The New York Jets needed a win to keep their season on life support. Taking on their Super Bowl III nemesis, the Indianapolis Colts, at home the Jets had an opportunity to catch up to a team ahead of them in the Wild Card race. After a slow start, it looked like the Jets might just have some magic left in their season, before ultimately seizing defeat from the jaws of victory, falling by a score of 28-27.
More defensive breakdowns prove costly for the Jets
At points in this game, the defense looked to be clamping down on the Colts who welcomed 2023’s fourth overall pick, Anthony Richardson, back to the starting lineup. While Richardson had burned them early with a couple of deep passes, the Jets were able to rally and force him to make mistakes on the easy ones, all while keeping the big athletic quarterback in check in the ground game.
However, after Anders Carlson connected on a 35-yard field goal to give the Jets a 27-22 lead with 2:41 remaining in the fourth quarter, the defense collapsed when a stop was most needed. Richardson led Indy down the field on a 6-play 70-yard drive highlighted by a 39-yard deep pass to Alec Pierce and capped off by a 4-yard touchdown run by Richardson.
Yet again, coverage breakdowns and poor tackling plagued the vaunted Jets’ defense with the game on the line.
Aaron Rodgers chokes in crunch time
With 46 seconds left, no timeouts, and down by 1 after a Colts’ failed 2-point conversion, Aaron Rodgers took the ball needing to get into field goal range to give his team a chance to come away victorious. His prowess for game-winning drives was one of the reasons New York went all out in acquiring him.
However, Rodgers literally fumbled away the opportunity. On the first play of the drive, he held the ball far too long before fumbling and losing 13 yards. On the next play, he dumped the ball off to Breece Hall in the middle of the field for a short gain. Bailed out by an Indianapolis delay of game penalty, he had another opportunity with 13 seconds remaining, however he was promptly sacked to end the game and put the MetLife faithful out of their misery.
Even leading up to the final drive, Rodgers was not good on the day. He started off just 1/4 for 2 yards, and save for a couple of nice plays by Davante Adams and Breece Hall, struggled with accuracy while looking uncomfortable in the pocket.
All told, Rodgers finished the day 22 for 29 for 184 yards and a two touchdowns. However, he seems afraid to hold the ball for any length of time, is unwilling to take shots downfield, and severely lacks mobility adding to his reticence to take a hit. While he had some positive moments earlier in the season, it’s clear that he’s regressed as the weeks have progressed and is currently a problem for the Jets.
Breece Hall shows off his game-breaking ability
One player who did show up to play was star running back Breece Hall. While the 23-year-old Iowa State product had a mid-season lull where his elite speed seemed to be missing, he showed on Sunday why he’s one of the premier backs in the league.
With the Colts up 13-0 late in the second quarter, it looked as if the game was going to get away from the Jets just as it had a week ago against Arizona. However, New York drove down the field and looked to be in position to put some points on the board. On a key 3rd-and-6 play from the Indianapolis 29-yard-line, Rodgers couldn’t find an open receiver downfield and instead checked it down to Hall. It seemed to be a concession to settle for a field goal, however, Hall made a man miss and quickly accelerated to top speed, blowing away the Colts’ defense for a 29-yard touchdown.
After recovering a fumble in Indianapolis territory to begin the second half, Hall quickly ripped off back-to-back rushes, the second going for 18 yards and another touchdown as again his speed proved no match for Indianapolis. The Jets went up by a sore of 14-13, and it seemed as if they had erased their slow start and were on the verge of taking the game over.
Unfortunately, that proved not to be the case, but Hall did his part finishing with 121 scrimmage yards and two touchdowns while showcasing his electric playmaking abilities.
The Jets cleaned up the penalties
Penalties have been a bugaboo for the Jets all season. New York, despite its veteran-laden roster, has been among the most penalized teams in the NFL. Oftentimes, those penalties have come at crucial moments and been of the back-breaking variety.
On Sunday, however, the Jets were penalized just twice for a total of 14 yards. Unfortunately, the new-found discipline didn’t seem to matter much in determining the final outcome and the lack of self-inflicted wounds makes the loss sting that much more.
Coaching once again holds the Jets back
It seems like a lifetime ago that the Jets fired head coach Robert Saleh. At the time, while New York was 2-3, they were just a game out of first place in the division and had the opportunity to seize control in their matchup against the Buffalo Bills. They’ve since gone 1-5 since the unceremonious dismissal.
Interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich has looked overmatched, and he hasn’t gotten much help from his staff. Since Saleh departed the defense has collapsed, coming up small in the biggest moments and exhibiting poor execution on basic fundamentals.
The offense, even with a change in play-caller, has been bland and largely ineffective, with the exception of when the Jets’ stars make something out of nothing.
More importantly, the communication and buy-in from the players have been lacking. Sunday’s two-point conversion confusion is a prime example of how Ulbrich and his staff have struggled to get the players on the same page.
With all the talent on the Jets’ roster, it’s hard not to wonder how things would be playing out with competent coaching leading the charge.
Up next for the Jets
The Jets mercifully have their bye week this week, giving the battered Green and White faithful a much-needed respite from the putrid performances they’ve been subjected to this season.
Currently, the Jets’ playoff odds sit at just a 3.3% chance of sneaking into the big dance. As it appears that the longest playoff drought in North American professional sports will continue, perhaps it’s time for fans to turn their attention to Saturdays in preparation for next year’s draft as the organization will surely make wholesale changes.
