ORCHARD PARK — The Payments dismantled the Jets 40-14 on Sunday to drop the Jets to a dismal 4-12. Listed here are some ideas and observations from the sport:
1. It was gorgeous to look at how poorly Aaron Rodgers performed on Sunday. Look, the Jets’ issues run a lot, a lot deeper than simply Rodgers however he’s actually considered one of them. The Jets made the commerce for Rodgers in April 2023 with the expectation that he may nonetheless be an elite quarterback.
Here’s what elite quarterbacks do: They disguise your different issues. The Payments have one in Josh Allen. Do the Payments have an ideal staff? Removed from it. However Allen is so good that he makes up for different deficiencies. You see the identical factor with Lamar Jackson, Patrick Mahomes and Joe Burrow, who’s at present attempting to tug the Bengals to the playoffs himself.
Rodgers is now simply a median quarterback. There are days like in Miami or within the second half in Jacksonville the place he performs properly and you’ll idiot your self into pondering he nonetheless has a few of that magic he had in Inexperienced Bay.
However then he has days like Sunday the place he seems to be under common and you’re reminded that he’s 41 and constantly coping with one ailment or one other that hinders him.
Put Rodgers on staff that performs in good climate situations constantly just like the Vikings or Lions and I nonetheless assume he may have season. However the Jets play their video games open air and, as acknowledged at first, the issues with this staff run deeper than simply quarterback.
It’s simply stunning to look at Rodgers play as poorly as he did Sunday.
2. The Jets have an issue on their fingers with their younger stars Garrett Wilson and Sauce Gardner. Each gamers are past pissed off with the best way issues are going with the staff. That has been obvious with Wilson for some time and Gardner confirmed his frustration after Sunday’s loss.
The dropping is sporting on each gamers. They’ve now misplaced 32 video games in three seasons. Wilson went to Ohio State the place it would take 10 years to lose 32 video games. Gardner was a part of a turnaround at Cincinnati the place they turned a prime staff.
It’s a powerful state of affairs proper now as a result of the Jets have a management void. I’m undecided who is meant to make them really feel higher. The present teaching workers has yet another week and they will get proven the door. It should take a number of weeks earlier than the Jets have a brand new basic supervisor and coach in place. That simply leaves them to stew concerning the path of the staff proper now.
Whoever is available in as the brand new GM and coach wants to like these two up shortly after they get employed. These two needs to be constructing blocks for the Jets.
The objective needs to be to have them spend their careers as Jets, one thing this franchise has didn’t do with so lots of its stars by the years. Each gamers in all probability will probably be searching for contract extensions.
The brand new GM ought to take into consideration extending each. It could be an indication that the franchise acknowledges that these two gamers could be a part of the answer right here and also you’d be amazed how cash would possibly make their unhappiness disappear.
Proper now, it feels very unstable with Wilson and Gardner. The Jets want to repair that this offseason.
3. As I used to be driving into the Jets’ coaching heart in Florham Park on Friday, I used to be wanting on the snow on the fields and fascinated with how way back coaching camp feels. There was a lot optimism about this staff and it didn’t really feel foolish. It really felt like this staff had the roster to interrupt the playoff drought.
Now, they’re 4-12 and incapable of doing something properly. With one other loss, this Jets staff will be a part of a choose group of the worst groups in franchise historical past.
There have solely been 4 Jets groups which have misplaced 13 video games – 1995 (3-13), 1996 (1-15), 2020 (2-14) and 2021 (4-13). That isn’t a bunch you wish to be related to. The primary two are the Wealthy Kotite years. The final two have been when Adam Gase’s staff cratered and Robert Saleh had a really younger staff in his first season as coach.
That is probably the most disappointing Jets staff I’ve lined by way of the place expectations have been and the place they completed, significantly while you think about they haven’t had that many main accidents. The 1999 and 2023 seasons have been enormous disappointments however they misplaced their quarterbacks in Week 1. This one is simply unhealthy throughout.
4. When retracing what went flawed with the 2024 Jets, don’t overlook this offseason and what they did on the defensive position. Shedding Bryce Huff and John Franklin-Myers continues to hang-out this staff.
The Jets cross rush couldn’t get to Josh Allen on Sunday, permitting him to increase performs and placing strain on the defensive backs. The Jets secondary has appeared worse than they’ve performed due to the shortage of a cross rush. Each opposing quarterback has all day to throw and they’re choosing the Jets aside.
Haason Reddick is among the worst acquisitions in staff historical past. The man has had zero affect. The errors of March and April are haunting the Jets in November and December.
Revealing stat
Aaron Rodgers had a QBR of 1.2, the bottom of the season for any quarterback within the NFL, per ESPN. It was additionally the bottom of his profession.
Stunning snap depend
Micheal Clemons performed 37 snaps (53 p.c). My query is: why? Clemons has been horrible this season and he acquired one other private foul on this sport. It’s time to place him on the bench.
Sport ball
There usually are not many choices right here. Punter Thomas Morstead continues to do his job. His punt that was downed on the 1 within the third quarter had an opportunity to flip the momentum of the sport. The Jets acquired the ball again on the 45 however Rodgers threw an interception and the Payments then scored. Don’t blame Morstead.
