Matt Forte offered no more critiques of his coaching staff. With the Bills arriving Thursday night, the Jets don’t have time to look back.
A little more than 24 hours after Forte tied a career-low with four rushing attempts — for 7 yards — and then stated, unprompted, the offense abandoned its game plan and didn’t properly commit to the run in the 25-20 rain-filled loss to the Falcons, the veteran running back said he had spoken with coach Todd Bowles and offensive coordinator John Morton, and there were no issues resulting from Forte’s criticism.
“We really didn’t spend too much time on it,” Forte said following Monday’s walk-through. “We just talked about some ways to help us win football games, and moving on to Buffalo.
“[Morton] was very open-minded. [I’m] very [appreciative]. I mean, it’s always good to be open-minded. I’m open-minded as well. The main goal for me, as well as the coaches is to win games, and that’s what we’re trying to find ways to win that.”
It was easy for Bowles to move on, believing Forte’s anger simply stemmed from the team’s third straight loss.
“It’s just frustration right after the ballgame,” Bowles said. “We got down late. We had to throw the ball. We ran the ball. We’ll continue to run the ball.
“Everybody’s frustrated. People are gonna say things. … It’s a waste of my time to even talk about it.”
While the Jets attempted 22 runs and 33 passes on the soggy field, the offense had far more success through the air, with Josh McCown throwing for 257 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions. The ground game averaged just 2 yards per carry.
“The gameplan was fine,” Bowles said.
And Forte expects to be part of the next one.
Over the summer, Forte’s name surfaced as a potential trade candidate, following the Jets getting rid of multiple veterans, but general manager Mike Maccagnan assured the 31-year-old running back he would remain with the team.
Though Forte hasn’t spoken with the front office recently, he is confident he won’t be moved before Tuesday’s 4 p.m. trade deadline.
“It hasn’t come up,” Forte said. “Nobody’s come to me about that. … When it first came out, I talked to Mike about that type of stuff and he said, ‘Nah, there’s no chance.’
“I don’t see that really happening.”
But does Forte even want to stay with the Jets, who look like they’ll miss the playoffs again after losing three straight games?
“Why not?” Forte said. “I’m under contract. I signed here for a reason to come here and win games and try to help this team go to the playoffs. Why would I try to jump ship?”
Well, perhaps to join a team expected to play in the postseason?“Doesn’t matter,” Forte said. “We still got a lot of games left to play.”
Forte is looking forward to the next one, even if he doesn’t believe anyone should have to play after just three days off.
“Nobody’s really a big fan of it,” Forte said of Thursday night games.
“If they’re interested in player safety, it’s not very conducive to player safety, especially if you’re trying to go out there and win games and you’re in a tight spot, you’re gonna be going out there with players playing injured. … Three or four days in between games is not conducive to being healthy out there for the long run.”