FOXBOROUGH — Kyle Van Noy has had a memorable year, and capped an impressive regular season with a touchdown Sunday against the Jets.
Van Noy and defensive lineman Adam Butler (as well as a few other teammates) combined for this week’s edition of the #StayCovered Defensive Play of the Game, making a key play in the second half of Sunday’s game to secure the win. Butler sacked Jets quarterback Sam Darnold, and appeared to be one of a few guys who knocked the ball away. Van Noy was the guy on the spot, scooping up the fumble and dashing 46 yards for the touchdown.
“Kyle's fumble return was a big place for us,” said Bill Belichick, “and kind of gave us a little bit of a cushion there in the second half.”
At the start of the third quarter, the Jets were trailing 21-3, but were sitting at the Patriots’ 49-yard line with (relatively) good field position. Darnold dropped back and looked downfield, but he ended up running into trouble.
“Darnold, he’s known for making plays on his feet or extending plays, (and) our cornerbacks did a great job of covering and making sure he couldn’t throw it,” Butler said. “The defensive ends did a great job of containing him and making sure he couldn’t roll out. He came back into my area and Trey (Flowers) got him around his feet. The pocket closed really quickly, and he had no choice but to throw it. So I just stuck my hand out and got a piece of it, and we were rolling.”
KVN! Kyle Van Noy recovers the fumble and takes it to the house! Touchdown #Patriots! #NYJvsNE pic.twitter.com/ISg1ooAoPI
— Casey Baker (@CaseyBake16) December 30, 2018