Maye has career-high 5 TDs passes in Patriots’ 42-10 rout of Jets. Now they wait on AFC East title

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Drake Maye threw a career-high five touchdown passes before getting the rest of the game off in the third quarter, New England scored a TD on its first six drives and the Patriots finished the regular season undefeated on the road by dominating the New York Jets 42-10 on Sunday.

Rhamondre Stevenson had a TD run and catch for the Patriots (13-3), who moved closer to winning the AFC East title for the first time since 2019. They’ll do so if Buffalo loses or ties against Philadelphia later in the day.

Maye was 19 of 21 for 256 yards and a 157.0 quarterback rating with TD tosses to Stevenson, Stefon Diggs, Austin Hooper, Hunter Henry and Efton Chism III before being lifted by coach Mike Vrabel for Joshua Dobbs with 5:31 left in the third quarter. Maye joined Tom Brady (11 times) and Drew Bledsoe (twice) as the only New England quarterbacks to reach 4,000 yards passing in a season.

Dobbs’ first drive ended the Patriots’ touchdown run, with New England settling for a field goal on its seventh possession — but Andy Borregales clanked the 41-yard attempt off the right upright.

It didn’t matter much by then, though, as the Patriots cruised to their eighth 13-win season in team history. Only San Francisco has more with 11.

In a road game that looked and sounded more like a Patriots home game with all the red, white and blue-clad fans who made the trek down to MetLife Stadium, New England finished 8-0 away from Gillette Stadium. It’s the third time in franchise history the Patriots had no regular-season road losses. Only San Francisco (1984, 1989 and 1990) has also gone undefeated on the road in three seasons since 1970.

Meanwhile, it was another embarrassing showing in the home finale for the lowly Jets (3-13), who have lost four in a row and have two straight seasons with multiple losing streaks of at least four games. New York became the fifth team in NFL history to lose four straight by 23 or more points in one season, and the first since the 1972 Patriots.

Undrafted rookie quarterback Brady Cook made his third consecutive start and went 19 of 33 for 152 yards and an interception.

Breece Hall had 111 yards rushing, including a 59-yard TD run early in the fourth quarter, to give him his first 1,000-yard season.

Quick start

Maye and the Patriots sliced through the Jets’ porous defense on their opening drive, capping it with a 2-yard TD catch by Hooper.

After a three-and-out by the Jets on their opening drive, New England again got into the end zone. After a questionable pass interference call on Brandon Stephens in the end zone put the ball on the 1, Stevenson ran it in.

The Patriots took advantage of an interception by Jaylinn Hawkins and scored on their third straight possession, this time on Maye’s 22-yard TD pass to Stevenson to make it 21-0.

Nick Folk’s 39-yard field goal got the Jets on the scoreboard with 9:56 left in the opening half.

New England made it 4 for 4 on TD drives on their next possession with Maye hitting Diggs on a screen on fourth down for a 3-yard touchdown to make it 28-3 with 3:01 remaining in the second quarter.

After a roughing-the-passer call on third down kept the Patriots’ next drive alive, Maye got his fourth TD pass of the first half on a 13-yard toss to a wide-open Henry.

New England stayed perfect on TD drives on the first possession of the second half with Maye finding a diving Chism for a 10-yard score that made it 42-3.

Trickery

The Jets tried to find a spark on special teams with two fake punts on the same drive to open the second half.

On fourth-and-2 from the Jets 43, punter Austin McNamara took the snap and tossed a 3-yard pass to Malachi Moore for a first down.

Four plays later on fourth-and-6 from the 50, McNamara again lined up to punt but Isaiah Davis took the direct snap and was immediately dropped for a 3-yard loss and a turnover on downs.

Injuries

Patriots: FB Jack Westover injured an ankle in the fourth quarter.

Jets: Hall left in the fourth quarter with a knee injury. … CB Qwan’tez Stiggers injured a knee in the second half. … Davis was evaluated for a concussion in the fourth quarter. … LG John Simpson hurt a knee in the fourth quarter.

Up next

Patriots: Host Miami next Saturday or Sunday.

Jets: Finish the season on the road in Buffalo next Saturday or Sunday.

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