The New England Patriots improved to 6-0 with a 35-14 win over the New York Giants Thursday night. Here are five observations from the Week 6 victory.
Once again, it was a tale of two halves for the New England Patriots in their Thursday night matchup against the New York Giants.
Special teams and defense won the night for the Patriots as each unit scored a touchdown to pretty much bail the offense out for the third game in a row.
The offensive line looked like they desperately needed Isaiah Wynn as the Giants got some pressure on Tom Brady. The Giants defense was also gifted a couple of turnovers due to the offense’s ineptitude in the first half.
One was another one of those head scratching interceptions from Tom Brady that didn’t end up costing the team anything except their own points. The other was a strip sack that was run back for a touchdown. At the time, that score tied the game at 14-14 before the offense was finally able to put together a good drive before the half to give the undefeated Patriots a 21-14 lead.
In the second half, it was all Patriots as they tacked on two more touchdowns to win the game 35-14. The offense found a little rhythm as Brady connected with Julian Edelman on a couple of throws and a nice down-the-field connection that set up the team’s final touchdown.
It wasn’t pretty, but Bill Belichick will take it. Here is what the coach had to say after the game, via Patriots.com:
"“Once again, I’m really proud of our football team. These guys came in after the Washington game, put a lot into it this week in terms of preparation and film study and went out and played hard tonight. We dealt with a few things offensively. We were just kind of down to one grouping there the whole second half. I thought Josh [McDaniels] and the offensive staff did a great job of managing the game. It was kind of an odd game. Anytime you get three scores in a game that are non-offensive touchdowns, that’s kind of a season’s worth and it all happened in one game. A couple of big plays for us on the blocked punt, on the fumble, scoop-and-score by Kyle [Van Noy]. Those are great plays and we took advantage of those opportunities, had some turnovers.”"
Here are five observations from the New England Patriots 35-14 stomping of the New York Giants.
5. Brandon Bolden is special
With the injury that has been limiting Rex Burkhead, the New England Patriots running back and special teamer Brandon Bolden has seen an increased role and has capitalized.
More from Chowder and Champions
- 3 Midseason Chaim Bloom Decisions That Have Killed the 2023 Red Sox
- 10 Patriots Who Will Be Cut by Tuesday’s Roster Deadline
- MLB Screws Red Sox Fans With Broadcast for Mookie Betts Return
- 3 Most Underpaid Celtics Heading Into the 2023 Season
- Red Sox Continue Rollercoaster Season With Massive Win
Not only was Bolden responsible for the block punt that lead to a Chase Winovich touchdown, he rushed for a touchdown which happened to be the third consecutive game in which he scored a touchdown.
He only rushed the ball for 23 yards on 3 attempts, but his 7.7 yard average is representative of what he typically does when he does get a chance to cover the ball. His play and versatility in the offense is also a reason 2019 third-round pick Damian Harris hasn’t gotten an opportunity in the offense so far.
After burning the Patriots last season as a member of the Miami Dolphins, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick is happy to have him back and spoke on his bigger role in the offense this season.
"“Yeah, Brandon is a talented guy,” Belichick said, via Patriots.com. “He can play on all four downs and play well. We’re very fortunate to have him. He gives us great depth and is just another good football player to put on the field.”"
An underrated signing over the offseason, Brandon Bolden is making his second stint on the team really matter just like Patrick Chung and Jamie Collins has.
4. The offense runs through Julian Edelman
Is the New England Patriots good enough to win another Super Bowl?
As long as Tom Brady and Julian Edelman are healthy, you can’t count them out.
With Josh Gordon going down with a knee injury in the second quarter, the importance of Edelman shined even brighter.
While Brady and the offense struggled to get anything going for most of the game, that connection to Edelman eventually got things going as “the squirrel” racked in 9 catches for 113 yards, including this beautiful 36-yard connection that showcased just why the 32-year-old receiver is the weapon that he is:
In the second consecutive game in which he has a 100-yard receiving game, it is good that Tom Brady gets his most reliable target going and most importantly healthy when the team gets to the meat of their schedule.
The importance of Julian Edelman in the offense also showcases the team’s need to get another offensive weapon for Brady to throw to. Edelman is great, but he can’t carry an entire offense.
3. Jakobi Meyers gets in the mix
Speaking of the need for more offensive weapons, the New England Patriots may have an option in undrafted rookie free agent Jakobi Meyers.
The only problem with that is that he is a rookie and he needs to get into Tom Brady’s circle of trust.
Perhaps Thursday night was the start of that as Brady did look Meyers way a few times. In all, he had four catches on four targets for 54 yards. The highlight of which, was a nice 23-yard back-shoulder grab that may have showed Brady that there is something there.
With the injuries to Phillip Dorsett and Josh Gordon, Meyers knew he would get an opportunity and admitted after the game the pressure he felt not to drop any passes from Brady once the 42-year-old quarterback looked his way.
"“I’m always trying to work towards that goal of being where he wants me to be,” Jakobi Meyers said after the game, via Patriots.com. “He’s been seeing me do that in practice and that showed on the field today.”"
Will he be another Kembrel Thompkins or Malcolm Mitchell?
At this point, it would be nice if he was as Tom Brady need all the help he can get as far as playmakers he can trust throwing the ball to and get this New England Patriots offense more productive.
2. The Boogeymen are scary
The New England Patriots defense has been labeled “the boogeymen” by linebacker Kyle Van Noy and they are proving to be a living nightmare for opposing quarterbacks so far this season.
There weren’t many sacks Thursday night and Daniel Jones did deliver the first passing touchdown the team has given up all season, but they were active in creating turnovers.
In all, the team had three interceptions, including one by linebacker John Simon, Duron Harmon and a pick by Stephon Gilmore.
They also had a forced fumble created by Jamie Collins leading to a touchdown by Van Noy himself.
In allowing just the one offensive touchdown, the defense is really shining, and any player can come up big on any given Sunday as proven by their Thursday night performance.
While the opposition hasn’t been great, the difference in this defense is that they are flying around making plays, particularly on third down where they have been historically good through the first six weeks of the season.
Oh, Bill Belichick and his defense is getting very spooky!
1. Tom Brady is the team’s best short-yardage rusher
Blame the New England Patriots offensive line, but a recurring problem seems to be the team’s inability to convert on short-yardage situations.
It seems like both Sony Michel and James White are consistently stopped when the team is trying to convert on short third down or fourth down plays via the run.
Now, some of that is due to the absence of fullback James Develin and some of it is play calling, but perhaps the highest percentage play for the team on those short yardage plays that are less than a yard is to have Tom Brady do his almost unstoppable quarterback sneaks.
On Thursday night, it appears New England Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels got on the same page as Brady had two quarterback sneaks for touchdowns. It’s not something you want a 42-year-old quarterback doing a lot, but it’s good to know Mr. Brady is just as good as ever when it comes to those quarterback sneaks.
It’s also a good sign that he threw for over 300 yards despite having a limitation in offensive playmakers after Josh Gordon went down.