Jerod Mayo and Patriots management take a candid look at loss to Jets

The Patriots were demolished by the Jets on Thursday night, and team executives are making no bones about what a poor performance it was.

“It was really tough. A division game. Prime time,” safety Jabrill Peppers said. “We came out and got our butts kicked. It’s as simple as that.”

The Patriots never took the lead. Only one of their offensive plays went beyond 20 yards. Aaron Rodgers sliced ​​and diced the Patriots defense, which gave up 400 yards for the first time this season. Their only points came on a Joey Slye field goal.

“We weren’t good in any phase of the game,” coach Jerod Mayo said. “I felt like we had a good game in terms of X’s and O’s, but we didn’t get out there and we didn’t perform, and that’s what happens every Sunday. I told the guys that’s NFL football, that’s what it’s all about, and we just have to be better.”

Quarterback Jacoby Brissett, who has been sacked five times, answered a question about the number of yells at the line of scrimmage with brutal honesty.

“It wasn’t really about the game,” Brissett said. “It felt like they beat us, to be honest with you.”

After two hard-fought games against the Bengals and Seahawks, the Patriots were crushed by a Jets team that finally found a quarterback. Aaron Rodgers didn’t play in either game of last season’s series, which the teams split. He expertly carved up the Patriots’ defense, completing 27 of 35 passes for 281 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions.

Add to that a terrible performance (7 sacks allowed) from a Patriots offensive line that started with two rookies and a player who started the season on the practice squad, and the Patriots quickly found themselves in trouble.

“It was bad. Bad in every way,” center David Andrews said. “We didn’t play the game the way we wanted to play. They dictated what we wanted to do. Hats off to them. They had a good plan and played a lot better than we did tonight, plain and simple.”

Pass protection continues to be an issue for an offensive line group whose depth continues to shrink further and further.

“We have to do better on offense,” Mayo said. “Whether it’s through schemes or whatever, we have to reevaluate. The good news is it’s Thursday, so it’s a mini bye week where we as coaches can also reset and look at the things we’re doing better.”

The Patriots missed more than a dozen tackles. Mayo said he wasn’t happy about that.

“It’s very unusual. It’s one of the things that disappoints me the most as a defensive-minded coach,” Mayo said. “On the second level, we struggled all day long with tackling. Once again, even when we did tackle, we hit them in the backfield. It was just the lack of fundamentals, a lack of discipline and a lack of execution that was starting to show.”

With just over a week between this loss and their game against San Francisco next Sunday, the Patriots may need some time to rest and reassess things.

“Right now, I just want guys to get better,” linebacker Jahlani Tavai said. “I know we had a couple guys get hurt in this game, so I want to make sure they get better. We all have to look in the mirror and face the reality that we’re 1-2. We have to prepare like we have the last few weeks and be aware of everything. We have to take responsibility for everything we do.”