TEAM NOTES
- Matt Judon has 4th straight game with a sack; 8th career 2-sack game.Â
- Judon's 6 1/2 sacks through first five games are most in team history.
- Ted Karras, Yodny Cajuste and James Ferentz make first starts of the season.
- Justin Herron moves from right tackle to left tackle.Â
- Jamie Collins begins third stint with the Patriots.Â
- Nick Folk kicks two 52-yard field goals, longest field goals as a member of the Patriots.Â
- Folk is second Patriots player with two 50-yarders in single game.
PATRIOTS EXTEND NFL RECORD TO 91 STRAIGHT GAMES SCORING IN FIRST HALF
The Patriots have gone 91 straight games (regular season and postseason) scoring in the first half, to extend an NFL record, following Damien Harris' 1-yard touchdown run in the second quarter. The Patriots also own the second-longest streak at 82 games with a first half score (2006-11). The last time the Patriots failed to score in the first half was a 16-0 loss at home against Buffalo on Oct. 2, 2016.
WIN ON THE ROAD FOR SECOND TIME
The Patriots are now 2-0 on the road in 2021 after the victory over Houston. The Patriots beat the New York Jets, 25-6, in Week 2 on the road. Since 1994, the Patriots have the best road record with a 134-84 record.
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
LB MATT JUDON HAS EIGHTH TWO-SACK GAME; SECOND OF THE 2021 SEASON
LB Matt Judon had two sacks in a three-play sequence in the second quarter to run his total to 6 ½ sacks for the season. It is the 8th time in his career that he has had a multi-sack game and second time in 2021. He had 2 ½ sacks vs. New Orleans on Sept. 26. His career-best is 3 sacks vs. Oakland on Nov. 25, 2018, when he played for Baltimore. His best season total is 9 ½ sacks in 2019. In 2020, DL Chase Winovich led the team with 5 ½ sacks.
JUDON SETS TEAM RECORD FOR MOST SACKS IN FIRST FIVE GAMES
Judon set a team record with 6 ½ sacks through the first five games. The previous record was 5 ½ sacks by Chandler Jones in 2015 and Andre Tippett in 1984.
JUDON HAS RECORDED AT LEAST ONE SACK IN FOUR STRAIGHT GAMES.
Matt Judon has recorded a sack in four straight games to become the first Patriots player with a sack in four straight games since Jamie Collins and Chase Winovich, who both had sacks in four straight games in 2019.
CONSECUTIVE GAMES WITH AT LEAST HALF A SACK / SINGLE SEASON
PLAYER YEAR CONSECUTIVE GAMES WITH A SACK
Andre Tippett 1984 7
Gary Jeter 1989 6
Garin Veris 1986 5
Willie McGinest 1996 5
Rosevelt Colvin 2005 5
Chandler Jones 2015 5
NICK FOLK DRILLS TWO 52-YARD FIELD GOALS
LONGEST FIELD GOALS AS A MEMBER OF THE PATRIOTS
K Nick Folk drilled a 52-yard field goal in the second quarter and 52-yard field goal in the third quarter, his longest field goals as a member of the Patriots. He had a 51-yard field goal on Dec. 21, 2019 vs. Buffalo and a 51-yard field goal at the New York Jets on Nov. 9, 2020. His career-long is a 56-yard field goal on Oct. 17, 2010 at Denver when he played for the New York Jets.
FOLK HAS SECOND NFL GAME WITH TWO 50-YARD FIELD GOALS
Folk had his second NFL game with two 50-yard field goals. He had two 51-yard field goals on Nov. 18, 2012 as a member of the New York Jets.
FOLK BECOMES SECOND PATS PLAYER TO CONNECT ON TWO 50-YARD FIELD GOALS IN ONE GAME
Folk is the second Patriots player to have two 50-yard field goals in one game. K Stephen Gostkowski accomplished the feat three times with the most recent happening against Oakland on Nov. 19, 2017 in Mexico City.
FOLK FINISHES 4-FOR-4 ON FIELD GOALS
Folk connected on all four field goals (52, 52, 32 and 21). It is the 10th time in his career that he has had at least four field goals in a game and his second as a member of the Patriots. He went 4-for-4 at Miami on Dec. 20, 2020. He has connected on five field goals in a game twice.
FOLK IS NEARING 300 FIELD GOALS
With his four field goals, Folk now has 299 career field goals and needs one more to become the 34th player with 300 career field goals.
MAC JONES COMPLETES 76.6 PERCENT OF HIS PASSES
Mac Jones completed 23-of-30 passes for a 76.6 percent completion percentage. He has completed over 70 percent of his passes in four of his five games.
MAC JONES TIES RECORD FOR MOST COMPLETIONS BY A ROOKIE IN FIRST FIVE STARTS
Mac Jones tied Joe Burrow (135 completions in 2020) for the most completions by a rookie quarterback in his first five starts in NFL history.
ROOKIE QUARTERBACKS WITH THE MOST COMPLETIONS IN THEIR FIRST FIVE STARTS
PLAYER TEAM SEASON COMPLETIONS
Mac Jones Patriots 2021 135
Joe Burrow Cincinnati 2020 135
Kyler Murray Arizona 2019 126
Justin Herbert L.A. Chargers 2020 124
LB JAMIE COLLINS BEGINS THIRD STINT WITH THE PATRIOTS; RECORDS SACK IN 4TH QUARTER
LB Jamie Collins began his third stint with the Patriots after being signed earlier in the week. Collins joins QB Brian Hoyer as the only Patriots with three different stints with the team. He recorded an 8-yard sack in the fourth quarter that forced a third-and-long situation.
LINEUP NOTES
LB JA'WHAUN BENTLEY RETURNED TO ACTION
LB Ja'Whaun Bentley returned to the field after missing the game against the Buccaneers due to injury. He was in the starting lineup.
OL TED KARRAS MAKES FIRST START OF THE SEASON
OL Ted Karras made his first start of the season when he lined up at right guard for the injured Shaq Mason. It marks his fourth career start at right guard.
JAMES FERENTZ STARTED AT LEFT GUARD
OL James Ferentz was elevated to the active roster and started at left guard. It marks his first career start at left guard and fifth start overall. He has made one start at right guard and three starts at center.
JUSTIN HERRON MAKES FIRST START OF THE SEASON AT LEFT TACKLE
OL Justin Herron made his first start of the 2021 season at left tackle when he started in place of Isaiah Wynn. He started in four games as a rookie in 2020 at left tackle. Herron started the previous two games at right tackle.
YODNEY CAJUSTE MAKE FIRST NFL START
OL Yodny Cajuste made his first NFL start when he lined up at right tackle. It marked Cajuste's first snaps on offense. He played in two games with limited snaps on special teams.
RB RHAMONDRE STEVENSON BACK TO ACTION
RB Rhamondre Stevenson was active and played as a reserve after being inactive for the last three games. He had 11 carries for 23 yards.
JOEJUAN WILLIAMS MAKES FIRST NFL START
DB Joejuan Williams made his first NFL start with the injury to DB Jalen Mills.
WILL SHERMAN MAKES NFL DEBUT
OL Will Sherman made his NFL debut after being activated to the roster from the practice squad. Sherman was drafted by New England in the sixth round of the 2021 NFL Draft out of Colorado. He saw his first NFL snap on the second quarter extra point attempt.
