Yesterday we saw the ZW that everyone envisioned him to be. He looked like a real NFL starting QB in the rain at MetLife. But we've seen this before and been disappointed. I think it is imperative for him to duplicate yesterday's performance against the Dolphins, who have an arguably better defense. The o-line looked pretty decent despite yet another different starting combo. I tried to keep an eye on the FNG that started at RG yesterday, Hanson, and he seemed to do okay. Tippmann shows every day that he is the top-flight center the Jets really needed. Putting together a truly solid o-line would go a long way towards helping not only ZW now but also for St. Rodgers in 2024, as the key still is Supe or bust next season.
We have all seen how dangerous Breece Hall is in the open field and getting him opportunities in both the ground and passing game to be that stroke of lightning that can blow open a game is something few teams have. Look at what SF gets out of McCaffrey. Hall could do the same thing with the proper o-line play.
The work of the TE's was magnificent, Conklin showed the same traits he had in Minnesota in spades. Those seam routes were a thing of beauty and ZW laid the ball right where it had to be. And yesterday should end the paltry number of snaps Jeremy Ruckert has been getting. He is a devastating blocker and an excellent receiver and it's a shame it took an injury to Uzoma to prove the point. Conklin and Ruckert are truly 1A and 1B as far as being starters are concerned. Yeboah is a great third TE and valuable ST player. And if Zack Kuntz shows the talent that his physical attributes give an inkling of, he could be a real wild card in a hybrid TE/WR role where he can get mismatches all over the field.
This was truly a team win, every aspect of offense, defense & ST was virtually perfect. There is no longer any doubt at Sauce, DJ and MC II are the best starting CB trio in the league. Like someone commented though, it's time to hit the jugs machine for all DB's and LB's, lol. I think the defense will rise to an entirely different level against Miami. And I forgot, Xavier Gipson is fulfilling the promise he showed throughout TC and the preseason and into the season. He will become an extremely valuable weapon in the Jets' arsenal.
And I also forgot to mention three of the most important players who have not faltered and kept the Jets in games all season, Thomas Henessey, Thomas Morstead and Greg Zuerlein. They have gone above and beyond the call of duty in their duties and all deserve Pro Bowl nods.
Yesterday’s victory as joyful as it was to watch, only escalates the depression of what this season could have been if Rodgers didn’t get hurt.
The negative distractions of this past week forced Saleh to give up the idea that his defense could win every game 10-7. Reality, hit Saleh offense wins games, defense wins championships.
Hackett finally left his father’s playbook home. He finally realized that he has to get the ball into his playmakers hands, Garrett and Breece. Gipson’s touchdown proves you don’t need a three yards and a cloud of dust offense to score. The Texans never knew what hit them on that call.
The defense played like they were possessed. If after yesterday Sauce, Reed and Carter aren’t called the top corner trio in the league, there should be an investigation.Huff played more than half the defensive snaps for the first time of his career. He justified it with 5 pressures, 1 tackle and a sack.
McDonald got his first full sack, no mention yesterday how the jets blew it by taking him over an offensive tackle or wide receiver. He is getting better every game. Winning cures all ills.
Now for the negatives, Zach, on his fumble, must learn to slide. Going head on against defenders in this league, two things can happen, fumbles and injuries. As proficient as Zach was playing yesterday, there was no need for him to hit a 5 run grand slam. Also, I’m sure Brick and the whole defensive side of the locker room this week will jokingly remind Zach that his fumble was the only time the whole game that Texas was on the Jets half of the field.
At 5-8, there is absolutely no real reason to keep giving Cook the ball.
Cook’s signing was a mistake. We all know it. Time to move on with players who will be here next year, doubtful Cook will be one of them.
Speaking of signing mistakes, unless Lazard starts getting open, even Rodgers will ignore him. Zach threw to seven different receivers yesterday not one to him. Was he open, can’t answer that.But he did contribute a holding penalty.
It is kind of ironic that the way assistant coaches leave Belichick and become failures as HCs. Receivers who leave Green Bay aren’t as good. Lazard and Cobb here, Scantling in KC
Unfortunately Uzomah’s injury proved what scribes and fans have been yelling all season. Bench him and play Ruckert. Ruckert had a huge 19 yard reception that took the Jets out of a big hole. He is another young player who is proving he should be starting. His line 3 targets, 3 receptions 37 yards, no penalties. Definitely an improvement over Uzomah.
One of the few quotes that Joe Walton ever said that is so true. “ You are never as good as you think you are when you win and never as bad when you lose”
Time for the Jets to savor this victory today and forget about it tomorrow. All thoughts to Miami starting tomorrow.
yessirree - get Lawson, Cobb, Whitehead, Uzomah, Cook, Siemian and others OUTTADERE!!!!
notice I didn't say Zach. Can he - and this is now the voice of the eternally hopeful and perennially suffering Jets fan asking - do what he did yesterday, consistently?
Does he now live in "fuck it" land? If he ever gets another play-it-safe mandate from our offensively-challenged HC and Mr. no-Synapses-firing-off-efficiently OC, will he clearly tell 'em all, "fuck it", and audible his way into every play?
Cause I gotta tell ya, yesterday's version of Wilson - getting the TEs, the RBs in the flat, Jet Screens, Gunslinging all involved - man, I like that version.
everyone here over the course of this season has pretty much come to the conclusion that Hackett is not the brain behind his offense; he has benefited from having a genius Gunslinger in Rodgers make it happen.
I saw a little bit of that AR Gunslinger in Zach yesterday (oops... there goes that really hopeful, what-am-i-smoking voice of the Jets fan again...). Ironically, the Zach we saw yesterday is the QB we were hoping to get with AR - and once Hackett took off the blinders, he finally saw a QB running his "offense" in a way similar to how AR runs it.
Add a little bit more audible to it, like when Zach sees G-dubs one-on-one and he can call Garrett as the primary read, with a TE dragging across from the opposite side (Yay RUCKERT!!!!) or another beautiful seam pass to #83.
To be fair to Randy Cobb (not that he totally deserves it this year), he's impossibly past his prime. Maybe don't sign receivers in their mid-thirties, huh?
David, great newsletter this morning. Only additional point to add and it is a very key point - Saleh finally took the handcuffs off of Zach and Hack and let the kid throw the ball! That was a completely different game plan than any we have seen to date with Zach. To me, there is no mystery around what happened. That was the difference. But even I have to say I was amazed at how well Zach played in that driving rainstorm. What you saw was exactly how he played at BYU and who they drafted. Hopefully the coach learned something. No doubt the D was awesome as well.
feels good, dudn't it? And the defense - man, if they are stone-cold, never quit when the going was bad, it was simply amazing and a joy to see them go out there and play lights out when the offense gives them a padding, a couple of scores, a lead. Holy Cannoli! But man, seeing Sauce use those Gumby arms, just breaking up passes, and Reid and MC2 - what a ride!
Garrett has an indomitable heart - I can only wonder, if the Jets would have taken a Jaxon Smith-Njigba, a Zay Flowers, a Jordan Addison... man, the heights that Garrett could achieve if he had a capable #2 across the field from him.
And I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE that the TEs, both Conklin & Ruckert, were an active part of this excellent game. You go online, seeing what other commentators post, about how the Jets need to get another, and often quite expensive, devil-be-damned-with-the-cap receiver, like a Davante Adams - and there have been voices here on TJW (including my humble thoughts) that have repeatedly called for getting the ball more to the TE's as well as using the RBs in the passing game. We saw all these things come true yesterday, and it was a sight to see!
Conklin on the Seam routes; Ruckert doing his best Revis-juggling-the-ball-to-make-the-catch impression, and the great blocking by Jeremy that actively impacted the run game. And I think that these two young men are capable of more, much more. Kelce? Who needs 'em? Brock Bowers in the upcoming draft? We already have two very capable TEs that can catch and block.
Anyways, Can't Wait to read comments from my other fellow TJWers. The best comment so far, Bobber's 6:15AM EST Post: "... Reality hit Saleh... offense wins games, defense wins championships ..."
I don’t know if the performance by ZW was a one off...but if he is capable of doing this, playing like he did yesterday consistently, if this truly is part of his football DNA and was suppressed by the coaching staff, the the Jets deserve the season that they have. Alternatively if he has found himself, I’d love to see him shred the Miami defense next Sunday!
I have a legitimate negative that cannot pass to another day.
For the Jets to be considered a great defense they must be able to intercept a pass that is basically thrown right at them. The same goes for fumble recoveries. They had the opportunity to intercept 3 passes yesterday, they dropped all three. Fumbles are a little different, that’s a mad rush, usually first come, first served.
They actually have 11 picks for the season and 3 fumble recoveries.
Ironically Whitehead leads with 4 but is rated as the worst Jet defenders by many analytic sites.
Even though the Jets knew his warts when they signed, he's way below par since he's been here. He has positive flashes on occasion, but they are few and far in between. The 3 picks in the opener were a real outlier. I don't know if they will resign him when the time comes.
Like someone asked after the game "Could you have pissed Zack Wilson off earlier in the Season"
That was suppose to be how it worked - tough defence (Reed & Gardner WOW) and a QB who could move the team. I would like to see hime string these last 4 games together to see if the "light went on" fianally. Give him credit though. David you forgot to mention the Ranger/King game - out standing, fun game ! Huge win.
I've only just watched that one as I was working last night and then doing this.
What a huge performance after the shutout and the game in Ottawa. Quick had a point to prove didn't he, and a couple of those saves were remarkable. The good thing this year is I don't feel as though we're as reliant on a select few. evidenced by Brodzinski, Cuylle and Vesey all scoring. Great to see Trochek back to his best as well. I also thought Laffy skated really well despite him not registering a point.
Maple Leafs up next and if I remember rightly, Jeff's a Leafs fan isn't he? lol
I think they'll let him throw, confidence breeds confidence. You can't beat a team like Miami playing conservatively IMO. If he does shackle him then we'll lose 30-10 or something similar.
I hope they don’t. Either he can play with the full playbook or he has no future. If he needs to be restrained after three years, time to be a high school football coach. It is my hope that he can replicate his most recent performance!
Yesterday we saw the ZW that everyone envisioned him to be. He looked like a real NFL starting QB in the rain at MetLife. But we've seen this before and been disappointed. I think it is imperative for him to duplicate yesterday's performance against the Dolphins, who have an arguably better defense. The o-line looked pretty decent despite yet another different starting combo. I tried to keep an eye on the FNG that started at RG yesterday, Hanson, and he seemed to do okay. Tippmann shows every day that he is the top-flight center the Jets really needed. Putting together a truly solid o-line would go a long way towards helping not only ZW now but also for St. Rodgers in 2024, as the key still is Supe or bust next season.
We have all seen how dangerous Breece Hall is in the open field and getting him opportunities in both the ground and passing game to be that stroke of lightning that can blow open a game is something few teams have. Look at what SF gets out of McCaffrey. Hall could do the same thing with the proper o-line play.
The work of the TE's was magnificent, Conklin showed the same traits he had in Minnesota in spades. Those seam routes were a thing of beauty and ZW laid the ball right where it had to be. And yesterday should end the paltry number of snaps Jeremy Ruckert has been getting. He is a devastating blocker and an excellent receiver and it's a shame it took an injury to Uzoma to prove the point. Conklin and Ruckert are truly 1A and 1B as far as being starters are concerned. Yeboah is a great third TE and valuable ST player. And if Zack Kuntz shows the talent that his physical attributes give an inkling of, he could be a real wild card in a hybrid TE/WR role where he can get mismatches all over the field.
This was truly a team win, every aspect of offense, defense & ST was virtually perfect. There is no longer any doubt at Sauce, DJ and MC II are the best starting CB trio in the league. Like someone commented though, it's time to hit the jugs machine for all DB's and LB's, lol. I think the defense will rise to an entirely different level against Miami. And I forgot, Xavier Gipson is fulfilling the promise he showed throughout TC and the preseason and into the season. He will become an extremely valuable weapon in the Jets' arsenal.
And I also forgot to mention three of the most important players who have not faltered and kept the Jets in games all season, Thomas Henessey, Thomas Morstead and Greg Zuerlein. They have gone above and beyond the call of duty in their duties and all deserve Pro Bowl nods.
Yesterday’s victory as joyful as it was to watch, only escalates the depression of what this season could have been if Rodgers didn’t get hurt.
The negative distractions of this past week forced Saleh to give up the idea that his defense could win every game 10-7. Reality, hit Saleh offense wins games, defense wins championships.
Hackett finally left his father’s playbook home. He finally realized that he has to get the ball into his playmakers hands, Garrett and Breece. Gipson’s touchdown proves you don’t need a three yards and a cloud of dust offense to score. The Texans never knew what hit them on that call.
The defense played like they were possessed. If after yesterday Sauce, Reed and Carter aren’t called the top corner trio in the league, there should be an investigation.Huff played more than half the defensive snaps for the first time of his career. He justified it with 5 pressures, 1 tackle and a sack.
McDonald got his first full sack, no mention yesterday how the jets blew it by taking him over an offensive tackle or wide receiver. He is getting better every game. Winning cures all ills.
Now for the negatives, Zach, on his fumble, must learn to slide. Going head on against defenders in this league, two things can happen, fumbles and injuries. As proficient as Zach was playing yesterday, there was no need for him to hit a 5 run grand slam. Also, I’m sure Brick and the whole defensive side of the locker room this week will jokingly remind Zach that his fumble was the only time the whole game that Texas was on the Jets half of the field.
At 5-8, there is absolutely no real reason to keep giving Cook the ball.
Cook’s signing was a mistake. We all know it. Time to move on with players who will be here next year, doubtful Cook will be one of them.
Speaking of signing mistakes, unless Lazard starts getting open, even Rodgers will ignore him. Zach threw to seven different receivers yesterday not one to him. Was he open, can’t answer that.But he did contribute a holding penalty.
It is kind of ironic that the way assistant coaches leave Belichick and become failures as HCs. Receivers who leave Green Bay aren’t as good. Lazard and Cobb here, Scantling in KC
Unfortunately Uzomah’s injury proved what scribes and fans have been yelling all season. Bench him and play Ruckert. Ruckert had a huge 19 yard reception that took the Jets out of a big hole. He is another young player who is proving he should be starting. His line 3 targets, 3 receptions 37 yards, no penalties. Definitely an improvement over Uzomah.
One of the few quotes that Joe Walton ever said that is so true. “ You are never as good as you think you are when you win and never as bad when you lose”
Time for the Jets to savor this victory today and forget about it tomorrow. All thoughts to Miami starting tomorrow.
hey Bobber!!
David said, No Negativity! Enjoy the win, if only for the sheer purity and rare appearance of seeing the entire team fire on all cylinders.
other than that, Merry Christmas!
You can list my negatives as constructive criticisms. Ruckert is proving us right, it is definitely time to unleash the Anaconda 🐍.
It is time to build for next year with Anaconda, Gipson, Brownlee and replace whoever is a non contributing veteran
hey Bobber!~!
yessirree - get Lawson, Cobb, Whitehead, Uzomah, Cook, Siemian and others OUTTADERE!!!!
notice I didn't say Zach. Can he - and this is now the voice of the eternally hopeful and perennially suffering Jets fan asking - do what he did yesterday, consistently?
Does he now live in "fuck it" land? If he ever gets another play-it-safe mandate from our offensively-challenged HC and Mr. no-Synapses-firing-off-efficiently OC, will he clearly tell 'em all, "fuck it", and audible his way into every play?
Cause I gotta tell ya, yesterday's version of Wilson - getting the TEs, the RBs in the flat, Jet Screens, Gunslinging all involved - man, I like that version.
everyone here over the course of this season has pretty much come to the conclusion that Hackett is not the brain behind his offense; he has benefited from having a genius Gunslinger in Rodgers make it happen.
I saw a little bit of that AR Gunslinger in Zach yesterday (oops... there goes that really hopeful, what-am-i-smoking voice of the Jets fan again...). Ironically, the Zach we saw yesterday is the QB we were hoping to get with AR - and once Hackett took off the blinders, he finally saw a QB running his "offense" in a way similar to how AR runs it.
Add a little bit more audible to it, like when Zach sees G-dubs one-on-one and he can call Garrett as the primary read, with a TE dragging across from the opposite side (Yay RUCKERT!!!!) or another beautiful seam pass to #83.
Man, oh man... I can get used to that.
CGVet, I want to comment on your Zach comments but in the spirit of the day I will refrain from! But tomorrow is another day! 😂
Co-sign all of that except my guy Whitehead. Love me them Pitt defensive backs!
Personally, I think Izzy's nickname should be The Roadrunner, meep meep, instead of Anaconda, it's more fitting for his speed.
To be fair to Randy Cobb (not that he totally deserves it this year), he's impossibly past his prime. Maybe don't sign receivers in their mid-thirties, huh?
David, great newsletter this morning. Only additional point to add and it is a very key point - Saleh finally took the handcuffs off of Zach and Hack and let the kid throw the ball! That was a completely different game plan than any we have seen to date with Zach. To me, there is no mystery around what happened. That was the difference. But even I have to say I was amazed at how well Zach played in that driving rainstorm. What you saw was exactly how he played at BYU and who they drafted. Hopefully the coach learned something. No doubt the D was awesome as well.
hey David!!
feels good, dudn't it? And the defense - man, if they are stone-cold, never quit when the going was bad, it was simply amazing and a joy to see them go out there and play lights out when the offense gives them a padding, a couple of scores, a lead. Holy Cannoli! But man, seeing Sauce use those Gumby arms, just breaking up passes, and Reid and MC2 - what a ride!
Garrett has an indomitable heart - I can only wonder, if the Jets would have taken a Jaxon Smith-Njigba, a Zay Flowers, a Jordan Addison... man, the heights that Garrett could achieve if he had a capable #2 across the field from him.
And I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE that the TEs, both Conklin & Ruckert, were an active part of this excellent game. You go online, seeing what other commentators post, about how the Jets need to get another, and often quite expensive, devil-be-damned-with-the-cap receiver, like a Davante Adams - and there have been voices here on TJW (including my humble thoughts) that have repeatedly called for getting the ball more to the TE's as well as using the RBs in the passing game. We saw all these things come true yesterday, and it was a sight to see!
Conklin on the Seam routes; Ruckert doing his best Revis-juggling-the-ball-to-make-the-catch impression, and the great blocking by Jeremy that actively impacted the run game. And I think that these two young men are capable of more, much more. Kelce? Who needs 'em? Brock Bowers in the upcoming draft? We already have two very capable TEs that can catch and block.
Anyways, Can't Wait to read comments from my other fellow TJWers. The best comment so far, Bobber's 6:15AM EST Post: "... Reality hit Saleh... offense wins games, defense wins championships ..."
a happy CGVet58!
I don’t know if the performance by ZW was a one off...but if he is capable of doing this, playing like he did yesterday consistently, if this truly is part of his football DNA and was suppressed by the coaching staff, the the Jets deserve the season that they have. Alternatively if he has found himself, I’d love to see him shred the Miami defense next Sunday!
I have a legitimate negative that cannot pass to another day.
For the Jets to be considered a great defense they must be able to intercept a pass that is basically thrown right at them. The same goes for fumble recoveries. They had the opportunity to intercept 3 passes yesterday, they dropped all three. Fumbles are a little different, that’s a mad rush, usually first come, first served.
They actually have 11 picks for the season and 3 fumble recoveries.
Ironically Whitehead leads with 4 but is rated as the worst Jet defenders by many analytic sites.
Brick has gotta get those back seven guys to hit the JUGGS machine!!!
Even though the Jets knew his warts when they signed, he's way below par since he's been here. He has positive flashes on occasion, but they are few and far in between. The 3 picks in the opener were a real outlier. I don't know if they will resign him when the time comes.
Like someone asked after the game "Could you have pissed Zack Wilson off earlier in the Season"
That was suppose to be how it worked - tough defence (Reed & Gardner WOW) and a QB who could move the team. I would like to see hime string these last 4 games together to see if the "light went on" fianally. Give him credit though. David you forgot to mention the Ranger/King game - out standing, fun game ! Huge win.
I've only just watched that one as I was working last night and then doing this.
What a huge performance after the shutout and the game in Ottawa. Quick had a point to prove didn't he, and a couple of those saves were remarkable. The good thing this year is I don't feel as though we're as reliant on a select few. evidenced by Brodzinski, Cuylle and Vesey all scoring. Great to see Trochek back to his best as well. I also thought Laffy skated really well despite him not registering a point.
Maple Leafs up next and if I remember rightly, Jeff's a Leafs fan isn't he? lol
Right he is lol - we are going tomorrow night and will be there
Well I only want one of you to come away happy 😂
hahaha LGR !
The big question is will Saleh let the kid throw the ball again next week or will he put the handcuffs back on? What do you guys think?
I think they'll let him throw, confidence breeds confidence. You can't beat a team like Miami playing conservatively IMO. If he does shackle him then we'll lose 30-10 or something similar.
Well said! Personally I hope he throws 2 picks because he is being so aggressive. With that D, they will cover him.
I think they are in nothing to lose mode and will let him throw
😀
I hope they don’t. Either he can play with the full playbook or he has no future. If he needs to be restrained after three years, time to be a high school football coach. It is my hope that he can replicate his most recent performance!
Who knew Wilson was a 'mudder'?