FOXBOROUGH, Mass. » After 11 days of chatter and hype, with the New York Jets saying countless times they thought they were the better team and were looking forward to proving it, they never showed up for their huge matchup with the New England Patriots last night at chilly Gillette Stadium.

The Jets were thoroughly beaten down, 45-3, on "Monday Night Football" in a game that could have given them a significant edge in the race for their first AFC East title since 2002.

"Clearly, we got our butts kicked," Rex Ryan said. "We got outplayed, we got outcoached."

Speaking of Patriots coach Bill Belichick, Ryan said: "I came in here to kick his butt, and he kicked mine."

The Jets (9-3) yielded 405 yards, mustered 301 and converted three of 12 third-down attempts. They were lethargic and shaky in every facet, never giving the impression they came in tied for the AFC’s best record.

Mark Sanchez reverted to a turnover machine, getting picked off three times and completing 17 of 33 attempts for 164 yards. Tom Brady carved up a Jets secondary playing without safety Jim Leonhard, who broke his right tibia during practice last week.

"We got our butts whipped tonight," Sanchez said. "Flat out, that’s the way you’ve got to say it."

Brady was 21-for-29 for 326 yards and four touchdowns. Running back Danny Woodhead, whom the Jets released before the season, caught four passes for 104 yards, including a 50-yarder.

Even when they looked poised to try to get back into it, the Jets fell flat on their faces. They took the second-half kickoff and went 57 yards in nine plays, only to turn the ball over as Sanchez, apparently looking for Braylon Edwards on a skinny post route off play action, was picked off by linebacker Brandon Spikes.

New England (10-2) was in control from the outset. The Patriots went 52 yards in eight plays, stalling at the Jets’ 23 and settling for a 41-yard Shayne Graham field goal, one of the few times the Jets’ third-ranked defense managed to stop the Pats.

The Jets came out trying to set a quick tempo, but they just didn’t look good from their opening possession. Nick Folk hooked a 53-yard field-goal try that would have given the Jets something positive to grasp onto after a 12-play drive.

The Patriots padded their cushion on their ensuing drive. A six-play, 53-yard march, capped by a 1-yard BenJarvus Green-Ellis touchdown run, made it 10-0 with 4:02 left in the first quarter.

On the Patriots’ next possession, wideout Deion Branch caught a simple slant on fourth and 3, broke through tackle attempts by Antonio Cromartie and James Ihedigbo and darted 25 yards for a backbreaking touchdown, putting the Jets in a 17-0 hole.