*ESPNBoston.com* gets to the bottom of what went wrong last night, in the Patriots 28-21 loss to the New York Jets in the AFC divisional round of the playoffs. For one, the Patriots expected a man-to-man coverage from the Jets. What they got was zone, which Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and his offense could not adjust to under the ill preparation for such a scheme. Then there was the botched fake punt on the Pats' 37-yard line, setting up another easy score for Gang Green and a 14-3 halftime lead.
Read a similar story in the *Boston Globe*.
More on the game in the *Boston Herald* and the *Boston Globe*. Read about the aftermath in the *Herald*.
As the season comes to a close, the *Boston Globe* looks back at the 2010 Patriots.
With the Patriots down 7-3 late in the first half, at fourth-and-three, was that a fake punt gone horribly wrong or just a botched snap? The *Boston Globe* analyzed what happened and talked to players after the game. According to the *Boston Herald*, second-year safety Patrick Chung, who was running the punt, called for the fake, but bobbled the snap.
Read more about the play in the *Boston Herald*.
Patriots wide receiver Deion Branch felt that some Jets did not handle their win with the type of grace expected of a champion, according to *ESPNBoston.com*. Read more about it in the *Boston Herald*.
The Jets game plan was to get to Brady early, writes the *Boston Herald*. Read a similar story in the *Boston Globe*. Also, the *Boston Globe* analyzes how the Jets' defense picked apart the Brady-Belichick offense.
The *Boston Herald* and the *Boston Globe* agree: Jets coach Rex Ryan backed up his talk. Read a similar story on *ESPNBoston.com*.
One way through which the Jets were able to walk the walk was second-year quarterback Mark Sanchez, coming into his own as a QB who can make crucial plays in playoff games. Read about Sanchez's performance in the *Boston Globe*. The *Boston Herald* examines how Sanchez dissected the Pats' D.
Read more about how Brady and his offense crumbled in the *Boston Herald*. More on the O-line here.
