Team Grades: Another Heartbreaking Loss For The New York Jets
By Tyson Rauch
On Thursday night the New York Jets went toe to toe with the best team in their division, the New England Patriots. Unfortunately for the Jets (1-6) the team could not overcome their mistakes as they fell to the Patriots (5-2) 27-25. Gang Green has now lost 6 games in a row and will face some intense scrutiny as this is becoming a lost season.
Offense Grade: B
This was arguably one of the best performances of the year by the Jets’ offense as the unit outgained the Patriots 423-323 and controlled the time of possession 40:54 to 19:06. The offensive line did an excellent job of establishing a foundation for the running game as Chris Ivory powered for 107 yards. Eric Decker had a solid performance contributing 4 catches for 65 yards while tight end Jeff Cumberland emerged late with a touchdown grab.
The downside for the offense was once again failing to score touchdowns in the red zone. Whether it was a poor pass, a holding penalty, or a questionable play call, something seems to always go wrong for Gang Green in the red zone. You cannot continue to trade field goals for touchdowns when you are playing against a quality football team.
Defense Grade: C
The New York Jets put together a valiant effort against Tom Brady and the Patriots, but made far too many costly mistakes to help secure a victory. Defensive backs blowing coverages, communication issues, and penalties were the demise of a quality game plan by Rex Ryan.
Ryan did an excellent job of changing the looks of the front seven to help disguise the zone coverage in the secondary. Rex utilized Jason Babin and Antwan Barnes over Quinton Coples and the move paid dividends as the second half progressed. It will be interesting to see how Coples is used going forward as Babin seems to be establishing himself in the defense. Defensive back Kyle Wilson remains a legitimate liability in the Jets secondary.
Quarterback Grade: B+
Geno Smith played one of the best games of his career on Thursday night (20/34 226 yards, 1 TD). Smith made smart decisions with the football and used his legs (37 rushing yards) when the protection broke down. Most importantly, the second year signal caller did not turn the football over.
The Jets quarterback also displayed a tremendous amount of toughness returning to the game after a big hit to the knee. Geno Smith marched his team down the field and made a great touchdown pass to Jeff Cumberland. Unfortunately for Geno he misfired on a two point conversion which would have tied the game. Smith has to do a better job in the red zone by giving his receivers a chance to make a play on the football.
Special Teams Grade: B-
Punter Ryan Quigley was having a solid night until he shanked a 30 yard kick at a crucial point late in the game. This is starting to become a weekly occurrence for Quigley.
Nick Folk had another quality performance making 4 of 5 field goal attempts. Folk’s lone miss was a blocked 58-yard attempt which would have won the game.
Heartbreaking loss
When you outgain a team by a hundred yards and control the time of possession by over twenty minutes, your team should walk away with a victory. The Jets self-destruct at inopportune times and that seems to be the constant theme to this season. Mental mistakes, blown assignments, stupid penalties, and wasted timeouts repeatedly wipe out any progress that this team makes.
At 1-6 the Jets will be playing for pride and possibly for Rex Ryan’s job. Only time will tell if this team will mail it in or continue to fight for their beloved head coach.
For more Jets news and updates, visit Jets Central.
Tyson Rauch is a freelance writer covering all things NFL. His work can be found on Examiner.com.
