Eagles run all over Metlife
Jets fall to 0-12 against the Eagles and 3-9 on the season.
🗽 Good morning Jets fans. It wasn’t the result we were looking for but there were some positive signs. It’s always disappointing to lose, but if we are going to lose, I’d rather do it with the young bucks playing well. Let’s dive into the details.
Wilson Progress 📈
First-half Wilson was the QB we’ve all been waiting to see. He was accurate and efficient and moved the chains with relative ease. He found his check-downs when he needed them and pushed the ball deeper when it was available. He threw 2 TD passes, one to Moore and one to Griffin before sneaking in for his 2nd rushing TD in as many weeks.
Sitting at 3-9, the seasons’ success largely rests on Zach’s development. We saw some real glimpses of progress in that first half, his mechanics were working in sync, his body aligned, his feet set. When all that is working his accuracy absolutely skyrockets.
He looked comfortable and in rhythm, he was getting the ball to Moore in space and even made Ryan Griffin look like an NFL tight end. Corey Davis was obviously hobbled and Mims only real notable contribution was a blocking penalty, so he didn’t have a ton to work with.
Unfortunately, the 2nd half resembled more of what we’ve seen so far this year. He looked a little frantic, he held onto the ball too long, the Eagles adjusted at the half to take away his first read and he struggled to move through his progressions. On the interception he wanted to see Crowder open instead of throwing with anticipation, it resulted in the timing being off, the feet not being set and the ball being sailed.
There’s still a lot to learn for Zach. In the first half we saw progress, in the 2nd we saw a little regression. I’d get used to it if I were you, this is what it’s like to run with a rookie QB.
Defensive Tribulations 🚫
On Saturday I chucked out a mock draft that had Georgia Linebacker Nakobe Dean heading to the Jets. I was told by more than one person that the Jets didn’t need a LB because we had CJ and Quincy. I’m a big fan of Williams but what’s his ceiling? How long will CJ be in NY? This team needs Linebacker, it also needs safeties and corners too, and a defensive tackle while we’re at it.
The Eagles ran all over the Jets. In total Philadelphia ran for 185 yards and passed for another 233, the Jets gave up over 400 yards for what seems like the 12th time this season.
We couldn't stop the run, we couldn't stop the pass. We were so focused on taking Da’Vonta Smith away, we forgot to cover Dallas Goedert who burned the Jets for 105 yards and 2 TDs. Once we got a hold of Dallas in the 2nd half, Miles Sanders took over. The Eagles RB finished with 120 yards and Gardner Minshew who was filling in for the injured Jalen Hurts largely managed a game that was always under control.
This Jets defense is bad. It’s very bad. It needs an overhaul and talent infusion. It's young, but not all these young players will grow into NFL starters. The first port of call for me is a Linebacker who can cover. Nakobe Dean or Devin Lloyd (Utah) fit that mold.
Zebras! 🦓
I’m not going to spend too much time here. They had an awful game, they missed a clear pass interference on Elijah Moore and called a phantom PI on Bryce Hall. It extended drives that shouldn’t have been extended. Saleh was fuming, but the referees weren’t the reason the Jets lost. The Jets are the reason the Jets lost.
Where are the kickers ❓❓
Earlier this week the Jets cut Matt Ammendola because Matt Ammendola couldn’t make a field goal over 40 yards. they signed Alex Kessman, who apparently can’t make an extra point. the Jets new kicker missed both extra-point attempts and his kickoffs constantly fell short. Is he really one of the best 32 kickers in America? Jets need to stop looking at these young inexperienced kickers and just sign a veteran.
Josh Lambo is a 7 year vet with an 87% career success rate, and he’s available. Don’t over think this one. If not Lambo, then another veteran.
Time of Possession ⌚
The Eagles had the ball for 35 minutes and 36 seconds, in comparison to the Jets who had it for just over 24 minutes. When you can control the clock like that, you have a pretty good chance of winning a football game. Tip your cap to the Eagles, the offensive line controlled the line of scrimmage and the Jets defensive line was blown away.
What pressure? 0️⃣
Football is a sequence of events. If you can control the line of scrimmage, you can run the ball effectively. If you can run the ball effectively then you give the defense a headache. The defensive lineman can’t go all out on the pass rush if you’re picking up chunk yardage on the ground. Minshew had a clean pocket most of the day, the only sack the Jets recorded was on a bad snap by the Eagles back up center that flew over the QBs head. The Jets pass rush was redundant, which tends to happen when they face a good offensive line.
Gimme Moore 🔥
It was another good day at the office for the Ole Miss rookie. The Jets targeted we times, and although he came down with just 6 passes, he was good for 77 yards and a touchdown. Zach missed him in the end zone for another easy TD on the play before the Griffin score. The Jets have something special in Moore. It's impossible to not be excited about his progress.
📈 Stat Corner 📊
The Jets fell to 0-12 against the Eagles in their head-to-head series.
A Jets QB has been sacked in 47 straight games, which is the longest active streak in the NFL.
Only Keyshawn Johnson (8 in 1996) and Rob Moore (6 in 1990) have more receiving TDs than Elijah Moore who had 5 so far this year.
Zach Wilson is the first Jets QB with 1+ rushing TD’s in 2 straight games since Geno Smith in 2013.
The Jets scored on their three opening drives but failed to score a single point after that.
With the loss the Jets fell to 3-9 on the season, guaranteeing a 6th straight losing season.
The Jets offense had the ball for just 1 minute and 10 seconds in the 3rd quarter, the least amount of time in a single quarter this year.
Stars of the Game ✨
Elijah Moore 🌟
Moore was impressive again. 6 catches for 77 yards and a touchdown. He was targeted 12 times so the Jets are making a real effort to get him. involved, which is something they failed to do earlier in the season.
He had one pass that he’d probably expect to make, diving in the 2nd half. the ball hit his hands but he wasn’t able to hang on. Wilson did miss him for his 2nd score and impressive corner Darius Slay made a great play on the ball in the end zone to prevent another TD.
Overall Moore had a good game, but we almost expect that now.
Zach Wilson 🌟🌟
What do we want to see over the final portion of the season? Progress.
We saw that today with Zach, I only wish he could have put a full game together, but after last week i’ll take a full half.
Wilson finished 23 of 38 (226 yards) for 2 touchdowns, 1 interception, and one rushing score. That first half was excellent, everything you wanted to see from the young signal-caller. His footwork in particular was noticeably improved. Unfortunately, the 2nd half wasn’t as good, the INT was bad and he sailed a few passes due to lazy footwork.
It’s progress I’ll take it.
Bryce Hall 🌟🌟🌟
Giving the main accolade to one of the defensive guys, you probably think I’m crazy. But Bryce Hall was outstanding today.
He largely played on impressive rookie DeVonta Smith who has nearly 700 yards and 4 touchdowns on the season. Today he was held to just 2 catches for 15 yards.
Hall made that excellent pass defense on the ball into the end zone and then I’m calling bullshit on the pass interference call. On a day where the defense didn’t do a lot right, I thought Hall was excellent.
Draft Stock 👊
The Jets lost, the Seahawks won and the Panthers were on a bye.
Despite the Seahawks winning, they remain at #5 in the draft order. So if the draft were to happen today, the Jets would have the #4 and #5 pick, the #36 pick, and the #40 pick.
The more I watch this team the more I think we need to load up on defensive talent with our top two picks in the draft. I love the idea of Linderbaum completing our line or giving Zach another weapon in Olave or Wilson, but this team is already unbalanced.
The defense is devoid of top-end talent, you can have the best scheme in football but if you don’t have the talent to execute it, it’s useless.
We have a lot of good young talent that has potential, the likes of Hall, MC2, JFM, Quincy, Quinnen and I’m not sure what we have with the likes of Sherwood. But do we have elite talent? Certainly not enough of it.
I have my preferences for who to take at the top of the 1st on defense, but right now I just want some top-end defensive talent that the coaching staff believes in.
That will do it for today. We’ll be back tomorrow with the stock report. Let me know in the comments who’s stock you believe went up, and who’s went down. We’ll also do a rookie ranking stock report.