Photo Credit: Sarah Stier/Getty Images
The Jets were coming into their Matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars with everything on the line for them. Whether it was Zach Wilson giving it everything he has or the Jets fighting to stay alive in a tight playoff hunt as the AFC playoff picture keeps getting more challenging each week. It was going to take a lot of work for the Jets as they were having a short week, playing a Thursday night showdown against the Jacksonville Jaguars who have hopes of taking the division away from their rival Tennessee Titans.
Jaguars got the ball to start the game. On a 3rd and 6th, Quinnen Williams, who returns after missing one game, bulldozes right through the offensive guard to get to Trevor Lawrence and force a fumble that Carl Lawson would recover. That would be Trevor’s 8th fumble of the season.
Jets are now in possession in the RedZone, on a third down, Wilson in the pocket checking his reads when next thing you know Jaguars free safety Andre Cisco sacks Wilson to force a field goal. From a defensive perspective, Cisco was untouched, as it was one of the playbook’s most manageable sacks.
The Jets would then settle for a 37-yard Greg Zuerlein field goal giving the Jets the early 3-0 lead.
The Jaguars drive down the field into the second quarter to eventually score off a Trevor Lawrence quarterback sneak into the endzone to give the Jaguars a 10-3 lead. Everyone thought the ball had come out, but the ball had crossed the goal line in a 3rd and goal situation. The Jaguars fought long and hard as they drove down 96 yards on a 16-play drive.
Midway through the second quarter, the Jaguars tried to get a more significant lead, as they drove downfield with an Evan Engram 36-yard catch and run as he was breaking tackles. The Jaguars were showing how they have a good rhythm on offense as they got the ball in space with wide receivers Christian Kirk and Zay Jones blocking on the outside for Engram to get loose down the sideline.
The Jags would eventually settle for a 45-yard field goal to give the Jaguars a 13-3 lead.
After a Riley Patterson missed field goal, the Jets got the ball with 25 seconds left, which should be enough to try at least to attempt a field goal. But it took a lot of work for Zach Wilson to do that, as they got nothing out of the 25 seconds given. One play on the drive that shows how Wilson’s performance went was when he missed badly on an open Corey Davis down the middle of the field to advance the ball that would be close to field goal range.
The Jets would then end the half on a Devin Lloyd interception as they were trying to create some magic as boos kept coming in from the Jets fans getting all wet at Metlife Stadium.
Now in the second half, with the Jaguars up 16-3, Zach Wilson and the Jets try to get some points on the board. Still, Davon Hamilton had other ideas as he came through for the Jaguars’ defense with a sack as the pocket collapsed on Wilson; the Metlife crowd kept booing the heck out of Zach Wilson and the Jets.
The offense was so insufficient that Robert Saleh eventually changed to put in Chris Streveler. The crowd would erupt when Streveler was able to get a dump-off pass to Elijah Moore for a first down. Then a couple of plays later, he completes a pass deep downfield to CJ Uzomah for a 30-yard gain.
Now into the fourth quarter, they approach the RedZone and are trying to make something happen on offense to get them back into the game. On a 3rd and 4 play, Corey Davis drops a pass that was literally right in his hands as Streveler placed it perfectly in his hands. Luckily, Garrett Wilson was able to make a crucial catch on fourth down to extend the drive. Unfortunately, they wouldn’t be able to get any points on that drive as they failed to convert on fourth down.
Later, in the fourth quarter, the Jets would try to make some magic on a fourth down, as Garrett Wilson catches the ball. Still, as he was trying to scramble away from the Jaguars defenders, as he was getting tackled, Foye Oluokun came from being trying to make a tackle but eventually kicked the ball up in the air where the ball was fumbled, and the Jaguars recovered.
Eventually, that would be all from Metlife Stadium as the Jets would fall to the Jacksonville Jaguars 19-3 as many things crushed them, the boo’s from the Metlife crowd, the rainy weather or the Jaguars coming into the game more prepared than the Jets ever were.
So much is happening with this team, and I wonder how they handle it the way they are. The quarterback position is in the roughest place they’ve been in a while, probably around the same situation as when they had Tim Tebow and Mark Sanchez in the same quarterback room. How have the Jets managed to have their first, second, third, and even fourth-string quarterback work to play in the same season? It’s mind-boggling and so incompetent as the offense as a whole must be going crazy thinking about who is their leader in that position. Whether it’s been the injuries or the sub-par quarterback play from Wilson, the quarterback position must be addressed in the off-season and should be the priority on Joe Douglass’ task list because this Jets roster is in pretty good shape that if they’d make the playoffs, they could do some magic work, they’re just an average quarterback away from competing with the top teams in the league. They don’t even have to go after a guy like Lamar Jackson, maybe someone like Jimmy G or Derek Carr, but someone who can run Mike LaFleur’s offense the way it’s supposed to.
Speaking of systems, now onto Zach Wilson. People around the league were giving out hope that maybe there’s still hope for Zach Wilson as he still has hope left to change people’s minds that he could be the Jets’ answer at QB, but Thursday night’s game, many are ready to move on from him, and I can’t blame them. It’s crazy when the fourth-string quarterback, who came in for only three drives of the game, outperformed the first-string quarterback. Wilson played in 7 drives going 9/18, 92 passing yards, three first downs, and one interception. While Chris Streveler only played in 3 drives, going 10/15, 90 passing yards, rushing for 54 yards, and seven first downs. The stats show that it’s clear that Zach Wilson can’t operate the offensive system that Mike LaFleur runs. When asked about why the offense seems to work better with other quarterbacks on the roster besides Wilson, he won’t comment on it but does take accountability, saying that all QB struggles regardless of falls on him.
Most of that falls on Joe Douglass, who has put together an incredible roster but swung and struck out hard on the Wilson pick because Wilson doesn’t fit LaFleur’s system. LaFleur’s system is more fit for pocket-passing quarterbacks, and Wilson isn’t that type of QB, for he has the talent to scramble all around the field as Mahomes can do; not saying he’s Mahomes. But either way, Wilson needed to be put in a suitable offensive scheme that fit his skill set. It has to be hard for Wilson to take in the boos from the Metlife crowd because once they start booing, something’s not correct. After all, the Jets fanbase will tell you if something is wrong. Wilson did handle it well when asked about the crowd booing:
“I don’t blame them. We have a very passionate fanbase… Of course, they are going to be frustrated.”
If Robert Saleh wanted to stay in the game, he would’ve pulled Wilson out of the game earlier, instead of mid-way through the third quarter. Either way, Jets head coach Robert Saleh won’t be giving up on Wilson:
“We’re not going to quit on him.”
Admits that a lack of confidence is tough to overcome
“He just needs to get on a little run.”
Robert Saleh did admit that the run game hasn’t been playing up to standards:
“Our run game has been putrid.”
It had shown, as Zonovan Knight and Michael Carter are great running backs but aren’t producing to what Breece Hall was playing like at the beginning of the season before he tore his ACL, and that was the end of his rookie season. They’re 5-2 with Hal starting at running back and 2-6 without him. Granted, the offense line has been going through injuries all season, with Becton and Vera-tucker being ruled out for the year and George Fant and Duane Brown having their injuries, so it’s tough to be critical on the Jets run game when the offensive line isn’t fully healthy.
Saleh has yet to decide who will start New Year’s Day for the Jets. Mike White has a shot to start as he looks to get cleared by doctors, so he isn’t ruled out yet, as far as anyone knows. Saleh says there is no timetable yet for Mike White’s medical scans.
Even if playoffs are a long shot now, Saleh does give notice of how much progress the Jets made this year:
“Thinking playoffs is farfetched, but we’ve done a lot of really, really cool things this year. The most important thing now is finishing strong, starting with Seattle.”
The Jets will travel next week to Lumen Field to play the Seattle Seahawks, led by Geno Smith at quarterback, and look to make one of the final wildcard spots in the NFC playoff picture.
