FOXBORO -- Brandon Lloyd had a simple reason behind his performance on Sunday against the Jets.

“The ball didn’t stick as well as I would have liked to,” the receiver said with a shrug before practice on Wednesday.

Against New York, Lloyd was targeted eight times and came away with just one catch for six yards, a performance that included at least two drops. It was the least productive game of his brief career in New England, and it represented his lowest output as a professional since Nov. 23, 2008, when he had one catch for three yards as a member of the Bears.

While he has been productive at several points throughout the season -- he’s had four games of 60-plus receiving yards, including nine catches for 108 yards in a September loss to the Ravens -- the lack of production against the Jets certainly stands out.

Lloyd said Wednesday that he’s not sweating one bad outing.

“That’s why we have such an accomplished group of pass catchers -- if a guy is not having the night that he would particularly like, there are other guys who can pick up the slack,” Lloyd said. “And Tom [Brady] does a great job of finding receivers and continuing to make positive plays.”

Lloyd stiff-armed a couple of follow-up questions about what happened on Sunday, saying, “I said what I needed to say,” with a smile. Offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels said that as it relates to what happened with Lloyd on Sunday, the Patriots gave him the “chore of really having an opportunity to go down the field on some of those different play-action type plays,” but the connections just weren’t made.

“I think it was one of those days where we were close on some deep throws,” McDaniels said. “There were some missed opportunities there -- I’m sure Brandon would like to make some of those plays and we have to work hard in practice. I think that’s where the timing and chemistry and those deep throws that obviously have a lower percentage chance of working.

“You really have to try to work hard in practice as much as you can in those couple of days you have each week to try to master some of those things and get them to improve as best we can. I don’t think that has been a normal thing for Brandon to go like that and have one catch out of so many different targets, but it’s not just him.”

In his first seven games with the Patriots, Lloyd is tied for second on the team with Rob Gronkowski with 35 catches, and he's third on the team with 437 receiving yards. (He’s got one touchdown, a 25-yard reception against the Bills.) He’s second on the team in targets, as Brady has thrown in his direction on 65 occasions this season, second only to Wes Welker’s 74 targets. And he’s on pace to set a career highs in catches -- his old mark is 77, set in 2010 as a member of the Broncos.

Lloyd came to New England with a rep as one of the best in the league on long-ball connections since the start of the 2010 season -- his 28 catches on passes of 25 yards or more is fifth-best in the league in that span, trailing only DeSean Jackson (32), Mike Wallace (31), Calvin Johnson (30) and Larry Fitzgerald (29). However, it appears that he and Brady have struggled to get on the same page when it comes to the deep ball. As McDaniels said, on Sunday there were a few missed connections when the Patriots tried to go deep to Lloyd.

To this point, he’s being utilized more often as an intermediate threat, particularly along the sidelines. (He’s made some very impressive catches along the perimeter this season.) Through seven games in New England, he has two catches of 25 yards or more -- his 25-yard touchdown catch against the Bills and a 27-yard reception against the Titans in the season-opener.

Lloyd will get a chance to bounce back this weekend, when he and the Patriots face a young and aggressive St. Louis secondary. Lloyd spent 11 games with the Rams last season, catching 51 passes for 683 yards. He doesn’t have the familiarity you’d expect, however, as the Rams retooled several aspects of their roster over the offseason. But to this point, he’s been impressed with what he’s seen.

“They’re aggressive -- very athletic. They’re a young defense and they do a great job of keeping eyes on the quarterback and making plays when the ball is up there,” he said. “They’re a phenomenal group of players. They have a nice mix of young players, emerging players. And players in leadership roles. It’s definitely a good team.”