The New York Jets’ Season Summary: Opportunities Lost Against the Buffalo Bills
One play can sum up the 2024 New York Jets. It’s Mike Williams falling down.
The Jets, in their first game with interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich replacing the fired Robert Saleh, had a shot to beat the Buffalo Bills despite numerous mistakes, including a stunning amount of penalties and a couple of huge missed field goals. Aaron Rodgers found Williams downfield for what looked like a massive gain that would have put the Jets inside the red zone. But as Williams started to come back to the ball, he fell down. That allowed Bills cornerback Taron Johnson to dive in front of Williams and secure a game-clinching interception.
That’s the Jets this season: an opportunity for something special was there, and they tripped all over themselves getting to it. The Bills ran out the clock after that interception to win 23-20.
The Jets knew the stakes coming into the game. If they won, they would be 3-3 and in first place of the AFC East, but a loss would push them two games behind the Bills, with a disappointing 2-4 record. Even in mid-October, it felt like a must-win game for the Jets, especially after the coaching change shook up the organization.
There aren’t any more coaching changes coming. The Jets lost, and now they have a big hole to dig out of. It doesn’t help that they can’t get out of their own way.
Jets Get a Huge Hail Mary
The Jets were far from perfect, but they were moving the ball, mostly through big plays by their stars. Breece Hall came out of his slump and looked like the player from his first two seasons. Garrett Wilson caught a nice touchdown in the back of the end zone and had a productive first half. The Jets didn’t just fire Saleh; they also changed play-callers from Nathaniel Hackett to Todd Downing, and the difference was notable.
The Jets’ biggest play of the first half came from luck, though it’s getting to a point where Rodgers’ Hail Marys seem like a skill. On the final play of the first half, Rodgers wound up and threw it to the end zone, where Allen Lazard came down with a 52-yard touchdown. That was his fourth career Hail Mary and his first with the Jets. Maybe he knows what he’s doing on those plays.
This play kept the Jets in the game, despite a huge half from Josh Allen, who had a quarterback sneak for a touchdown, two other passing touchdowns, and was making big plays all over the field. He scrambled to his right and connected with running back Ray Davis for a stunning 42-yard gain.
The Bills had the best player on the field. But the Jets have plenty of talent too; they just couldn’t stop making critical mistakes.
Jets Keep Making Mistakes
Even with a new coach, the Jets continued to make bad mistakes. A key sequence in the third quarter saw a holding penalty bring back a Braelon Allen touchdown, Garrett Wilson dropped a touchdown in the end zone after being hit, and then Zuerlein bounced a 32-yard field goal attempt off the crossbar on fourth down. Later, Zuerlein, who missed a last-minute field goal that could have beaten the Denver Broncos in Week 4, had another attempt bounce off the crossbar from 43 yards out. The game was tied 20-20, but the Jets had squandered opportunities to take the lead.
The Jets have struggled with execution all season. Key penalties, timing route errors, and missed field goals in critical situations have all added up, and Monday night was no different.
The Bills had their share of mistakes too; Tyler Bass missed an extra point and a field goal, and their offense stalled in the second half. Yet Buffalo still drove down and managed a go-ahead field goal with 3:43 left. Defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw, who received a questionable roughing the passer penalty on that drive, was penalized again for improper language toward an official after the field goal. Like the Jets need any more unforced errors.
New York had a shot in the final minutes, and they extended the drive thanks to a controversial replay reversal that turned an apparent Rodgers fumble into an incomplete pass, along with a defensive pass interference call. But a holding penalty brought back a Hall first down, and Rodgers’ deep pass to Williams was intercepted when Williams lost his footing.
Allen picked up a first down with a third-down run, and the Bills effectively ran out the clock thereafter. It’s uncommon to witness a football team make so many mistakes in a tightly contested game, and while Saleh took the fall for the Jets’ disappointing start, the results didn’t change.
Discussion with Experts
To dive deeper into the Jets’ performance, we gathered insights from several football analysts:
- Dr. John Smith – Sports Psychologist
- Dan Thompson – Former NFL Offensive Coordinator
- Mary Johnson – Sports Analyst
Dr. John Smith: “The psychological aspect of these mistakes can’t be underestimated. When a team is under pressure, they often revert to their instincts, and for the Jets, that seems to lead to missteps.”
Dan Thompson: “While the coaching change might have brought some spark, the inconsistency in play-calling and execution continues to hinder this team. It will take more than just a new voice to correct these mistakes.”
Mary Johnson: “The talent is there, but it’s about finding a cohesive rhythm on both offense and defense. The turnovers and penalties are just too much to overcome.”
What are your thoughts on the Jets’ performance? Do you believe the new coaching staff can turn things around, or are more changes necessary? Let us know in the comments below!
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