The Jets got crushed 30-0 by the Dolphins on Sunday and were eliminated from playoff contention, meaning their playoff drought is now at 13 years. Here are some thoughts and observations from the game:
1. Robert Saleh usually says the right things in press conferences but I thought he delivered a terrible performance after Sunday’s game and showed a lack of accountability. He kept talking about how the Jets got beat up front, seemingly putting the entire blame for this mess on the offensive line.
Yes, the line was terrible and that is where the problems started for the offense, but how about coaching? The Jets had momentum after last week’s win over the Texans. Yet, they showed up Sunday looking like they had not practiced all week. They did not look prepared and were completely outcoached by Mike McDaniel and his staff.
There are two people who need to point the fingers at themselves after a loss publicly – the coach and the quarterback. Even if they don’t truly believe it is their fault, they need to say, “This is on me. I’ll get it fixed.” We killed Zach Wilson for not taking accountability after losses last year and he is 20 years younger than Saleh.
Saleh likely will get a mulligan for this season and return in 2024 since Aaron Rodgers went down on the first series of the season. He just has to avoid big mistakes that are going to irritate owner Woody Johnson. The owner had to be embarrassed by Sunday’s performance on the field and then Saleh did not help himself at the microphone. All season there has been too much excuse-making from the Jets. Yes, they were dealt a tough blow with the Rodgers injury. Yes, their offensive line injuries have been numerous. But look around the league and you’ll see plenty of teams winning or at least playing competitive football with backup quarterbacks and backups at key positions. The Dolphins were missing their best player – Tyreek Hill – and several other starters on Sunday. They looked fine.
Saleh has three weeks to get this team to look like an NFL team. If it doesn’t work, he needs to take the blame, whether he wants to or not.
2. Standing in the losing locker room at Hard Rock Stadium, I was thinking about how many terrible Jets losses I’ve been at in this building. The Jets have not won in Miami since 2014, Rex Ryan’s last game. Since then, I’ve seen Ryan Fitzpatrick throw two interceptions; Antonio Allen go offsides on a kickoff that set up a 96-yard kickoff for a game-winning touchdown in 2016; the Jets blow a two-touchdown lead in the fourth quarter with Josh McCown throwing a killer interception in 2017; Sam Darnold throw four interceptions, including a pick-six, in 2018; the winless, tanking Dolphins beat the Jets in 2019; a 24-0 shutout in 2020; Zach Wilson getting sacked six times in 2021; an 11-6 season-finale loss last year and then Sunday.
The last time the Jets beat the Dolphins as the “road” team it was in London. Maybe the Jets can ask the NFL to put them overseas again next year against the Dolphins.
3. There should be no discussion around Rodgers playing again this year. That talk should now be completely dead with the Jets eliminated from playoff contention. If the Jets even entertain letting him play, they are dumber than I think.
The only question is whether Rodgers pushes to play. If he does, the Jets better have the stones to tell him no. There is nothing to be gained by playing Rodgers this year and playing him behind this offensive line is a potential disaster.
4. We put a lot of focus on offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett when we talk about the Jets’ struggles. There were two other coaches hired last offseason to seemingly fix the Jets offense – passing game coordinator Todd Downing and running game coordinator/offensive line coach Keith Carter. The Jets offense somehow has gotten worse than last year. If Woody Johnson is looking to throw someone overboard for this mess of a season, Downing and Carter could be candidates.
Revealing stat
The Jets averaged 1.87 yards per play on Sunday, the third-worst average in team history. The only games that were worse were on Dec. 12, 1976, against the Bengals (1.13) and Jan. 9, 2022, against the Bills (1.15).
Surprising snap count
Dalvin Cook only played 10 snaps. I don’t get it.
Game ball
No one deserves the game ball after this mess.
