New York Jets vs. New England Patriots Live Score & Stats – October 18, 2026 Gametracker

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) The mantra in the New England locker room under Mike Vrabel has been to never apologize for a win. So no one felt bad about the New England Patriots improving to 2-0 in the AFC East after their win over the New York Jets on Sunday.

They also know that increasing injuries will demand a lot more from everyone if they want to keep winning.

Drake Maye threw three touchdown passes, New England overcame the loss of three offensive linemen and Charles Woods threw Geno Smith’s first interception of the season in the fourth quarter to help the Patriots hold on for a 26-19 victory.

“It was sloppy. It wasn’t clean,” said Maye, who completed 18 of 32 passes for 235 yards in his third straight game with at least three touchdown passes. “It wasn’t the football we saw as complementary.”

Romeo Doubs, DeMario Douglas and Hunter Henry scored touchdowns for the Patriots (4-2), winners of three straight games. Douglas had a team-high seven catches for 86 yards.

AJ Brown had three catches for 27 yards for the Patriots in his return from injured reserve, but his timing was off and he had three drops on his 10 total targets.

“None of us were at our best today, but we were pretty good,” Vrabel said.

New England earned its fourth straight victory against the Jets and its 19th in its last 21 meetings despite right tackle Morgan Moses (ankle), left guard Alijah Vera-Tucker (hamstring) and right guard Ben Brown (knee) being injured.

“These guys are playing through injuries,” Maye said. “We had three today, so these guys are fighting hard. They’re fighting to the end, and it’s going through them.”

The Jets (2-4) had a chance to tie it in the third quarter, but the Patriots held them to a field goal. New York squandered another opportunity to cut the deficit to a field goal in the fourth quarter when Smith was picked off by Woods. It happened on Smith’s 166th pass of the season, ending his longest opening streak of a season without an interception.

“Finishing the offense and detailing the defense is something we need to improve on because I think we gave up two touchdowns that shouldn’t have happened,” Jets coach Aaron Glenn said.

Smith finished 20 of 30 for 252 yards, one touchdown against rookie Omar Cooper Jr., who had six catches for 103 yards in his return from IR after missing four games with an ankle injury.

New England’s defense, which got a boost from cornerback Christian Gonzalez returning from a two-game absence with a shoulder injury, held New York to 0 for 3 in the red zone. The Jets were also 3 of 10 on third down and were stopped on fourth downs on consecutive possessions in the second quarter.

“These games are huge for us. I’m just proud of the defense, the way we stayed together,” Gonzalez said. “They got some momentum late and we just managed to finish the game.”

The Patriots led 17-3 at halftime, thanks to Doubs’ 42-yard touchdown run and Douglas’ 9-yard touchdown run.

The Jets cut the lead to 17-10 in the third quarter after Cooper got behind Patriots safety Craig Woodson and caught a 42-yard touchdown from Smith.

That remained the score when Jets rusher David Bailey stripped TreVeyon Henderson of the ball and recovering Jamien Sherwood at the New England 36. New York drove within 10, but Smith was sacked by Elijah Ponder, forcing the Jets to settle for a 36-yard field goal by Jason Sanders.

The Patriots responded on their next series, capping a 12-play, 68-yard drive with a 7-yard strike from Maye to Henry, but Andy Borregales missed the extra point.

Just four plays later and the Jets down 10, Smith passed Kenyon Sadiq on a deep pass that was intercepted by Woods.

Jets: LB Kiko Mauigoa left with a thigh injury in the first quarter.

Patriots: Le Doubs (shoulder) went out in the first quarter following his touchdown and did not return. … Moses favored his left ankle when he left early in the second quarter. … Vera-Tucker left in the second half with a hamstring injury and was ruled out. … Brown struggled to put weight on his left leg as he was helped out in the fourth quarter with a knee injury.

Jets: Host the Dolphins next Sunday.

Patriots: Visit the Bears Thursday night.

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