Lichtenstein: Jets' 'D' Shined, But Fourth-Quarter Drive Secured Win Over Colts
By Steve Lichtenstein
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The obvious talking point following the Jets' 20-7 road victory over the Colts on Monday night focused on Gang Green's dominating defense.
Deservedly so, as the Jets forced five Colts turnovers and hounded star quarterback Andrew Luck into a subpar outing. Though the Jets did not register a sack, they were credited with 11 quarterback hits. According to Rich Cimini of ESPN.com, Luck was pressured on 16 of his 41 dropbacks, which allowed the Jets' retooled secondary to play aggressively. All three Jets interceptions were the result of throws Luck hurried in the face of a heavy pass rush.
OK, the Jets were also the beneficiaries of some luck not named Andrew. Old reliable Adam Vinatieri, the future Hall of Fame kicker, shanked a 29-yard chip shot to end the Colts' possession following Eric Decker's first-quarter touchdown reception. Running back Frank Gore, who fumbled twice in 266 touches over 16 games as a 49er last season, inexplicably dropped the ball with a clear path to the end zone from a yard out. Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis pounced on it at the goal line to deny Indianapolis a sure score after an 18-play drive that chewed up the opening 9:47 of the third quarter.
Still, there's no denying that the Jets' defense, with 10 turnovers forced in two games (they had a league-low 13 takeaways all of last season), has the ability to keep them in almost every game.
But no team can win consistently in the NFL without contributions from the other side of the ball. And the Jets have been getting just enough, especially when it's mattered most, to lift them to a 2-0 mark for the first time since 2011.
Sure, the offense squandered numerous opportunities to put the game away early on Monday. The Jets converted only two of the five turnovers into points -- the aforementioned Ryan Fitzpatrick touchdown pass to Decker and a field goal in the final minute of the game.
This despite the Colts' depleted secondary, a unit that had three of their top four corners inactive and their best cover corner -- Vontae Davis -- sent to the locker room for good in the second quarter with a concussion.
But when the Colts started to assert themselves in the second half -- and finally broke through with a touchdown to trim the Jets' lead to 10-7 with 12 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter -- the Jets could no longer just ask their tiring defense to win it for them.
Starting at their own 20-yard line, the Jets needed a long drive in the worst way to halt the Colts' momentum. A three-and-out would have been potentially catastrophic.
Fortunately Fitzpatrick, who for much of the night thought he was Joe Namath and bombed away with little success, went back to throwing short-to-medium routes to start the possession.
A 12-yard slant to Brandon Marshall. A 2-yard quick hitter to Chris Ivory. Then Fitzpatrick delivered a strike on a deeper crossing route to Quincy Enunwa, who for a change didn't drop it and was eventually hauled down at the Colts' 39-yard line.
The Jets' running game, which had been ineffective most of the night, helped them get down to the 15-yard line. That's when Fitzpatrick gave Marshall a hand signal prior to the snap to indicate he saw an opportunity to put the game away.
Marshall eluded Jalil Brown's hold off the line of scrimmage and turned to receive Fitzpatrick's back-shoulder throw at the 4-yard line. Marshall then bulled his way through Brown and Mike Adams to reach the pylon for the touchdown that restored the Jets' 10-point lead.
How many Jets teams in recent years had not just the talent, but the composure to conjure up such a drive in a hostile environment? As I mentioned last week, you'd have to go back to Al Toon to find as big a playmaking beast as Marshall.
It should also be noted that the Jets did it without Decker -- who had burned the Colts for 97 yards on eight catches -- after he exited with a leg injury following the first play of that drive. (Decker will have an MRI on Tuesday to determine its severity.) Last year, the Jets' offense went kaput when Decker went down with a hamstring injury.
It would have been easy for the Jets to pull off a similar fourth-quarter disappearing act to those perfected by their MetLife Stadium co-tenants over the past two weeks. Jets fans have been there, having endured more than their fair share of incomprehensible defeats over the years.
Though it's been only two weeks, at least we can agree that the offense hasn't yet let the team down. And that's something Jets fans haven't been able to say for quite some time.
Of course, it remains to be seen whether Fitzpatrick can sustain his steady head through 14 more regular-season games, or if his warts -- deep-ball inaccuracy combined with the hubris to sometimes make questionable throwing decisions -- are exposed when the Jets step up in class.
We can't even be certain if the Colts -- who were in the AFC Championship game last season -- just had a bad game, or if they're as big a fraud as the Falcons were when the Jets shocked them in a similar early-season Monday Night game two seasons ago.
What we do know is that these Jets will no longer be able to fly under the radar. They have a short week to prepare for the fast-paced -- though also currently underperforming -- Eagles next Sunday at MetLife.
It won't be an easy game. Philadelphia's hurry-up under coach Chip Kelly can wear teams out. The Jets won't be able to win this one on defense alone, either.
For a FAN's perspective of the Nets, Jets and the NHL, follow Steve on Twitter @SteveLichtenst1.
