For anyone who watched the New England Patriots’ 54-3 rout of the New York Jets — it was clear that Mac Jones wanted to get the ball to Jonnu Smith.
In the first two drives, Smith was targeted four times and he had a rush for five yards. Smith finished the game with that carry for five yards and two receptions for 52 yards. Hunter Henry increased his streak to four straight games with a touchdown — he had two receptions for 23 yards and the score in this contest.
It was “National Tight Ends Day” and Jones knew that he wanted to get his guys some targets. He spoke about the significance of the day following the game and credited his awareness of it to Henry.
“Yeah, Hunter told me it was national tight end day before the game actually, not that it had anything to do with it, but it was just funny,” Jones said. “Yeah, I think tight ends, all of our tight ends play well, and they play well in the run game and the pass game and they do exactly what they’re supposed to do. I think it’s good when you have great skill players and great running backs, great receivers, and then our O-line is coming together, and we’re going to keep making progress. I felt comfortable back there, and they did a great job, so it takes all groups and not one specific group. It is good to see everyone getting a little bit of their share, and we’ve just got to keep doing that.”
If the Patriots expect to have success going forward, they’ll have to continue to put an emphasis on a gameplan with Smith and Henry involved.
