The New York Jets and New England Patriots elected to join forces in Foxboro today to put on a truly terrible display of football. Thankfully, however, with just 26 seconds left, rookie Marcus Jones rose to the occasion and took an 84-yard punt to the house for an outstanding touchdown that saved us all from overtime.
To summarize what this game looked like, had you not been following exclusively on CBS, there were a combined total of 17 punts in this football game. The Jets and Patriots also combined to go 7-for-29 on third downs.
Additionally, Jets quarterback Zach Wilson was 9-for-22 for 77 yards and was sacked four times. Possibly even sadder, the second-year starter was also the team’s leading rusher with a rather deflating 26 yards.
Denzel Mims led New York in receiving with two catches for a whopping 35 yards.
Somehow, though, in a rare bright spot on the stat sheet, there were no interceptions thrown.
But in the end — and oh boy were fans at Gillette Stadium so very grateful for the end — Marcus Jones sprinted 84 yards for the touchdown on the punt return and put an end to the madness.
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Rookie Marcus Jones saves the day for Patriots
The wild sprint to the end zone left just five seconds on the clock for Wilson and the Jets to pull off a miracle, and they most certainly did not.
The funniest part of the electric return might have been when Kevin Harlan shouted, “he’s gonna try to beat the punter,” as if that were ever in doubt after streaking down the sideline past every Jets player in sight, and then crossing over the middle to put the finishing touches on what was otherwise a dud of a football game.
The Jets and Patriots now both sit at 6-4 but are still just one game back of the Buffalo Bills and Miami Dolphins in the AFC East.
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