The Jets and Patriots have met 134 times (including three postseason matches). Of those meetings, 77 games have been won by New England in total with 5 ties occurring along the way.
At their opening matchup of the season, the Jets raced out to an early lead behind running back Johnny Hector and quarterback Steve Grogan. However, in the New York Jets Vs New England Patriots clash, late-game turnovers would ultimately prove costly for them.
| Team | 1st Quarter | 2nd Quarter | 3rd Quarter | 4th Quarter | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York Jets | 3 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 16 |
| New England Patriots | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
Origins
With a win against the Jets, the Patriots would improve to 9-2 and secure their first winning season since 2021. They would also remain unbeaten in AFC East Division play and would become only the third team ever in NFL history to return both punt and kickoff for touchdowns simultaneously during one season.
This game marked their inaugural meeting since the modern era of NFL began and it was an intense contest. The first quarter saw numerous ties or lead changes as both teams struggled to find any sort of offensive rhythm. But in the second quarter, Tom Brady took charge, throwing touchdown passes to Welker and Aaron Hernandez for touchdowns that gave them a commanding 21-9 advantage at halftime.
The third quarter was more of the same, as both teams struggled to find any rhythm on offense. The Patriots did manage to put some additional points on the board via Tom Brady’s pass to Fred Baxter and Ryan Fitzpatrick touchdown en route to taking a 28-21 advantage at halftime.
At the start of the fourth quarter, it appeared as though this game might head into overtime as both teams engaged in fierce defensive battles; however, New England managed to hold on and claim victory with its strong defense holding off any further scoring from opponents.
In the final minute of this game, the Jets attempted a comeback but fell short. With this victory, the Patriots secured an all-time series lead at 75-56-1 at the conclusion of regular season play; later that year they met in Super Bowl XLII where the Patriots claimed a record sixth championship title – making history along the way!
Meetings in the 1980s
In the 1980s, these rivals played several iconic matches. Both teams met twice during regular season play and each side earned at least one victory during playoff play. Their first meeting was a vicious encounter; Vinny Testaverde was taken down by Ray Lewis early in the second quarter for a torn left Achilles tendon before Tom Tupa replaced him and proceeded to throw touchdown passes to Fred Baxter and Keyshawn Johnson for touchdowns.
In their next meeting, the Patriots scored on both initial possessions to quickly take a 21-0 lead before the Jets responded with a seven-play, 78-yard drive that culminated with Sammy Morris rushing touchdown for 42-10 Patriots win.
At Gillette Stadium a week later, the Patriots quickly took control of the matchup from start to finish. Drake Maye threw four touchdown passes in the first half to help lead New England to a 41-7 advantage at halftime. Though Rick Sapienza attempted a late comeback attempt with a punter fumble leading to a safety that extended New England’s advantage to 18-10, New York ultimately fell 18-10 short.
These teams met for the first time ever in playoff play that year and the Patriots prevailed with a 26-14 win despite blowing a 21-point first half lead, setting a franchise record in terms of biggest lost lead reversal.
From 1993 to 2008, Parcells, Belichick, and Carroll served on both sides of their rivalry as coaches while Pepper Johnson played for both teams under Parcells while later serving as a Patriots assistant coach until retiring in 2015. Brian Mangini who took over as Jets head coach in 2006 also has served both teams as defensive line coach.
Meetings in the 1990s
In the 1990s, this rivalry changed as neither team regularly made it to the playoffs; nonetheless, there were some memorable contests.
In 1990, the Patriots scored early and often as they built an overwhelming 24-0 advantage through running back Johnny Hector and quarterback Steve Grogan (replacing injured starter Tony Eason) scored touchdowns to take an early commanding 24-0 lead in the first quarter. Grogan would go on to throw for over 400 yards and three scores during this contest.
After another Jets three-and-out, New England struck again with another touchdown drive, highlighted by Grogan’s 30-yard pass to rookie tight end Efton Chism III for another score en route to building up an early 34-3 lead in the second quarter.
After halftime, the Jets made an initial attempt at two fake punts during their second possession but neither succeeded. Instead, they turned the ball over on downs, giving New England another opportunity to extend its lead with a 10-play, 91-yard touchdown drive that culminated with receiver Randy Moss catching a 10-yard touchdown catch and touchdown catch of his own.
With their victory, the Patriots improved to 5-0 and maintained their unbeaten streak. Meanwhile, Rex Mangini was fired following this season for failing to guide his team successfully in any area.
On December 2, the two teams met once more as the Patriots faced an existential threat to their playoff hopes. After holding a 13-3 halftime lead, Jets linebacker Mo Lewis inflicted injuries on Patriots quarterback Drew Bledsoe that forced Tom Brady to assume control for the remainder of the game and win it for them – with this win, they secured both their division title and advanced to Super Bowl XXXVI!
Meetings in the 2000s
After the AFL-NFL merger, the Patriots and Jets became division rivals in the AFC East. Since that time, both teams have met several times; some games have been contentious; specifically in 2006 when Jets safety Bryan Cox threw a punch at Patriots linebacker Mo Lewis which resulted in both players getting injured as a result of it; Lewis was later placed on season-ending injured reserve; later that season however, the Patriots beat their rivals 17-6 in an emphatic victory over them!
The 2024 meeting between New England and Minnesota was an emphatic win for the Patriots, scoring on their first five possessions and running away with it. New England quarterback Drake Maye led them from start to finish with 8-for-8 passing for 113 yards and one touchdown before giving way to Josh Dobbs at halftime. Their defense also made their mark – cornerback Devin McCourty intercepted two passes while Ellis Hobbs recorded an impressive 108-yard kickoff return return.
In week 2, the Patriots easily defeated the Jets 38-14 with Mike Tolbert and Danny Woodhead leading a powerful running attack that produced its own touchdown catches. In all, 32 touchdown catches were scored by former Jets wideouts Randy Moss and Wes Welker, marking their debut touchdown catches since leaving New York. The victory marked another great performance by New England.
During the Parcells-Belichick era, both teams shared several relationships, including coaches Pepper Johnson (Jets defensive line coach) and Bryan Mangini (Patriots defensive coordinator). Both sides also had previous players in common such as wide receiver Derrick Gaffney from 1978-87 with Jabar Gaffney being part of his defense from 2006-08. Linebacker Joe Klecko had played on the legendary New York Sack Exchange defensive line prior to becoming an assistant coach with the Patriots.
Meetings in the 2010s
In 2010, their initial meeting between these teams was an extremely close one, with the lead changing seven times and neither team scoring in the fourth quarter or overtime period. New England won the coin toss and elected to kick off first; when New York’s initial play resulted in a fumbled ball from which BenJarvis Green-Ellis scored on three yard touchdown run. With that win, New England claimed their AFC East championship.
The second meeting between New England and New York was an outright victory for New England, as their dominance extended across all facets of play. Beginning with an opening seven-play, 85-yard drive that featured Stefon Diggs catching a 21-yard pass to set up their opening score; following an initial Jets three-and-out drive downfield using just four plays to reach New York one yard line; New England would score later when Danny Woodhead caught a two-yard pass that took them into the end zone on its next possession en route to victory!
On their last possession, Mark Sanchez was hit by Leigh Bodden and forced to fumble, which Brandon Moore recovered for what became known as the “butt fumble”. With this loss, they fell to 5-6 overall and out of contention for playoff contention.
Both teams boasted notable names on their coaching staffs during this era, with Bill Parcells, Tom Carroll and Bill Belichick serving as coaches for the Patriots while Mike Mangini, Chuck Fairbanks and Sam Gash led the Jets coaching staffs during this era. Rivalries also escalated due to personnel disputes – the Jets faced backlash for cutting former Patriot running back Curtis Martin and Danny Woodhead while the Patriots made headlines by cutting wide receiver Wes Welker – however both teams eventually settled their differences by agreeing on settlement terms with both parties involved parties.