Nevermind, The Jets Are Useless | The Cutting Edge W/JackKnife

That's my thoughts after another week of New York Jets football. I was right about the outcome that took place in their matchup against the Chicago Bears. The only thing I was wrong about was that I expected the Jets to at least be competent enough to kick an extra point so prediction of a 23-13 loss would be totally accurate. Instead, Gang Green lost 23-12.

I wanted to believe in this team. I wanted to be wrong, but alas I wasn't. Now, it's got me reconsidering my position on tanking this year. All the problems of this game can be found on one side of the ball. Let's get into it

Can't stop a nosebleed

There is one thing we can take solace out of the defense's performance. Ladies and gentlemen, the streak is over!  After 637 days, the Jets finally recorded an interception! Minkah Fitzpatrick was the man who brought an end to this suffering.  But even then, it's painful, because the Jets actually picked the ball off four times today, and three times it was negated by a penalty.  Two of the penalties were obvious, but the one that negated T'Vondre Sweat's pick was the definition of refball.  Look at a replay and look at Azareye'h Thomas (#1) on the right side. It what was it that an illegal hands to the face?! It gets more ridiculous when comparing it to when the Jets had the ball later in the game.  The biggest crime of this phantom penalty, they deprived us of a fat guy turnover!  John Madden is rolling in his grave as we deprived him of something he loved.  Seeing fat guys do good things on the football field.

In all seriousness, that phantom penalty gave the Bears new life on that drive when it should have been Jets ball.  This would lead to the Bears first touchdown of the game on fourth and goal after the Jets stopped them on fourth and goal the first time around.  Later in this blog, I am going to cut the defense some slack.  Afterall, they did force two turnovers today, one the Fitzpatrick interception, the other a fumble recovery by Brandon Stephens.  Still, this was not a good game for the defense.  

Case Keenum did not start for the Bears for some reason, but it didn't matter.  In stepped Tyson Bagent and he looked like Jim McMahon the way he handed the ball off to Kyle Monangai who looked like Walter Payton out there, rushing the ball for 146 yards and two touchdowns.  Bagent completed 25 of 34 pass attempts for 268 yards.  Chicago racked up 492 yards on the game! That is unacceptable and I am sure the Jets defense will tell you that.  However, they need to be cut some slack, because it was not entirely their fault.  

What even is offense?

The reason why we can't lay the woes of the defense solely at their feet is because the offense gave them no help, and I mean, no help.  After the goal line stand at the beginning of the game, the offense went three and out and it was a sign of things to come.  The Jets total time of possession (of this 60 minute football game) was 17:15, while failing to convert a single one of their seven third downs.  The Jets offense ran 32 plays to the Bears 89.  That's why Bagent looked like McMahon and Monangai looked like Payton, because the Jets offense was so incompetent that they made the Bears defense look like their team from '85.  

Geno Smith threw for 119 yards today, completing eight of 15 passes.  58 of those yards came from a 58 yards touchdown pass to Isaiah Williams in the fourth quarter.  The Jets defense, for all their faults today, gave their offense the ball in their opponents territory twice today, and both times, the Jets could not punch in a touchdown and settled for field goals.  The most heinous example of Smith's incompetence today was the drive that came after Fitzpatrick's interception.  This was pointed out on the Fox broadcast.  Smith had Garrett Wilson open down the center of the field for what would have been a touchdown, but I guess Smith just didn't see him and checked down instead.  I wanted Smith to keep proving me wrong, but this is much more like the version of him I was expecting this year.  

Kenyon Sadiq did not record any receptions and was only targeted four times.  Wilson too was only targeted four times, catching the ball three times for 27 yards.  Braelon Allen, to his credit, ran for 59 yards, but the Jets lack of pass offense would have made it difficult for any running back to compliment their game.  

It might be time to tank

I hate saying that because I was hoping for the Jets to play some meaningful football late in the year, and I was against tanking in my previous blogs.  However, the way things are going right now, it's just getting bleak.  

We've seen this for the past decade plus of Jets coaches saying how disappointed they were and how they need to be better.  This tweet from @NYJets_SitRep perfectly encapsulates it.  To paraphrase his take with mine, Glenn is slowly realizing that his ceiling on an NFL coaching roster is as a defensive coordinator and not the head coach. His teams are pretty much never prepared and undisciplined. Yes, there was a phantom penalty or two, but you can only blame the officiating for so much when you get called for penalties at a rate three times higher than your opponent! This falls on Glenn's shoulders.

I do not know for sure who to replace Glenn with?  But for sure, I want an offensive minded head coach (not by the name of Adam Gase) who is going to clean stink of bad offense that has plagued this team for most of it's existence.  It might just be in the Daren Mougey's best interest to just fire Glenn now and focus on next year. 

The Jets need a franchise quarterback.  It was never going to be Smith.  We were hoping this team would be competitive and the Colts as well as the Cowboys and Packers would both suck so they could be a high enough draft pick for us to get our guy.  Well not only are the Colts, Packers, and Cowboys all .500 now, Buccaneers, Chargers, Dolphins, Texans, and Titans are all winless.  It's safe to assume some of those teams (if not all of them) are embracing the suck to land Arch Manning.  God help the Jets if he ends up in South Beach. 

The Jets did not suck hard enough for Trevor Lawrence and they did not suck hard enough for Fernando Mendoza, and if they don't get a high enough pick and have to settle for Dante Moore, they're probably walking into yet another Zach Wilson situation of having a guy whose style works in college but won't translate well to the pros. 

Back home next week

This upcoming Sunday, the Jets return to the depressing and lifeless air conditioner they call home in MetLife Stadium.  They will be taking on the Cleveland Browns, led by Deshaun Watson who is somehow on a redemption arc? That was not on my bingo card.  Regardless, the Browns lead the AFC North with a record of 3-1.  So once again, the Jets have their work cut out for them. 

When MetLife is shaded blue instead of green, I feel like I am getting teased.  That's because the New York Giants are succeeding despite their number one quarterback Jaxson Dart being out for the year, and in spite of the circus that is famous Jameis Winston.  That's because the Giants actually have competent leadership this time around in John Harbaugh.  Now, I am a good husband.  I root for Big Blue's success as long as they're not playing the Jets for my wife.  But with the Giants securing wins at MetLife with interceptions on the final drive for two straight weeks and their fans go absolutely berserk, I am reminded of what that stadium could look like every other Sunday with a successful, or at the very least competent Jets team.  

I'd like to think Jet fans would be just as loud if not louder given how starving we are for a measly playoff birth the past decade and a half.  Certainly Wilson, and Sadiq among others guys help, but this organization just keeps finding ways to get into their own way.  With an owner like Woody Johnson, we can only hope that he somehow accidently hired the right general manager in Mougey.  Obviously I am not calling for Mougey's head.  He has made a lot of good moves and he was not the one who hired Glenn, after all.  But he has his work cut out for him in all the areas this team needs fixed.  Assuming Mougey does not show Glenn the door this week, if the Jets lose to the Browns on Sunday, I think that's when he will need to turn the page to next season, and this is not what Jet players will want to hear, but that's going to mean us Jet fans hoping that the team somehow outsucks the Dolphins so Gang Green can get our franchise quarterback and hopefully develop him right this time around so he can save this miserable franchise.     

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