The New England Patriots kept rolling in Week 6, beating the New York Jets 26-19 to stretch their winning streak to three and move to 4-2. A big reason they got there was DeMario Douglas, who kept building on his two-touchdown outing in Week 5 with another strong night: seven catches, 86 yards, and a touchdown, all team highs.
Douglas was the clear bright spot in the passing game against the Jets. He also had one costly mistake, a fumble on a play where he didn’t realize a defender was coming from behind. Even with that blemish, the Patriots got exactly what they needed from him.
Now they need it again, and maybe even more, with Week 7 coming fast.
New England’s win over the Jets came with a price. The Patriots lost three offensive linemen during the game, which pushed first-round rookie tackle Caleb Lomu into a bigger role. They also took another hit at receiver, with Romeo Doubs injuring his shoulder on a 42-yard touchdown catch in the first quarter.
Doubs has been up and down this season, but his move to the IR still stings for a Patriots receiving group that already has Mack Hollins on IR. The team did get A.
J. Brown back in Week 6, though he looked rusty in his return from an ankle injury.
That matters because Brown still has to get back up to speed, leaving Douglas with an even larger load to carry until Doubs or Hollins returns. Through six games, Douglas is already tracking toward a better season than he had last year, while also leading New England in receptions and targets. After a quiet start, the Florida native has come alive over the last two weeks, right when the Patriots needed him most.
The timing of these injuries is especially rough because Week 7 brings a short week and a Thursday matchup with the Chicago Bears. With only three days between games, New England gets less recovery time than usual, which lowers the odds of getting anyone back this week.
So if the Patriots want to turn three straight wins into four, they may need another heavy dose of DeMario Douglas.
In Other News...
Patriots Turned A Messy Jets Game On A Few Huge Moments
The Patriots survived a messy one against the Jets by leaning on the kinds of plays that usually decide tight division games: defensive stops, successful fourth-down calls and a pair of scoring drives when the margin for error was thin. Drake Maye helped steer the offense, and New England kept finding just enough answers to stay in front in a game that never really settled into a rhythm.
What stood out most was how the Patriots handled the critical moments near the goal line, where the Jets never managed to cash in. New England also got a crucial final drive to close it out, but the win carried some lingering questions because a key playmaker was shaken up after a long touchdown catch, leaving one more layer of uncertainty hanging over an otherwise needed result. [Read more 🡒]
Patriots Need A.J. Brown To Answer One Big Offensive Concern
After getting past the Jets in a 26-19 Week 6 win, the Patriots are back to dealing with the bigger question that has hovered over their offense for most of the month: how much better does it look when A.J. Brown is available? Brown missed four games with an ankle injury, and his absence has left New England searching for more consistency and a clearer passing rhythm as it heads into a Thursday night trip to Chicago.
Draye Maye was candid about what Brown means to the offense, which is why his status looms so large for Week 7. Brown said he is absolutely good to play against the Bears, giving the Patriots a potential boost at exactly the right time, but the real test is whether his return can address the concern that has lingered since he went down. [Read more 🡒]
Patriots Suddenly Have An O-Line Depth Problem They Can't Ignore
The Patriots had to move quickly after their game against the Jets left them thin along the offensive line, and on Tuesday the team brought back a pair of familiar faces to help patch things up. Andrew Rupcich and Jacob Rizy were signed to the practice squad, a reminder of how fast depth can get tested in the NFL and how often teams have to lean on the players they already know.
Mike Vrabel confirmed the additions during his press conference and said the club has to stay flexible with the roster as injuries pile up. Rupcich and Rizy were around earlier in training camp and the preseason before being released, so this is less a fresh search than a return to names the Patriots already had in the building, with more roster movement still likely as they work through the fallout from Sunday. [Read more 🡒]