On Sunday the 12th of November, I was finishing a Sunday roast in my local pub when I heard a gentleman chatting in a distinct American accent. The gentleman who came from Philadelphia I would come to learn, was in fact a season ticket holder at the Eagles. We chatted for a good 15 minutes about the Eagles, the NFL, and of course through me mentioning that I was a big fan… the Jets. We spoke about our respective seasons so far, some more positive than others. We also discussed the Playoffs and other NFL-related topics. When it was time for the gentleman to leave, he asked me, “Why the Jets?”
So why the Jets? Why do we as fans stay up till 4 am on a school night to watch our beloved Gang Green? For me, it’s simple, the underdog. I love an underdog, and I love seeing a team grow and become a playoff team or even better a championship team. Through the draft and free agency, teams one year can go from nothing to the next year being contenders. Contenders… that’s what as Jets fans we were this year, or so we thought. However, after 11 straight quarters with no touchdowns, a 4-5 record, upcoming games against the Buffalo Bills and the Miami Dolphins. That dream of a playoff berth, let alone a Super Bowl seems unlikely.
Garrett Wilson who is always positive, and always picking his teammates up, appeared to be deflated following Sunday’s loss to the Raiders, “I don’t know what y’all want me to say, man. I’m tired of this, man. I want to play better. The whole offense wants to play better. We’ve been saying what we’ve been trying to do. We come out every week trying to make it happen. It’s frustrating.”
Frustrating it is, especially when the team had two touchdowns called back, one being a holding call on C. J. Uzomah which prevented Breece Hall's touchdown from counting, and the other being Zach Wilson being marked out on the Raider's three-yard line.
Now a lot of fans and critics have blamed Zach Wilson, many feeling a change at quarterback is needed to spark new life into this offense. But does benching Wilson really change our fortune? I think not. Maybe the acquisition of Carson Wentz, maybe then it is warranted regardless of whether he is a questionable teammate. But that ship has sailed, and Joe Douglas and the Jets front office made it clear they were sticking with Wilson, and Wentz signed with the Rams. Will they come to regret that decision, who knows, but I do believe we will see Wentz play for the Rams this year, I wonder what we’ll think then?
The O-Line is battered and bruised, we saw that in week nine when Wilson was sacked seven times, some on himself it must be said. The penalties are a team thing that Saleh needs to get a grip on, the lack of discipline in key areas of the field has killed this team, with eight penalties conceded for 83 yards. That’s near enough to an entire football field, that’s not good enough. Where we saw a small rift start to appear in the play calling. The Jets had a 9-3 lead and faced a third-and-1 at their own 38-yard line in the second quarter when Hackett dialed up a run, this is where I see the issue.
The cameras moved from Hackett to Rodgers, who was pacing down the sideline shaking his head right before the play, indicating his feelings towards Hackett’s call. Breece Hall proceeded to receive the handoff out of a shotgun formation, and the Raiders swarmed the running back in the backfield to prevent him from gaining the necessary yard. Another failed third down for the Jets. Before the game, the Jets were 22% (The lowest in the NFL) how many more signs do you need?
Connor Hughes who covers the Jets for SNY tweeted out: “Just give Rodgers the play sheet”. Now as much as this sounds desperate, and it will not happen for the moment, this may be a viable option for the Jets. We need a gunslinger, we need to utilize Zach’s arm, and we need to fight fire with fire. Especially when we play the Bills and Dolphins. The Jets need to change something, we cannot just keep hoping.
Lastly, the talks are becoming more real that Rodgers will return this year, some even saying mid-December. However, If the Jets cannot make the playoffs by that point, leave the man alone, and build for 2024 and beyond. We all want this playoff drought to end, let’s make sure it does through the correct decisions.
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