Jets defeat Patriots, snap 15-game losing streak in rivalry in what could be Bill Belichick’s final game in New England
FOXBOROUGH, Mass — On a snowy first Sunday in January, Greg Zuerlein’s three field goals (21, 40, 32) and a late touchdown by Breece Hall were the difference in the Jets (7-10) 17-3 victory against the Patriots (4-13) in what could have been Bill Belichick’s final game with the Patriots.
With the win, Gang Green snapped its 15-game losing streak against New England. Before Sunday, the Jets’ last victory against the Patriots was Dec. 27, 2015.
Sunday also marked the first time the Jets have beaten the Patriots on the road since the 2010 AFC Divisional round.
“It feels really good,” Jets tight end Tyler Conklin said about ending the losing streak. “Now I don’t have to hear about it next year. Yeah, the season didn’t go the way we wanted, and everyone is going to be like, ‘Oh, draft picks and wins, Tankathon,’ and stuff like that.
“Now we don’t have to go into the first Patriots game talking about that damn streak.”
With snow covering the field the entire game, Zuerlein was huge for the Jets. He made 3-of-4 field goal attempts, including a 40-yarder in the second quarter that gave the Jets the lead for good.
The Jets defense consistently pressured Patriots quarterback Bailey Zappe the entire game, finishing with six sacks and two turnovers.
Trevor Siemian completed only 8-of-20 passes for 70 yards. He started his third consecutive game for Zach Wilson, who has been in concussion protocol since the Jets 30-0 loss to the Dolphins in Week 15.
The Jets finished with 254 yards of total offense.
“We’ve had several rain games, I think at home, but I didn’t play in all those,” Siemian said. “But this was the toughest I’ve played in I would say, condition-wise. A lot of fun, kind of gritty, gritty game. Fun, but yeah tough sledding out there.”
A lot of Gang Green’s offense came from Hall. He finished with a career-high in rushing attempts with 37, along with 178 yards and a 50-yard touchdown run with 1:47 left in the game to put the game on ice.
Hall reached the 1,500 all-purpose yards mark for the season against New England. He is the fourth Jets running back to accomplish the feat.
Sunday wasn’t the first time Hall played in snowy conditions after he grew up in Ohama, Nebraska.
“At the beginning of the week, we knew the weather was going to suck,” Hall said. “And I looked out this morning and it was a bunch of snow on the ground and I was like, ‘Ok, I’m going to run the ball a lot today.’
“Then we get here and it is snowing still and all the backs knew we were going to have to carry the load today.”
Zappe started his sixth game of the season but struggled to get anything going. He completed 12-of-30 passes for 88 yards and two interceptions. New England running back Ezekiel Elliott finished with 54 rushing yards on 13 carries.
“This was probably my first time in weather like this,” Zappe said. “As far as throwing the ball, I mean the wind is blowing a little bit. If it’s snowing hard enough, then that affects how the ball spins.
“It’s hard. I mean that’s all kind of goes in together. I mean there’s no excuses. Both teams have to play in it.”
The Jets and Patriots have been offensively challenged all season, and the season finale was no different, especially with the elements to deal with. The two teams combined to score nine points during the first two quarters. They also punted the ball a total of eight times during that span.
For the entire game, both teams registered 16 punts. The Jets and Patriots also only converted four third-down conversions for the whole game.
“It’s not where any of us want to be and expected to be at this point this year,” Jets coach Robert Saleh said. “We all know what we have. It may seem like we are really far away from the outside world, but we know what we have and we know how close we are.
“Today’s game is about starting 2024 on the right foot with a win and the first of many in 2024.”
Sunday might have been the end of Belichick’s career with the Patriots. For weeks, there has been heavy speculation that the Patriots and Belichick could part ways later this week.
The 71-year-old is scheduled to meet with Patriots owner Robert Kraft and team president Jonathan Kraft on Monday to discuss the future of the team. During his 24 seasons with the Patriots, Belichick has won 17 division titles, appeared in 13 AFC Championship games, made nine trips to the Super Bowl, and won six Lombardi Trophies.
However, the recent years haven’t been too kind to Belichick since Tom Brady‘s departure. He has a 29-37 record and has made the playoffs only once in four years. Belichick’s 4-13 record in 2023 is the worst during his 29-year coaching career. He also lost the 178th game of his career tying him with former Dallas coach Tom Landry for the most ever.
Not only has Belichick not been successful without Brady, but he has failed to supply the Patriots with enough offensive talent to compete. Entering the game against the Jets, the Patriots ranked 28th in yards and last in points per game.
New England benched Mac Jones four times this season for Zappe. However, the results haven’t improved. The Patriots have won just twice since their bye in Week 11.
“I’ll address questions about the game,” Belichick said on Sunday. “Anything about the future, I’ll meet with Robert Kraft like I always do. Disappointed in the season.”
Despite it being the final game of the 2023 season, a couple of Jets players did sustain injuries. Wide receiver Garrett Wilson cleared concussion protocol after he was evaluated for a concussion after Jabrill Peppers hit him in the third quarter. However, he had a neck injury and didn’t play for the rest of the game.
Center Joe Tippmann also went down with an ankle injury and did not return.
Safety Jordan Whitehead also left the game with a calf injury.
