7 takeaways from the Patriots’ shorthanded blowout win over the Jets

The New England Patriots went into the Meadowlands on Sunday needing a win over the New York Jets to stay in the driver's seat in the AFC East, but were also shorthanded with multiple starters out due to injury. You wouldn't have known it by watching though, as the Patriots blew by the Jets with a 42-10 win.

That was in part due to the Patriots' leaning on their stars and starters that did play in the game, and getting contributions from depth players who had chances to play bigger roles. Some other reserve got more run late as the Patriots pulled the heavy majority of their starters for the fourth quarter (while the Jets depth their starters in).

"I think from the get-go, we’ve tried to focus on having everybody that’s here prepare as a starter, coach them the same, make sure that everybody knows that when you come in there in the meeting room during the week, that at any point in time, up until Saturday or before four o’clock, that you could be elevated or signed," head coach Mike Vrabel said after the game when talking about the depth. "We didn’t really have to do that much during the beginning part of the season. Then all of a sudden, our depth got tested. I think it was really important for this week for guys to step up."

Who stepped up and made the most of their opportunities on Sunday? Let's go over that and more in this week's takeaways...

The Patriots passing game was electric for the first 40 minutes of this game. Over the first six drives of the game the Patriots scored six touchdowns, with Drake Maye leading the way and putting up some historic numbers.

Maye finished the game 19-of-21, with one of those incompletions being a drop. He threw for 256 yards and put up five touchdowns - making this just the 10th time a Patriots quarterback has thrown for five or more touchdowns in a game and the first such instance since 2017. Maye also crossed the 4,000-yard mark for the season, becoming the first Patriots quarterback to do that since 2019.

Maye spread the ball out with all five of his touchdowns going to five different receivers, but his top target was Stefon Diggs. Diggs built on his strong performance last week against the Ravens with another 100-yard performance. He finished with 6 catches for 101 yards and the score, including an impressive highlight reel 'Mossing' down the sideline early in the game. Diggs' six catches also helped him cash a $500,000 incentive in his contract for 80 catches on the season.

After a few quiet games in early December, Diggs has started to ramp back up. The Patriots will need that Maye-Diggs connection to be big in the playoffs, and they're starting to roll again at the right time.

In addition to Diggs, Hunter Henry also cashed in a $250,000 bonus with 55 catches on the season. He finished with three catches for 49 yards and a score.

In addition to the typical targets, the Patriots also got to get their rookie receivers more involved. Kyle Williams played a season-high 56 snaps, and Efton Chism played a season-high 41.

Williams had three catches for 20 yards on five targets. Both of those went for first downs early in the game. However he did have one drop, along the sideline on the two-minute drill at the end of the first half (although the Patriots still managed to score a touchdown on the drive). He continues to look more comfortable than he did early in the season, but there is still room for him to improve.

As for Chism, he caught both of his targets for 40 yards. On the first he did a good job of separating quickly over the middle, allowing Maye to throw quick against the blitz. That was a 30-yard catch-and-run, but could have been more if not for a stumble. His second catch came in the third quarter, making a diving catch in the end zone on a tight window throw from Maye for his first career touchdown.

The Patriots likely will need both of these players to step up at point with Mack Hollins now on IR. Both showed encouraging signs in this game.

The Patriots also leaned on their running game at times. With both backs healthy it was almost an even split with TreVeyon Henderson playing 34 snaps and Rhamondre Stevenson playing 32.

Stevenson continues to play well, and looks as quick and explosive as he has since early in the 2024 season. He ran the ball eight times for 47 yards and a score, and caught five passes for 55 yards and another touchdown. The Patriots are getting him playing his best ball at the right time.

As for Henderson, he played despite being limited in practice all week as he went through concussion protocol. He was the workhorse on the day carrying the ball 19 times for 82 yards. In particular, he and the offensive line gained significant extra yardage pushing the pile at times. According to PFF, 53 of his yards in this game came after contact.

Once the Patriots got up big late in the game they turned to backups just about everywhere. That including an almost totally new offensive line. Thayer Munford came in at right tackle, Caedan Wallace came in at left guard bumping Ben Brown over to the right side, and Brenden Jaimes replaced Garrett Bradbury at center.

Those eight snaps with that offensive line were the first eight that Bradbury has missed this year. Prior to that, he was the only Patriots - on either side of the ball - to not miss a snap this year. An impressive stretch for the 30-year-old center who the Patriots signed after he was released by the Minnesota Vikings in the spring. If a streak like that is going to end, this is pretty much the best way to have it happen.

Last time the Patriots and Jets played, Jets wide receiver AD Mitchell beat Christian Gonzalez a few times (although didn't burn him as bad as he should have, with a couple of drops). Gonzalez got his revenge on Mitchell in this one.

Mitchell was covered by Gonzalez for most of the game. He was targeted four times with Gonzalez in coverage, catching just one pass for eight yards. On another Gonzalez had tight enough coverage that Brady Cook had to try to get extra air under the ball, allowing safety Jaylinn Hawkins to get under the ball and pick it off.

Despite the blowout win, there will be things for the Patriots' coaching staff to critique this week. That starts on special teams.

On the Jets first drive of the second half the Patriots held them to a 4th & 2 just shy of the 50-yard line. The Jets executed a fake punt, with punter Austin McNamara hitting safety Malachi Moore over the middle for a first down. Brenden Schooler was the closest defender, but was late to react which allowed the completion. The Patriots did clean that up quickly though, as the Jets tried another fake punt three plays later and were stopped.

Kickoff coverage has also been a focus for the Patriots in recent weeks, and was probably the most-tested unit in this game against a Jets team that came in averaging the most yards per kickoff return in the NFL this year. That group was better - the Jets returned four kicks averaging 28.5 yards per return, with the longest return being 35 yards. The Patriots also kicked three touchbacks.

In the week leading up to this game, both Patriots and coaches talked about how they put significance in the idea of going unbeaten on the road. They've now done that, becoming just the third Patriots team (2007, 2016) to do so and the 12th NFL team to go 8-0 on the road in a season.

"We’ve talked about all those things that have helped us along the way and talked about just unfinished business on the road and being able to - when we needed to - handle the environment and make critical plays and get off to a good start like we did today," Vrabel said after the game of the accomplishment. "Really proud of this football team and what they’ve been able to do. Anytime you travel, it’s difficult.”

At the same time, the Patriots came one step closer to ensuring their travel is limited - if at all - in the postseason. With their win they need either a win next week or a Bills loss in their next two games to clinch the AFC East and guarantee at least one home playoff game. They're also still in the mix for the No. 1 overall seed, which would mean no road games in the playoffs no matter what.