After failed late-game comebacks in Weeks 2, 6 and 8, Cam Newton finally came through Monday night at MetLife Stadium.
The New England Patriots quarterback led four sustained second-half scoring drives against the New York Jets, including one that produced a game-tying touchdown with less than two minutes remaining and another that culminated in a last-second, 51-yard Nick Folk field goal that gave New England a 30-27 victory.
As the Patriots accumulated yardage to set up Folk’s game-winner, Newton’s message to his troops was simple.
“Just keep it going,” running back Rex Burkhead relayed after the game. “Not really too much was said. We were just so locked in and focused on trying to do our job, so he just reiterated that. ‘Let’s do this. Let’s finish it now,’ instead of going to overtime.”
Excluding a clock-stopping spike, Newton went 3-for-3 for 36 yards on the final drive and also sneaked for 5 yards on third-and-1. Monday’s game overall was his most efficient of the season: 27 of 35, 274 yards, two rushing touchdowns, no turnovers.
Newton’s final completion — a 20-yard strike to Jakobi Meyers with less than 10 seconds remaining — brought the Patriots into field-goal range.
“Cam, just being the leader that he was tonight, taking command,” Burkhead said. “Just his presence in the huddle, but in the passing game, as well. He just did a great job moving around the pocket and making plays.”
The Patriots dominated possession in the second half, running 36 of the game’s final 40 offensive plays. (Their 81 total offensive snaps were a season high.) They reached the 30-point plateau for the first time since Week 3 and, in a notable improvement from recent weeks, did not turn the ball over, snapping a streak of 10 consecutive games with at least one giveaway dating back to last season.
The Jets led by 10 points with less than seven minutes remaining but couldn’t hold it.
“We did a great job executing from the start,” said Burkhead, who rushed 12 times for 56 yards and a touchdown in the win. “Our opening drive offensively (which ended in a 5-yard Newton touchdown run), we did a great job. Then finishing, of course, and not turning the ball over.
“When you do that, that always helps your chance of success. We struggled with that in past weeks, and tonight, we did a really great job there.”
The victory snapped a four-game losing streak for the Patriots, who improved to 3-5 on the season. Multiple New England players called it a confidence-booster for a team that had endured 1-, 6- and 3-point losses earlier in the year.
“I think it shows the character of this team,” Burkhead said. “Just battling, fighting, the whole nine. With some guys banged up, just playing and grinding through it. I think that shows the strength that we have.
“We’re not going to quit. We’re not going to lay down. We’re going to continue to battle every single week, and hopefully we can just keep building off of this.”
