Holding a seven point lead the Jets offense stalled two times in a row allowing the Patriots to tie up the game. Then, given one last opportunity to move down the field, the Jets were unable to get out of their own territory again and the game was forced into overtime. With their opponent gaining only two first downs in their last three drives, Bill Bellichick chose to kick the ball back to the Jets offense. This is that drive.

1st and 10 at NYJ 20 (15:00 – OT) (Shotgun) C.Ivory left end to NYJ 22 for 2 yards (J.Richards).

Jets are in 10 personnel with a 2×1 set, while the Patriots are in a nickel package.

Before the snap, Kenbrell Thompkins goes in motion from his outermost WR spot on the left side and runs directly into DE Chandler Jones, somehow managing to actually block him and hold him up at his spot. Because Thompkins takes on the end, this allows the LT and H-back Quincy Enunwa to become the lead blockers on the play. Originally, Enunwa is aiming to hit the safety #37 as he heads outside but CB #21 gets the right angle that forces Enunwa to adjust in order to make sure Ivory doesn’t get hit in the backfield. This puts Ivory 1 on 1 with #37.

As he gets the handoff, Ivory switches the ball into his outside arm in order to protect it from oncoming contact. As he approaches #37, he lowers his shoulder but seems to recognize that he’s not going to win the leverage battle, so he instead angles himself in order to roll over the LB, a move that gains him an extra yard.

2nd and 8 at NYJ 22 (14:33 – OT) (Shotgun) R.Fitzpatrick pass short left to Q.Enunwa to NE 30 for 48 yards (T.Wilson)

Jets are in 10 personnel, originally lined up in a 2×1 set with Quincy Enunwa at the end of the left side and off the line. A pre-snap motion moves Eric Decker over to the right side. Chan Gailey’s offense with the Jets uses many built in motions in order to make the pre-snap read easier and gain favorable matchups. When Decker’s corner follows him, Fitzpatrick knows he has man coverage and the slant/flat combo on the left side is a pick play designed to beat that. With #95 DE Chandler Jones standing in a rush position (one foot forward, slightly leaning ahead) and #27 Tavon Wilson lined up directly over Quincy Enunwa, it’s assumed that Wilson is going to be the one manned up with him.

Wilson is about 8 yards deep off of Enunwa, which is the right amount of distance to get caught on the slant. Enunwa takes a few steps vertically with an outside lean, holding Wilson at a distance, and then breaks underneath the slant route. At that point, Ryan Fitzpatrick gives him a pass that is slightly behind him, possibly purposely, in order to allow Enunwa to slow down and turn up the field. At that point, it’s just green grass for Enunwa to run through until he meets the Patriots safety who comes from the opposite side of the field.

1st and 10 at NE 30 (13:48 – OT) (Shotgun) C.Ivory right tackle to NE 26 for 4 yards (R.Ninkovich)

Jets are in 10 personnel and have a 1×2 set with Eric Decker coming across the formation on the pre-snap. The Patriots are in a nickel package with LB Jamie Collins and hybrid DE/LB/Jets kryptonite Rob Ninkovich lined up on the edges in two point stances.

The Jets run an inside zone towards the left side of the field. Ivory decides immediately on the handoff that he wants the A gap to the right side of center Nick Mangold based off of his pre-snap read that there will be a double team of the RT and RG on #90 Malcom Brown who is lined up as a 3 tech over the outside shoulder of the RG. The RG is in position from the pre-snap to box him out and turn Brown in order to open the lane.

As Ivory approaches the line, he veers away from his original decision, possibly because he notices #91 Jamie Collins or he realizes the backside blocking on this play will lead to the open space that was created when Decker moved across the formation. Ivory approaches the back of the RT with a few lateral steps to draw in all the coverage into the two main gaps and then breaks out laterally towards the outside. He’s only able to get a few yards before being brought down. Ivory not taking the original gap might be a misplay by him.

2nd and 6 at NE 26 (13:08 – OT) (Shotgun) R.Fitzpatrick pass deep left to B.Marshall to NE 6 for 20 yards (D.Harmon)

Jets are in a 10 personnel 1×2 set with Eric Decker lined up in the backfield and then motioned out onto the left side right before the snap. The Patriots line up in a nickel package with a 5 man blitz showing at the snap as two linebackers line up over the guards. Rob Ninkovich is at ILB.

The Patriots coverage doesn’t give many hints before the snap, but Decker’s motion gives away the man coverage that the Patriots are using. As the ball is snapped, the CB over Brandon Marshall backs off and touches his head, calling an audible on the play and switching his coverage onto the flat. The motioned corner doesn’t recognize this and continues to follow Decker across the formation.

At the snap, the Jets O-line pulls the right guard over to the left side, creating a very effective play fake that brings in all of the players in the box- despite Ryan Fitzpatrick never faking the actual handoff to Chris Ivory. By moving Fitzpatrick to the left side with Eric Decker and Brandon Marshall running a flat/corner combo, Chan Gailey cuts down the amount of reads Fitzpatrick has to go through and allows him to focus on just two routes.

Fitzpatrick first looks to Decker, assuming he’d be open due to the motion but the adjusting corner has him covered. He takes two steps while focusing on Decker and then turns onto Marshall as he notices that Marshall has run past the moving corner- who should have been picking him up. Fitzpatrick loads up and throws a perfectly placed ball into the hands of Brandon Marshall while on the move, displaying great touch.

1st and Goal at NE 6 (12:23 – OT) Eric Decker 6 Yd pass from Ryan Fitzpatrick

Jets are in 10 personnel lined up in a 1×3 set with Quincy Enunwa going in motion to the left side. The Patriots are in a nickel package and showing a cover-1 man on the pre-snap with the safety shaded heavily over Brandon Marshall on the left side. They’re also showing a potential 5 man blitz, although Rob Ninkovich on the right side is in a coverage-oriented stance. This may be because the Jets tend to run a slant route based pick plays on Decker’s side very often in the redzone.

The Jets run two corner/slant pick plays on both sides of the offense, leaving Fitzpatrick to decide which of the two sets of receivers has a better chance to be open. Fitzpatrick chooses the right side after Enunwa’s motion because now both players have 1-on-1 without any potential help over the top. As soon as the ball is snapped, Decker drives vertically with an outside release and then breaks out to the corner once he’s past the goal line. Fitzpatrick takes the snap, moves over slightly to his right and throws a perfectly timed and placed ball right into the hands of Eric Decker, ending the game.