Several Jets veterans tried to save their season Monday by delivering speeches to the team in a players-only meeting about sticking together and finding a way out of this 0-4 hole.
Defensive end Leonard Williams said it was a natural time to assess their season with a quarter of it done. Much like a game, they divide the season into four quarters. The first quarter of this season has not been kind to the Jets, who lost 31-6 on Sunday to the Eagles.
“There’s four quarters in the season and we’ve gone through our first quarter of the season now and we are 0-4 and we understand that we haven’t had a fast start to our season and it’s not where we want to be but at the same time the season’s not over,” Williams said. “Just like how if you lose the first quarter, the game is not over. We believe there’s a lot to fight for.”
The Jets’ hellish schedule continues over the next two weeks with games against the Cowboys and Patriots at home. It is unclear whether starting quarterback Sam Darnold will be back this week. Coach Adam Gase said Darnold, who has missed the last three games with mononucleosis, will undergo tests Tuesday to see if doctors are ready to clear him.
Even with Darnold, the Jets have many issues to clean up. Their offense has scored just two touchdowns this season (one with Darnold). The offensive line has given up a league-high 23 sacks. They have gained 454 passing yards this season in four games.
“It’s probably more than just Sam getting out there,” Gase said. “We’ve got a lot of other things to clean up. Sam’s able to hide things sometimes for us where if we make a mistake, he covers it up. I think we just need to do a better job as a group making sure we’re all 11 on the same page.”
The offense is a mess right now. It allowed 10 sacks against the Eagles and had just nine first downs. Much of that is due to Darnold’s absence. Third-string quarterback Luke Falk is not ready to play in the NFL, but the unit is also adjusting to Gase’s system. The Jets started two new offensive linemen Sunday and wide receiver Demaryius Thomas made his first extended appearance in the offense.
“We took our turns as far as what we were doing,” Gase said. “Overall, we just haven’t played very well. There’s no way around it. We just haven’t played very good as an offense in general.”
While the offense has sputtered, the Jets defense has been pretty good. They have scored as many touchdowns as the offense this season, which tells you everything you need to know about the two units.
The danger facing Gase and the Jets right now is a splintering in the locker room. It would be easy for the defense to resent the offense right now. That was one thing the players discussed Monday. Williams said veteran center Ryan Kalil’s message stood out to him among the players who spoke.
“What he was saying was we just have to stay level-headed and not get too high when we win and not get too down when we lose and just not being on a roller coaster and just stay level,” Williams said. “He’s been in this league for a long time, so hearing it from a guy like that meant a lot.”
Williams said the players are trying to keep believing.
“There has been some vets that spoke up and said they were on teams that were definitely a lot worse than this,” Williams said. “We have a lot of talent. We’re 0-4 right now but the season’s not over and we still have a lot to fight for.
“This is not the time to point fingers at any position, any group. This is a time to fight for one another and lean on one another.”