Although Sunday Night Football presented the New York Jets with a chance to take control of the AFC East, the outcome was a bit on the predictable side.

The New England Patriots outclassed the Jets with a dominant second-half performance, and cruised to a 37-16 road victory to avoid its first three-game losing streak in nearly a decade.

Rex Ryan and his crew kept the contest close in the opening half, keeping the game manageable and trailing by only four points at intermission. But things swung in favor of the visitors, thanks to the following occurrences that sealed New York’s fate:

Rob Gronkowski was an unguardable force.

While Aaron Hernandez has had his nights in the limelight, Rob Gronkowski was the unmatchable tight end tonight. He ended with eight catches for 113 yards and two TDs (a number that could have been higher if not for stepping out of bounds during the play, and an offensive penalty). Tight end are usually in the quarterback’s initial line of sight, and are thus regarded as the easiest receiving targets on the field. With a quality passer like Brady you can be sure that the throws are that much easier than they would be for an average QB, and he took full advantage.

New York turnovers gave the Patriots the cushion that it needed.

After a relatively mistake-free first half, the Jets play was not so sharp when they came out of the locker room. Joe McKnight’s major-league punt muff – which somehow hit his chest but didn’t touch his hands – set the Patriots up with instant field goal position. A New England penalty saved the Jets from giving up seven, but New York continued to operate in a gift-giving mood. In the ensuing possession, Mark Sanchez attempted a check-down pass to LaDainian Tomlinson. The pass had a little too much heat for L.T., slipped through his hands, off of a defender, and finally into the hands of linebacker Rob Ninkovich (who picked off two passes on the night). Three minutes later – thanks to Brady and Rob Gronkowski – the Pats had posted another seven on the board as they began to separate themselves from New York.

Brady unleashed his football IQ on Rex Ryan and the Jets tonight.

Tom Brady showed off his top-notch quarterbacking pedigree.

With the Jets attempting to knock on the door of a comeback, Brady showed us why he is viewed as an elite signal caller in the NFL. The two-time MVP brilliantly used the no-huddle to victimize the Jets defense. Brady got his offense to the line quickly, surveyed the New York defensive personnel, and then audibled according to what he saw. He effortlessly toggled between pounding the ball on the ground and connecting through the air to march the Pats down the gridiron. The result: a 13-play, 84-yard drive that gave the visitors a two-touchdown lead that crushed the Jets’ short-lived momentum and effectively sealed the game in favor of New England.

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