New England Patriots beat Jacksonville Jaguars and clinch AFC East
New England Patriots celebrated Christmas Eve by defeating the Jacksonville Jaguars 24-21.
Was it an impressive victory? Yes, it was.
As I have grown fond of complaining, the Patriots have an inadequate receiving corps, an offensive line that’s merely above average and a fading linebacker corps. With that in mind their victory on the road was impressive, especially as the defense managed to contain the Jaguars most of the game, giving up only a freak long run and a deep pass when Jacksonville’s quarterback scrambled from the pass rush.
Rookie tight-end David Thomas had a solid performance in the absence of injured Ben Watson. Thomas made 5 catches for 83 yards, including a diving catch in the end zone for a touchdown. His longest reception was a 36 yard catch and run along the left sideline.
Thomas was also effective in the run blocking, as were tight end Daniel Graham and fullback Heath Evans. Together they delivered devastating lead-blocks off-tackle, breathing life into the power formation that in recent games had lost some the punch it had earlier in the season. Linebacker Mike Vrabel filled in on the off-side of the power-I formation.
Quarterback Tom Brady completed passes to 11 different player. He completed 28 of 39 passes for 249 yards and one touchdown. He was also effective running the ball, picking 31 yards on 10 carries
New England’s defense had a really good day, in spite of giving up three touchdowns. Jacksonville managed only 12 first downs to New England’s 22, and only three on the ground. Patriots held on to the ball for 37:13. Bottom line: Jacksonville never got its running game on track.
Back-up defensive tackle Mike Wright did a good job filling in for injured nose tackle Vince Wilfork. Wright is strong and has good technique, but simply lacks Wilfork’s heft. While Wright can hold his ground and also make tackles against the run, Wilfork clogs the middle. Likewise, while Wright can penetrate the pocket pressure on pass plays and pressure the quarterback, Wilfork can push and collapse the pocket. Still, Wright did a good job against a physical team and showed that the defensive line is not only where the Patriots are the strongest, but also has the best depth.
With the victory New England improved to 11-4 and clinched the AFC East for the fourth straight year.
