Latest Jets Defeat Means It’s Time To Warm Up The Wrecking Ball

(Imagn)

Jets history is rife with the most excruciatingly embarrassing moments, so it would be hyperbole to call Sunday’s 25-22 defeat at previously 1-6 New England anything more than what it was: A fitting end to a disgraceful season.

We’re not even at Halloween and the horror show Jets (2-6) are done. Not officially, of course. But any flicker of hope the team had of earning their first playoff berth in 14 years rested on beating one of the worst teams in the league. All that matters is that they didn’t get it done.

The Jets had almost every break. Patriots quarterback Drake Maye, who was gashing the Gang Green defense with scrambles, was ruled out at halftime with an assumed concussion. The Jets were the beneficiaries of three Pats defensive penalties on their first quarter touchdown drive. Seemingly every big offensive play New England had in the bag was negated by a flag or a drop.

Yet it wasn’t enough, because the Jets have been unable to get out of their own way like how it’s been all season. New York had to burn three timeouts in the first quarter because they couldn’t get lined up properly in time and even took a delay of game penalty when attempting a two-point conversion. Their kicker Greg Zuerlein missed a 44-yard field goal try and an extra point. And the defense—the vaunted Jets defense—had the game in its hands but allowed Jacoby Brissett to drive 70 yards in the final three minutes to steal it.

The rest of the season is meaningless. This franchise should start the process of blowing it all up.

That includes everybody. Sauce Gardner wants to be the highest-paid cornerback in the league? Sell that somewhere else. How about making a tackle on the spot once in a while? On perhaps the game’s most important play, Gardner was beat by someone named Kayshon Boutte for a 34-yard gain on a 3^rd-&-9 that put New England inside the Jets 10-yard line. Boutte came into the contest with ten career receptions for 139 yards.

Quarterback Aaron Rodgers may have put the Jets ahead with a well-orchestrated touchdown drive of his own on the previous possession, but let’s not talk like this was a good game. He barely completed 60% of his passes against a New England defense that had surrendered 73 points in its last two games. It wouldn’t be shocking if the pounding he’s taken this year to his lower body has affected his mobility, but a gimpy Rodgers who can’t throw on the run is a poor facsimile of future Hall-of-Famer Aaron Rodgers. If he thinks he needs to take some time off to heal, so be it. He could head back to his retreats after the season for all I care.

I also couldn’t care what any of the Jets had to say in their postgame media conferences. There’s simply no explanation or excuse for who they are. The switch from one defensive-oriented Head Coach (Robert Saleh) to another defensive-oriented Head Coach (Jeff Ulbrich) after New York’s Week 5 loss to Minnesota in England has changed nothing. The Jets punted twice on fourth downs in New England territory in the first half, though they might have gone for one of them if they didn’t let the play clock run down to near zero.  Both punts barely netted 20 yards and the Patriots drove the field for a touchdown after the first one. Neanderthal thinking.

Meanwhile, the Jets defense has taken a step back since Ulbrich assumed double duty. Good thing Ulbrich said the Jets had their best week of practice since he came aboard as Saleh’s Defensive Coordinator in 2021. I’d hate to think how poorly they would have played if they were unfocused all week. If not for a CBS graphic, I wouldn’t have known that the Patriots were missing four starters on their offensive line. Brissett had all day to throw on all but a few of his second half dropbacks.

And how about that inspirational speech from newcomer Davante Adams after last Sunday’s thrashing in Pittsburgh? Did anyone notice any difference in New York’s energy on Sunday versus the previous four games they lost?

At least Adams had his name on Sunday’s scorecard with four receptions for 54 yards. You won’t see Pro Bowl edge rusher Haason Reddick’s name anywhere. Reddick, who ended his season-long holdout on Monday, had nary a tackle or QB hit in his limited action of 26 snaps.

General Manager Joe Douglas, who has seemingly been out of pocket since the Saleh firing, has all these big names on the Jets roster and together they aren’t worth the price of a beer at MetLife Stadium. Dump it (including Douglas) out and start over.