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Robert Kraft Was Correct In His Assessment of New England Patriots RB Jonas Gray

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By @calling_allfans

Jonas Gray

Thomas J. Russo-USA TODAY Sports

Jonas Gray was not exactly a household name prior to Week 11 unless you’re a fan of the New England Patriots. But now it’s a safe bet that most people who follow the NFL now know who he is after his performance on Sunday night. Gray, who has spent basically his entire career on practice squads, might never have gotten his chance had Steven Ridley not been lost for the season due to injury, but he made the most of his opportunity Sunday night. Patriots owner Robert Kraft knew what the team had in Gray, and prior to the Patriots boarding the plane to travel to play the Indianapolis Colts, Kraft stopped the undrafted 5-foot-10, 225-pound running back in a hallway of Gillette Stadium and told him:

“You’re going to have a good game this week, so be ready.”

To say Kraft was correct is an understatement. Every NFL fan now knows who Gray is after his performance against the Colts Sunday night, and every fantasy owner wishes they had him on their team for Week 11.

Despite Tom Brady throwing two first-half interceptions and having a less than stellar game, the Patriots still scored 42 points against the Colts on the road, and a big reason for the offensive production was Gray. Yes, the offensive line was superb (they’d have to be for this kind of output), but Gray carried the ball 38 times for 199 yards (5.2 yards per carry) and had four TDs. Gray, who entered Sunday night’s game with 32 carries, 131 yards and no TDs in his first three games this season, was also the first NFL player since 1921 to rush for four TDs in a game where a player entered with zero career rush TDs. Even though the offensive line deserves their share of the praise, Gray needs to be highlighted for running the correct way. He hit the holes that the line opened up, didn’t fumble and ran north and south more than east and west. But the most impressive stat of Gray’s on Sunday night was that in those 38 rushes he had zero negative carries.

One more time—zero negative runs on 38 carries.

The Patriots’ offense and team still revolves around Brady, and the defense (particularly the secondary) is much improved from last season and the beginning of this season. But the Patriots showed they can beat one of the better teams in the AFC and possibly NFL even when Brady has an off night. Hopefully Gray can continue to produce, because Brady having a really good defense and rushing attack should strike fear into the other 31 NFL teams.

Justin Patrick is a New England Patriots writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @calling_allfans, like him on Facebook and add him to your network on Google. You can also email him at [email protected]

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