Jets' secondary has its difficulties

Somehow the Jets’ secondary ended up being its Achilles’ heel.

Sure, Mark Sanchez looked inept at times, but communication issues and the inability to contain Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski ultimately spoiled a potentially promising night at MetLife Stadium.

Gronkowski sliced his way through the porous coverage, gaining 113 yards on eight receptions in the Patriots 37-16 win over the Jets last night.

Rex Ryan’s secondary looked overmatched and out of sync all night, futilely chasing down wide-open Patriots in the nationally televised AFC East showdown. Tom Brady passed for 329 yards and three touchdowns and wasn’t intercepted.

Entering the game, Chad Ochocinco had been all but invisible, having made only nine catches for 136 yards. But he had two first-quarter catches for 65 yards, including a 53-yarder on a critical third down.

Ryan used as many as seven defensive backs at the same time in the first half, but the absence of veteran safety Brodney Pool was glaring. Donald Strickland played more snaps because Pool was sidelined with a second-degree MCL sprain, but he didn’t look all that sharp doing so.

Eric Smith also struggled to keep the Patriots’ tight ends in check. The safety was called for a 15-yard facemask penalty with 42 seconds remaining in the second quarter, putting New England at the Jets’ 16. Three plays later, the Patriots scored on an 18-yard pass from Brady to Gronkowski.

Strickland also was beaten on the tight end’s 5-yard TD reception in the third quarter, which put the Patriots up 23-9.

Brady exploited the Jets’ secondary issues on the Patriots’ second possession, finding Ochocinco all alone in green space. Just before the pass, cornerback Darrelle Revis appeared to be either signaling for a timeout or for Strickland to set up differently against the Patriots’ bunch formation. But a timeout never was granted, nor did Strickland adjust in time, allowing Ochocinco to gain 53 yards to the Jets’ 18.

Ochocinco didn’t have a catch in his previous three games, but with 2:31 to play in the quarter, he had two for 65 yards. Though his two receptions gave New England good field position, the Jets caught a break when the Patriots were forced to settle for back-to-back field goals and a 6-0 lead.