There’s a bit of a theme in this week’s Ups & Downs: mostly thumbs up for the Patriots defense, mostly down for the offense.

Mac Jones had his second straight sluggish effort under center, and the protection wasn’t much better, adding up to a game filled with stagnant drives and turnovers for the Pats offense. They were timely, scoring a clutch touchdown in the second half.

But this game was more about the defense than anything else, headlined by a pick-six for J.C. Jackson. The Patriots were all over Sam Darnold up front, too, often crushing the pocket and rushing him into some bad decisions and errant throws. They also took away big plays down the field, turning Darnold into “Captain Checkdown.” So they get most of the “ups” from this one.

It wasn’t all “down” for the Patriots offense against the Panthers, though. Despite the continued problems with penalties and turnovers, it was still a relatively complete and balanced victory for the Pats. There was one particular offensive player who deserves props, so we’ll start there.

• UP: RB Rhamondre Stevenson

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  Stevenson led the team with 106 yards from scrimmage, doing damage both on the ground and through the air. The rookie was decisive and showed good burst when he found space, particularly on a 41-yard catch-and-run in the second quarter. The Patriots may remain week-to-week when it comes to how they deploy their running backs, but Stevenson continues to make it harder to keep him off the field.

• DOWN: WR Jakobi Meyers

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  The Panthers assigned Stephon Gilmore to Meyers for most of the day, so the Pats’ target leader was going to have a tough time out there. Just one eight-yard catch on four targets for Meyers on the day. Gilmore jumped his route on an interception in the second quarter when the game was still hanging in the balance.

• UP: CB J.C. Jackson

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  Jackson looked like a man motivated to outperform Gilmore in the pair’s first game playing on opposite sidelines. And he did: two interceptions for Jackson, including a pick-six in the third quarter that gave the Patriots a 15-point lead, just as the Panthers were threatening to close the gap. The Panthers’ passing game couldn’t get anything going for much of the afternoon, due in large part to Jackson’s coverage and playmaking.
• DOWN: QB Mac Jones

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  Two straight down weeks for the rookie, although this could qualify as a step forward from how he played in Week 8 against the Chargers. Jones was 12-of-18 passing for 139 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. He deserves credit for a pinpoint touchdown pass to Hunter Henry in the closing seconds of the first half. But that’s not enough to make up for two turnovers - the interception to Gilmore, plus a strip-sack. Jones often looked comfortable amid pressure up front. The defense and running game lifted him up in this one.

• UP: DT Christian Barmore

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  Another afternoon of havoc for the impressive rookie. The stat sheet only shows a tackle for Barmore, but he swarmed the backfield all day long and played a huge role in Sam Darnold appearing to see ghosts all over again. He also batted two attempts. Barmore has been a factor in every game this season, and arguably the most disruptive defensive tackle Bill Belichick has had since Vince Wilfork.

• DOWN: OT Isaiah Wynn

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  Wynn got burned on the strip-sack play against Mac Jones, and also stalled an early Patriots drive with a false start penalty. The offensive line has been better as a whole in recent weeks for the Patriots, but Wynn doesn’t seem to be all the way back to the level Patriots fans are used to seeing. If the Patriots come up short offensively at the end of their season, it’s possible that tackle play will be a big factor in that.
• UP: LB Jamie Collins

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  You forget how freakishly athletic Collins is. He showed that off on Sunday when he intercepted Darnold in the third quarter, timing his leap perfectly and coming out of nowhere to swallow up the pass attempt just beyond the line of scrimmage. He made a dynamic tackle on Christian McCaffrey earlier in that same drive. Collins made his biggest impact yet since returning to the Patriots.

• DOWN: LB Dont’a Hightower

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  McCaffrey can make any linebacker look bad, but it was clear that him vs Hightower was a mismatch. Whenever the Panthers were able to break off chunk gains or McCaffrey was able to make plays, it was often because Hightower couldn’t close on the ball-carrier quickly enough. That’s two straight “down” games for Hightower, in what was an otherwise excellent day for the defense.

• UP: DT Davon Godchaux

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  Carolina only gained 3.4 yards per carry in the run game, and Godchaux was (literally) in the middle of that silencing. He was second on the team with five total tackles and generally held his ground against what could’ve been an explosive rushing attack for the Panthers. He and Lawrence Guy have quietly gotten better together every week against the run.
• DOWN: WR Nelson Agholor

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  It’s not what Agholor did, it’s what he didn’t do. Agholor was a total non-factor as a pass-catcher, with zero targets despite playing the lion’s share of the snaps and Gilmore often being assigned to Meyers. Agholor has made a handful of big plays for the Patriots this season, but hasn’t been as big of a producer or crunch-time player like Hunter Henry and Kendrick Bourne have. Sunday was the latest underwhelming afternoon.

Click here for complete New England Patriots coverage at 985TheSportsHub.com.

Matt Dolloff is a writer and podcaster for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Have a news tip, question, or comment for Matt? Yell at him on Twitter @mattdolloff and follow him on Instagram @mattydsays. You can also email him at mdolloff@985thesportshub.com.

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