Grading the Jets: Nonexistent offense receives failing mark vs. Patriots
Zach Wilson #2 of the Jets looks on against the New England Patriots at MetLife Stadium on Sunday, Sep. 24, 2023. Credit: Jim McIsaac
F OFFENSE
The Jets scored 10 points, had 12 first downs, were 2-for-14 on third down, totaled 171 yards and had 38 yards rushing in their 15-10 loss to the Patriots on Sunday. Even though the rest of the team continues to say all the right things about having confidence in him, Zach Wilson continues to show that he is not an NFL starting quarterback. With the exception of the touchdown drive in the fourth quarter in which wide receiver Garrett Wilson said the Patriots were “playing a little softer,” the Jets were inept. At least they didn’t turn the ball over. The Jets shuffled their offensive line after left tackle Duane Brown (hip) was placed on injured reserve on Saturday. The line gave up three sacks, and two of them could have been pinned on Zach Wilson for holding on to the ball too long. Running backs Breece Hall and Dalvin Cook each had 18 yards rushing.
B DEFENSE
It’s kind of the same old story. The defense held the Patriots to 13 points and was undone by the offense. But it also didn’t cause any turnovers and the Patriots had 157 rushing yards on 40 carries. Ezekiel Elliott had 80 yards on 16 carries. The 58-yard TD pass from Mac Jones to Pharaoh Brown in the second quarter was a major blown coverage. Robert Saleh wouldn’t go into specifics on who was to blame.
B SPECIAL TEAMS
Think kickoff returns are over? Xavier Gipson had two for a total of 55 yards for the Jets. Gipson also returned four punts for 39 yards, but he made a curious decision to not field a punt near his 20 in the first quarter and the Jets ended up starting the possession at the 6. That almost turned disastrous when Hall fumbled the ball (but recovered it) on the first play. Greg Zuerlein hit his only field-goal attempt, a 52-yarder in the second quarter. Thomas Morstead averaged 51.3 yards on his eight punts.
D COACHING
The Jets seemed ready to play and were fired up about the chance to end a 14-game losing streak against New England, but the offensive scheme was confusing and ultimately didn’t work except for one drive. Was the goal to establish the run? To showcase what Zach Wilson does well? The Patriots were down two cornerbacks, and when Garrett Wilson was asked if the Jets did enough to exploit that, he said, “No.”
Anthony Rieber covers baseball, as well as the NFL, NBA and NHL. He has worked at Newsday since Aug. 31, 1998, and has been in his current position since July 5, 2004.
