FOXBOROUGH – Back in 2018, the Patriots blew out the Jets on December 30th and everyone sort of dismissed it. Later on after the Super Bowl run, players admitted just how important that type of “get right” game was.

So, when the hapless Jaguars visited Gillette Stadium Sunday afternoon for what could possibly be the last Patriots home game of the year, another day like that one in 2018 was much needed and it’s exactly what everyone got on a foggy, dreary second day of 2022.

New England built a 25-point halftime lead and never looked back, hammering Jacksonville 50-10. The offense was efficient while the defense held No. 1 overall pick Trevor Lawrence to just 193 yards passing while picking him off six times.

With Miami’s loss to Tennessee on Sunday, the Patriots (10-6) also clinched a playoff spot, ending a one-year hiatus from the postseason.

“Excited to be back in the playoffs but big game coming up this week, take care of that. But feel like we made some progress today,” said Bill Belichick. “But, we’ve still got a long way to go here. Just need to keep grinding it out day by day. Hopefully we’ll do that and see where it takes us.”

Dont’a Hightower came flying up the middle and sacked Trevor Lawrence on the second play of the game, setting the tone for the afternoon. After the Jags punted on that first possession, New England went on a 7-play, 70-yard march that lasted 7:03 and ended with a Damien Harris 2-yard touchdown run. Harris finished the day with 35 yards on nine carries after sitting most of the second half while stile nursing a sore hamstring.

Matt Wright added a 29-yard field goal on the ensuing Jaguars possession, but the Pats quickly went back up 14-3 early in the second on another TD from Harris, this time from 7-yards out. Myles Bryant was the beneficiary of a ball deflecting off a Jacksonville receiver’s hands five plays later, picking it off and setting up the offense at the Jaguars’ 33.

Mac Jones (22/30, 227, 3 TD) hit Kristian Wilkerson for his first career touchdown from 6-yards out to push the lead to 21-3 with just under five minutes left in the half. JC Jackson picked off Lawrence moments later at the Jacksonville 43. A beautiful ball from Jones to Meyers in the back left corner of the end zone six plays later made it 28-3 and a Christian Barmore sack for an 11-yard loss ended the near-perfect opening half.

“That was great. It was great to play from ahead instead of playing from behind and being down 20-0 and all that, it’s brutal. Yeah, it’s really good,” Belichick said of the fast start.

Wilkerson continued to make a case to immediately be put in the Patriots Hall of Fame six plays into the third quarter when he grabbed his second touchdown of the day, this time from 20-yards out when he was left completely uncovered. Folk’s PAT was blocked, leaving the score at 34-3 less than five minutes into the second half.

“I think I found out Friday or Saturday,” Wilkerson said of when he learned he’d be taking N’Keal Harry’s roster spot against the Jags. “I was ready to go. Just prepared all year for this and (the opportunity) finally came. We got the win, so that’s the best thing.”

The first Patriots punt of the day didn’t come until 5:03 remained in the third quarter, ending a string of five straight possessions that ended in touchdowns, a far cry from the last two games.

With 2:42 left in the third Kyle Dugger stepped in front of a Lawrence pass and picked it off, running it back 20 yards. Dugger nearly got in the end zone but stepped out of bounds at the 1-yard line, but Rhamondre Stevenson (19/107/2 TD) cleaned it up one play later to make it 41-3.

“It means the world,” Stevenson said of being able to get back on the field following a stint on the Covid reserve list. “Last week not being able to be out there with my team, was probably the worst thing to do. As a football player, just watching your team out there fight to the last whistle…I just love being out there with them, there’s nothing like being on the field with them.”

Early in the fourth quarter, Jones nearly hit Wilkerson for a deep TD, but it was just a bit out in front of the young receiver. The drive ended up stalling and Folk added a 43-yard field goal to make it a 41-point game. Stevenson made it a 50-burger with 7:07 remaining on a 6-yard touchdown run. That run was set up thanks to a 46-yard catch and run from Bourne after Hoyer entered the game at the start of the drive.

Jacksonville’s only TD of the game came in the form of a 28-yard screen pass from Lawrence to Dare Ogunbowale with less than four minutes to go, cutting the deficit to 40.

The win marked another 10-win season under Bill Belichick, his 20th. The feat ties Belichick with Don Shula for the most 10-win seasons all time. More importantly, the Patriots locked up a spot in the dance and built some much needed momentum heading into the regular season finale against the Dolphins next Sunday.

“It’s flattering, but again, it’s really the players. Players win games,” Belichick said. “Been fortunate to coach a lot of good, a lot of great players during that time. When you have good players, they can go out and win games for you, so it’s really – they’re the ones that win them. I’ve been lucky.”

To a man, each Patriots player that talked following the win already had their sights set on Miami. The postseason berth is nice and the bounce back performance was critical, but the focus is still solely on the Dolphins before turning the page to a whole new season in two weeks.

“Like I always say, we’re trying to play for as long as we can and get as deep as we can in the playoffs. Not a lot of it has to do with me, it’s our great team that we have,” said Jones. “I realize what we’re playing for, and like I said, we’re going to focus on this next week like we always do and put a good product out there and finish strong, and then all the stuff that happens in the future we’ll deal with that when it comes.

“It’s been a great privilege to play here so far and we’ve got a lot more work to do, so that’s what it comes down to.”