In his last three games — victories against the Steelers, Colts and Lions — Brady has completed 70 of 95 passes (73.7 percent) for 877 yards, nine touchdowns (plus a running touchdown) and no interceptions. He had the second perfect passer rating of his career last week against the Lions, and Brady is working on a streak of 199 pass attempts without an interception, which dates back to overtime in Week 6 against the Ravens.
Brady’s biggest test, though, comes this week against the Jets, who are ranked third in total defense, fourth in scoring defense and 12th in pass defense. And for Brady to be successful against the Jets, he has to be excellent at the line while identifying points of pressure and then in the pocket with his execution.
Brady has been starkly different in wins and losses against the Jets in the last two seasons. In the Patriots’ one victory last year at Gillette Stadium, Brady completed 28 of 41 passes (68.3 percent) for 310 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions. In two road losses, Brady is 43-for-83 (51.8 percent) for 464 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions.
This time around, two things will be different from Brady’s pair of losses to the Jets. In that first defeat, the Patriots were without wide receiver Wes Welker, who, like Brady, is also enjoying his best three-game stretch of the season. And in that second loss to the Jets, Brady forced far too many passes in the direction of wide receiver Randy Moss, who was out to lunch for a large portion of that game. Again, that won’t be an issue this time around.
If the Patriots are going to beat the Jets, Brady will need to be on top of his game, and he has done his part to generate some real momentum while heading into Monday night’s clash.
This was the sixth installment of a 10-day series that will highlight 10 reasons to get excited for the Patriots-Jets matchup next Monday night.
Wednesday: Can the Patriots pass the test and beat the Jets?
Friday: Jets test — Have their wins really been all about luck?
