EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — In what is becoming an all-too-common occurrence, the Patriots suffered another significant injury in Sunday's 26-20 loss to the Jets at MetLife Stadium.
Starting left tackle Sebastian Vollmer suffered what was officially listed as a left leg injury — but certainly looked like his ankle — on the first drive and had to be carted off the field. He almost was immediately declared out.
It was the third time this season the Patriots have lost their starting left tackle to injury. Nate Solder suffered a torn biceps against the Cowboys. His replacement, Marcus Cannon, suffered a toe injury in the win over the Colts.
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Vollmer shifted from the right side after Cannon's injury and has been a mainstay on the left until Sunday. Many of Vollmer's teammates came out to the field to give him some encouragement before he was driven off.
In a show of class and respect, Jets defensive end Sheldon Richardson also offered some words and a pat on Vollmer's shoulder pads.
LaAdrian Waddle replaced Vollmer until he, too, left the game, with a shoulder injury.
"It's tough,'' said Tom Brady when asked about the multiple injuries to the guys protecting his blind side. "We've had so many guys that have stepped in and have tried to do a great job. We just had some bad luck, truthfully.''
The Patriots also lost cornerback Justin Coleman to a head injury. He had been having a strong game in his first extended action since he suffered a hand injury against the Redskins Nov. 8.
Jackson debuts
Running back Steven Jackson made his debut and carried seven times for 15 yards. He did have two impressive runs of 5 and 7 yards but was also knocked back a few times.
"The body feels good,'' said Jackson, who had not been in a game since last December. "[I had to] get used to getting hit again, that was the main thing. [I had to] make sure I'm running through the tackles and getting my shoulder pads down and being in a football position, which I haven't been in a while. It felt good. Now it's just to build off what I have done today.''
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The Patriots finished with 63 rushing yards on 22 carries, a paltry 2.9-yard average. Brandon Bolden had a team-high 30 yards on nine carries and Joey Iosefa, who had 15 rushes last week, had but one for no gain.
No test results
Patriots president Jonathan Kraft was asked during pregame if he had heard any results from the league after it tested the air pressure of the balls used in the win over the Titans last week.
"The league didn't share that with us,'' he said. "I think the plan is to collect information at a handful of games and then decide what to do with that information. But they didn't share that with us.''
A pick for Revis
Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis intercepted Brady in the third quarter. Kraft was asked before the game if he felt vindicated by the decision not to bring Revis back in light of the strong performances from Malcolm Butler and Logan Ryan. "I don't know if there was any real intention of him coming back. You'll actually have to ask Darrelle that," said Kraft, "but we're really happy with the way Malcolm and Logan have played.'' . . . Kraft had nothing to say regarding the recent Peyton Manning/HGH reports: "I know I really like Peyton and he's a good guy. But I can't comment on his situation.'' . . . Kraft indicated the Patriots will be leaving for Florida to play the Dolphins "a day or two early'' in light of the Winter Classic between the Bruins and Canadiens on New Year's Day at Gillette Stadium. He said he is excited about hosting the game and that "there won't be any disruption to the day-to-day operation of the team . . . I think Bill [Belichick] gets them pretty focused.''
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Brady ties Favre
Brady’s 9-yard touchdown pass to running back James White in the fourth quarter was No. 481 of his career, tying him with Brett Favre for the most touchdown passes with one team. Favre had 481 with the Packers; Brady’s total includes 428 in the regular season, and 53 in the postseason . . . Jabaal Sheard’s third-quarter sack of Ryan Fitzpatrick gave the Patriots at least one in all 15 games this season. They’ve now gone 28 straight regular-season games with at least one sack, and with 48, they’ve matched the most in a season with Belichick as coach. The Patriots also had 48 sacks in 2013 . . . Rob Gronkowski became the Patriots’ career leader in receiving yards for a tight end. By catching four passes for 86 yards, Gronkowski now has 5,537 receiving yards; Ben Coates had 5,471 . . . Keshawn Martin set career highs with seven receptions for 68 yards . . . The Patriots were just 1 of 10 on third-down conversions but 3 of 3 on fourth down. Two of those came on the game-tying drive in the fourth quarter — both on Gronkowski catches. “We had to make plays with the game on the line,’’ the big tight end said. “It was a hard-fought battle. [The Jets] are a good team.’’ . . . Former Patriots running back Stevan Ridley did a little dancing and chirping toward the New England sideline after a 13-yard run to close the third quarter. He opened the fourth quarter by getting drilled for a 2-yard loss by Jamie Collins and Butler, and was never seen again.
Michael Whitmer of the Globe staff contributed to this report.