The Patriots have made life miserable for many rookie quarterbacks since Bill Belichick became the team’s head coach and they added Zach Wilson to the list on Sunday.
Wilson threw interceptions on his first two passes of the game and added two more later in the game while the Patriots’ own rookie quarterback Mac Jones avoided turnovers altogether. That added up to a 25-6 win for the Patriots that extends their winning streak over the Jets to 11 games.
J.C. Jackson had two of the picks for New England, including one that ended the Jets’ first drive. The Patriots had to settle for a Nick Folk field goal thanks to a strong stand by the Jets’ defense, but they followed Adrian Phillips’ pick with a James White touchdown. The Jets’ defense played well in general in the first half and it was a 13-3 game when the Jets got the ball to start the second half, but that’s when Wilson threw interception No. 4 and Damien Harris’ touchdown run two plays later put the game out of reach.
Harris ran for 63 yards to bounce back from last week’s fumble in good fashion and Jones was 22-of-30 for 186 yards in a performance longer on efficiency than fireworks. The Jets wouldn’t mind some efficiency from Wilson as he was unable to keep things rolling after a strong second half against the Panthers in his NFL debut.
Wilson finished the day 19-of-33 for 210 yards, but did get solid work from running backs Michael Carter and Ty Johnson as they combined for 109 yards on 23 carries. They’ll head to Denver next week in search of their first win of the season.
The 1-1 Patriots will return home to face the Saints with a Week Four date with Tom Brady and the Buccaneers looming in the distance.