FOXBORO — As each football hit the turf, again and again, one more frustrating time after another, Tom Brady and Bill Belichick, Robert Kraft and Tedy Bruschi, had to wonder what had become of the Patriots offense.
Rookie wide receivers Aaron Dobson and Kenbrell Thompkins couldn’t keep their mitts on Brady’s passes. Not even Julian Edelman could consistently do the work of both Wes Welker and Danny Amendola all at once, and he drew Brady’s ire at one point during the second quarter. Almost every time Brady waltzed to the sideline after one of the Pats’ dozen empty possessions, his aggravation was more noticeable than the biblical rain that soaked the Pats and Jets last night at Gillette Stadium.
And yet, the Patriots outlasted their hated division rivals, 13-10, in a sloppy affair.
“I’m glad we won,” Brady said, “but we just obviously have a lot of room for improvement.”
The Pats (2-0) now have a week and a half to correct those issues before hosting the
Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Brady completed only 19-of-39 passes for 185 yards and one touchdown, and Edelman was his savior with a career-high 13 receptions for 78 yards. Dobson managed to catch three of the 10 passes thrown his way, and Thompkins only caught two of his seven targets.
In a way, the Patriots can thank the Jets for last night’s fortuitous outcome.
Quarterback Geno Smith handled himself well enough, but he made his share of rookie mistakes, including a forced throw while moving to his left that got tipped by Kyle Arrington and intercepted by Aqib Talib at the Pats 11-yard line to derail the Jets’ chance to at least tie the game in the fourth quarter. Cornerback Alfonzo Dennard ended another drive with less than five minutes remaining, undercutting a pass for Clyde Gates at the Pats 31.
Talib’s interception, which was emblematic of Bruschi’s timely plays in his heyday, restored the Patriots Hall of Famer’s view of a defense that anted up for the second time in five days. But Bruschi, who was honored in a halftime ceremony, must have wondered what happened to his friend Brady’s receiving corps.
“It was three-and-out, after three-and-out, after three-and-out tonight,” guard Logan Mankins said. “It was pretty frustrating for a lot of us on offense. Thankfully the defense played great, and they bailed us out tonight. We couldn’t do anything, and they played awesome.”
Dobson’s career got off to a blazing start, as the rookie’s first snap turned into a 39-yard touchdown. He ran a wheel route up the right sideline, gliding under Brady’s toss as the Jets were facing the wrong direction, dumbfounded by a play fake that helped the Pats take a 7-0 lead on the first drive of the game.
But Dobson also dropped four passes, including another deep throw in the second quarter that would have put the Pats in a position to pad a lead.
“That’s definitely not acceptable to drop the ball,” Dobson said. “I’m a receiver, so that’s what I do is catch the ball.”
Thompkins had his own struggles, as a nearly spectacular catch was ruled a drop as he dove for a touchdown pass that squeaked out of his hands before halftime. Stephen Gostkowski then shanked a 43-yarder from the middle of the field as time expired at the break, when the Pats had a 13-3 lead.
The skies opened in the second half, and the Jets offense followed, if only for a series. Smith led a nine-play, 58-yard series that culminated with Bilal Powell’s 3-yard touchdown dash that trimmed it to 13-10 with 5:05 remaining in the third quarter.
But the defense remained strong and Pats must bide time until Rob Gronkowski, Shane Vereen and Amendola return.
“I feel like there are definitely things that we can improve on,” Dobson said. “We had a short week this week, so we’ve got 10 days off right now, so we’ve got to get our timing and stuff together this week going into the next game.”
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