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          Patriots get tricky with WR Kendrick Bourne throwing TD pass to Nelson Agholor

          • Mike Reiss, ESPN Staff WriterOct 24, 2021, 05:30 PM
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              Mike Reiss is an NFL reporter at ESPN and covers the New England Patriots. Reiss has covered the Patriots since 1997 and joined ESPN in 2009. In 2019, he was named Massachusetts Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. You can follow Reiss on Twitter at @MikeReiss.
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          FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- The New England Patriots turned to trickery to jump on the New York Jets on the first drive of Sunday's game -- with receiver Kendrick Bourne throwing a 25-yard touchdown pass to receiver Nelson Agholor to put the Patriots ahead 7-0.

          It took the Patriots just four plays to advance to the Jets' 25, and that's when offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels went into razzle-dazzle mode.

          On the play, Bourne came in motion from left to right and was behind quarterback Mac Jones at the time of the snap. Bourne hauled in a backward pass from Jones at the 33-yard line and ran a couple yards in front of him before spotting Agholor wide open down the right side.

          It was Bourne's first career passing attempt, and it also the third completion by a Patriots receiver this season (the rest of the NFL has a combined two completions by receivers. Patriots receivers now have three passing touchdowns since the start of last season (Jakobi Meyers threw two last season). That's the most in the NFL in that span.

          The play continued a concerning trend for the Jets, who have been dominated in the first quarter this year, with opponents outscoring them 30-0.

          The Jets had won the opening toss and elected to defer, setting up the initial Patriots fireworks.