When Was the Last Time the New York Jets Beat the New England Patriots?
The New York Jets and the New England Patriots seem to be heading in opposite directions as the 2023 NFL season approaches. If you’re a Jets fan, that’s a good thing. If you cheer for the Patriots, those dynasty days are long gone.
Recently, Patriots vs. Jets has been a one-sided rivalry — so much that it’s probably not even worth calling them rivals any longer. The Patriots have owned the Jets in recent memory, but that may all change this season.
The New York Jets and New England Patriots are trending in different directions
Ever since Tom Brady left the Patriots in 2020, the Patriots haven’t been the same. Unfortunately for the Jets, they remained the same and still couldn’t find a way to beat the Brady-less Pats. As funny as it sounds, the Jets are all in for a Super Bowl this year. The New England Patriots enter the season as the fourth-best team in the four-team AFC East.
For the Jets, the Zach Wilson experiment appears to be over. New York took the BYU product with the second overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. He’s gone 8-14 in 22 games as a starter. He’s thrown 15 touchdown passes against 18 interceptions. Now, he’s clearly not the No. 1 guy for the Jets, who acquired veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers from the Green Bay Packers this offseason.
The Packers have revamped their offense by bringing in the four-time MVP. They’ve also added former Packers wide receiver Allen Lazard and former Kansas City Chiefs receiver Mecole Hardman to give him some quality targets. The Jets managed seven wins last year, riding a tenacious defense. Adding Rodgers to the mix will make them a complete team that should make some postseason noise.
Meanwhile, the Patriots are still trying to find themselves after Brady bolted for Tampa Bay. They drafted quarterback Mac Jones 13 slots after the Jets took Wilson. Jones had a solid rookie season, guiding the Pats to a 10-7 record and a playoff berth. Last season, Jones injured his ankle and found himself in the middle of a QB controversy with rookie Bailey Zappe. Jones went 6-8 in his 14 starts as New England failed to earn a postseason berth.
When is the last time the Jets beat the Patriots?
Even without Brady, the Patriots still have New York’s number. In the three years without Brady, the Patriots are 6-0 against the Jets. Last season, they pulled out a pair of close victories, winning 22-17 and 10-3. According to Football Database, the Patriots have rattled off 14 straight victories over the Jets. New England owns an all-time record of 73-54-1 against the Jets.
The last time the Jets pulled out a victory over the Patriots came on Dec. 27, 2015, and Bill Belichick played a significant role in New England’s loss. Brady hit running back James White with a 9-yard touchdown pass late in the fourth quarter to tie the game at 20-20 and send the game into overtime. The Patriots won the coin toss, but Belichick inexplicably elected to kick off in the extra session, knowing if the Jets marched down the field on the opening possession and scored a touchdown, the game would be over.
Belichick’s decision has to go down as one of the worst of his career. Electing to kick off raised quite a few eyebrows.
“I remember thinking, ‘What the hell did the greatest coach of all time just do?’ I was like, ‘What does he know that we don’t know?'” said former Jets receiver Brandon Marshall, per ESPN.
Patriots special teams star Matthew Slater made the call on the field and got plenty of blame. People believed Slater was the one who made the decision.
“I remember getting blamed for that whole thing,” Slater said. “And I would just like to clear the record for one final time: As we went to the coin toss there, I had instructions from Coach what we wanted to do.”
Wouldn’t you know that Jets quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick marched his team the length of the field and threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Eric Decker to give the Jets a 26-20 victory. The Jets haven’t beaten the Pats since Belichick’s blunder.
