EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Some notes and nuggets from the Patriots’ 24-17 win over the New York Jets on Sunday at MetLife Stadium:
— Patriots coach Bill Belichick began his postgame news conference by offering his support for rookie linebacker Harvey Langi and his wife, Cassidy, who suffered serious injuries in a car accident Friday night.
“First of all, I just wanted to, on behalf of the team, express the thoughts and prayers that are with Harvey and Cassidy Langi for the accident that happened over the weekend,” Belichick said. “We pray that they’re being looked over and that they’re doing better. It sounds like they are, but that was a very unfortunate situation and one (that) I think shook everybody in the organization.”
The Patriots announced Harvey Langi had suffered a back injury in the crash, which occurred on the road outside the couple’s Foxboro, Mass., apartment. Later reports indicated he injured his back and neck and that Cassidy Langi had fractured both hips, broken ribs and was being evaluated for additional internal injuries.
“We just heard about it right before we got on the flight (Saturday),” running back Dion Lewis said. “It’s a tough situation. I’m praying for him and his family, just hoping God blesses him and continues to heal him.”
“We all checked in on him,” safety Duron Harmon added, “and Coach has done a good job of just relaying what’s going on back and forth between him and his wife. And he’s doing better. He’s doing fine. All we can do is just continue to pray for him — for him and his wife — and just hope that everything’s OK.”
— David Harris was a staple in the middle of the Jets’ defense for the past decade, but he didn’t even see the field in his first trip back to northern New Jersey.
The veteran linebacker was a healthy scratch for the Patriots, his third consecutive DNP. Harris has played just seven snaps all season and has not seen game action since Week 3.
— Defensive tackle Alan Branch, meanwhile, returned to the lineup after sitting out last Thursday’s game as a healthy scratch. He finished with one tackle for loss, as the Patriots held the Jets to 74 yards on 24 carries.
“I just wanted to be out there,” Branch said. “No one plays the game not to play. It felt good to be out there. I was waiting for that opportunity, and I’m glad I got that opportunity (Sunday).”
— Jets quarterback Josh McCown carved up New England’s defense early, but the unit stepped up as the game wore on, holding the Jets to just three points over their final nine possessions. Two of those drives ended in interceptions, and one ended in a controversial fumble at the goal line that resulted in a turnover.
For the second time in as many games, a Patriots opponent had the ball in the final minutes with a chance to win or tie but was unable to reach the end zone. New England allowed a long pass play to Robby Anderson on the Jets final drive but got sacks from Dont’a Hightower and Kyle Van Noy to help shut the door.
“I think that that’s a big boost for us defensively,” Hightower said. “We know how good our offense is. We know we’ve got Tom Brady and all that other (expletive), but we know what we need to do as a defense, and we haven’t been playing as well as we have. But done is better than perfect. We showed up, and we closed out when we needed to, so we’re going to take this, build on it and hopefully keep progressing in the right direction.”
— Patriots cornerback Stephon Gilmore missed the game with a concussion. Gilmore was removed from the injury report Friday — he had been dealing with a minor ankle injury — but was ruled out Saturday in a surprise move.
Asked about Gilmore’s absence, Belichick said the Patriots “followed the rules to the letter on the injuries, like we always do.”
“We reported it exactly how it happened,” he said.
Special teamer Johnson Bademosi filled in for Gilmore and played well, starting opposite Malcolm Butler and allowing two catches on two targets for 23 yards. Bademosi had not played a single defensive snap this season before Sunday.
Thumbnail photo via Robert Deutsch/USA TODAY Sports Images
