Patriots try to avoid letdown against Jets
Patriots coach Mike Vrabel celebrates during New England's 45-17 win over the Raiders on Sunday in Foxborough, Mass. (Charles Krupa/Associated Press)
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — The New England Patriots are coming off their best performance of the season, doing almost everything they wanted during a 28-point win over the Las Vegas Raiders.
But there are plenty of reasons for New England to be on guard against the Jets this week. And it starts with Geno Smith.
It’s not just that the veteran New York quarterback has not thrown an interception this season in five starts, the longest opening stretch to a season in his career without one. He also has had the Patriots’ number of late, winning in each of his past two trips to Foxborough (with Seattle in 2024 and Las Vegas in 2025).
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In last season’s win with the Raiders, Smith completed 70% of his passes for 362 yards and spoiled Mike Vrabel’s coaching debut with the Patriots.
“They’ve got great players, they’re coached by Mike Vrabel, who’s a defensive guy, so we know he wants to have that defense be at the forefront and they want to establish the run as well on offense, so another great opportunity for us,” Smith said.
Smith’s care of the football has allowed the Jets to enter with a plus-3 turnover differential, compared to a Patriots team that has forced a total of six turnovers, ranking 19th in the NFL entering Week 6.
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That’s a concern for Vrabel.
“(Smith has) done a fantastic job. And so, if you want to try to create turnovers, you’re going to have to actually go out and force them,” Vrabel said.
The Patriots also enter with a long list of injured players, including left tackle Will Campbell (right knee) and running back TreVeyon Henderson (ankle). That was on top of cornerback Christian Gonzalez missing his second straight game last weekend because of a shoulder injury and Carlton Davis III sitting out because of a neck injury.
The good news is wide receiver A.J. Brown returned to practice for the first time since going on injured reserve after sustaining a high ankle sprain in New England’s season-opening loss at Seattle. He said he’s impressed with how his fellow receivers performed in his absence.
“Whenever I decide to come back, I’m just going to add,” Brown said.
Need to know
New York Jets (2-3) at New England (3-2)
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When/where to watch: 1 p.m. Sunday, CBS
Latest odds: Patriots by 7
Against the spread: Jets 3-1-1; Patriots 3-1-1
Last week: Jets beat Browns, 17-12; Patriots beat Raiders, 45-17
Last meeting: Patriots won 42-10 on Dec. 28, 2025, in East Rutherford, NJ.
Series record: Patriots lead, 77-56-1
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Matchup to watch
Patriots offensive line vs. Jets defensive line. The Jets have shown an ability to punch the ball out, recovering five fumbles so far. Drake Maye will be playing behind an O-line that may not have Campbell at full strength, creating opportunities to get to Maye, who has lost two of his five fumbles this season.
Jets linebacker David Bailey sacks Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson during the Jets’ 17-12 win over the Browns on Sunday in East Rutherford, N.J. (Yuki Iwamura/Associated Press)
Stats and stuff
• Rookie edge rusher David Bailey, the No. 2 overall pick in April, was selected the AFC defensive player of the week after he had three sacks. He’s the third player since 2003 to have a three-sack performance in his first five NFL games, joining Detroit’s Aidan Hutchinson (2022) and Denver’s Elvis Dumervil (2006).
• The Jets are tied with the Los Angeles Chargers for second in the NFL with 47 penalties, two behind Cleveland.
• Braelon Allen had a career-high 116 yards rushing and the winning 22-yard touchdown on 24 carries last Sunday while filling in for the second game in a row for the injured Breece Hall.
• New York has held three of its first five opponents under 200 yards after not doing so in any game last season. The Jets are the first NFL team to hold three teams under 200 yards in the first five games since the 1999 Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
• The Jets had eight sacks against the Browns, led by Bailey’s three, tying the franchise high in a single game by the team since sacks became an official NFL statistic in 1982.
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• Smith (147 attempts), Detroit’s Jared Goff (191) and Houston’s C.J. Stroud (185) are the only players with no INTs through five starts this season. Smith’s 69.4% completion rate is second highest behind Cincinnati’s Joe Burrow among QBs with at least 100 pass attempts.
• New England has won three straight and 18 of the past 20 against the Jets.
•The Patriots are coming off a season-high 536 yards in last week’s win over Las Vegas. The most recent time they had two games with at least 500 yards in the same season was in 2014.
• The Patriots, 2-0 at Gillette Stadium, haven’t started a season 3-0 at home since 2019, when they won their first five home games.
• Hunter Henry (3,150 receiving yards) needs 8 yards to move past Russ Francis into third place on New England’s all-time receiving yards list among tight ends.
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