they had sent away Quinnen Williams and Sauce Gardner, and they were without top receiver Garrett Wilson. But the Jets stayed in the game, and New England took a one-score lead into the fourth quarter.

The player who made the difference was rookie running back TreVeyon Henderson. He scored three touchdowns, two rushing and one receiving, and became the third rookie in franchise history to do that, after Rob Gronkowski in 2010 and Sony Michel in 2018. His first came after an unnecessary roughness penalty on Jets cornerback Jarvis Brownlee Jr., who had suplexed Stefon Diggs, moved the Patriots near midfield. Drake Maye hit DeMario Douglas for 7 yards on fourth-and-2, Henderson ran 3 yards on third-and-1 from the 10, and then he scored from 7 yards out with at least five teammates pushing him into the end zone. That tied it at 7-7 at 14:16 of the second quarter.

The defense settled down. Williams came back into the game, and the Jets went three-and-out on their second possession, gaining 7 yards. They did the same on their third and fourth. After that opening drive, New York managed 21 yards and no first downs over three possessions.

Maye, who is in the conversation for NFL MVP, led the next scoring drive. He completed four first-down passes: 23 and 12 yards to Hunter Henry, and 19 and 20 to Mack Hollins. The last of those set up first-and-goal at the 7. Henderson took the handoff, made a move, and scored his second touchdown to make it 14-7 at 7:54 of the half. Maye began the night 11-for-11 for 110 yards, and his first incompletion came when Diggs dropped a third-down pass.

The half ended sloppily. Maye was sacked for an 11-yard loss on third down, but an illegal contact penalty on Brandon Stephens kept the drive alive. Maye's next pass might have been intercepted, but two Jets players collided and the ball hit the ground. Rookie kicker Andy Borregales then missed a 45-yard field goal, his first miss since Week 1.

New England opened the second half with a three-and-out, after Diggs dropped another pass. The next drive was better. Maye found Diggs for 21 and 18 yards, putting the ball at the 11, and two plays later he threw a 7-yard touchdown to Henderson at 7:46 of the third quarter. That made it 21-7.

The Jets answered. They moved down the field on short passes without needing a third down, then faced one at 3:10 of the third quarter. The Patriots sent a safety blitz with Jaylinn Hawkins but failed to cover receiver John Metchie, and Fields hit him for a 22-yard touchdown that cut it to 21-14.

Borregales stretched the lead to 24-14 with a 44-yard field goal after a drive that included a 26-yard Maye completion to Douglas on third-and-10 and a 13-yard pass to Diggs, before a 10-yard sack stalled it in the red zone. Then, at 7:34 of the fourth quarter, Fields fumbled a snap and Anfernee Jennings recovered it, the Patriots' first takeaway in three games. New England started at the 11, settled for a 27-yard Borregales field goal, and led 27-14 at 6:36.

Diggs finished with nine catches for 105 yards. It was his third 100-yard game this season and the 39th of his career. At 31, and coming back from a season-ending knee injury, he is on pace for New England's first 1,000-yard receiver since Julian Edelman in 2019. The defense's slow starts, and Milton Williams's ankle, are the things to watch.