Familiar mistakes and injuries lead to Jets fifth loss of the season
A different cast of characters, but it’s the same show. The New York Jets lost their third primetime game of the season, this time to the Pittsburgh Steelers by a final of 37-15. The loss drops the Jets to 2-5 and into full on panic mode for the season. The loss, much like the previous […]
A different cast of characters, but it’s the same show.
The New York Jets lost their third primetime game of the season, this time to the Pittsburgh Steelers by a final of 37-15. The loss drops the Jets to 2-5 and into full on panic mode for the season.
The loss, much like the previous four this year, will be a shared experience spread throughout the entire team. The defense? Yup. The Special teams? Sure. Aaron Rodgers? You bet. The skill positions? Them too.
The Jets came into the game without D.J. Reed, Michael Carter and Chuck Clark, three of the five starting players in the secondary, and then saw Tony Adams and Ashtyn Davis go out during the game with injuries.
The game felt different early with the Jets having an early touchdown drive on their second offensive series. It looked like the offense may have finally unlocked whatever had been missing. But as the game went on things got worse.
The Jets were up 15-6 with the ball late in the second quarter. They were looking to put together a drive that would not only put points on the board but run the clock. The Jets were set to receive the second half kick, but then Rodgers made a terrible pass swinging momentum to the Steelers.
The Steelers capitalized with a four-play touchdown drive taking advantage of the Jets thin secondary. It all went downhill from there. The Jets couldn’t get anything substantial going offensively in the second half. When things did start to look up, the Jets would shoot themselves in the foot.
The Jets rush defense was gashed again. Najee Harris had 21 carries for 102 yards and a touchdown. The Jets were moved off the ball far too often and even when they met a back in the backfield, it was never a tackle for loss. They are simply overmatched up front.
A blocked field goal. A batted ball. And one of the worst plays you will ever see Garrett Wilson make which led to Rodgers’ second interception of the game.
For the Jets, there are very few players or coaches that will be able to look at themselves in the mirror and believe they didn’t contribute to the loss. Even the newly acquired Davante Adams had a pedestrian three catches for 30 yards, all of which came in the first half. The lone bright spot came from Breece Hall who finished the day with six catches for 103 yards to go along with 12 carries for 38 yards and touchdown.
The Jets have a hard truth to face about their team this year. Their two wins this year came against Jacoby Brissett and Will Levis. They face the new look, Drake Maye-led New England Patriots in Foxboro this week before taking on the Houston Texans on Halloween night.
There is almost now room for error the rest of the season. That doesn’t bode well for a team that has been filled with errors all year.
