Last Sunday, the New York Jets took on the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium. While the Jets were able to remain competitive in that game, the number of mistakes they made is what ultimately doomed them. The mistakes made, and the past nine weeks of the season are a large reason why this team is still winless. Their last win was last year in Week 17 against the Buffalo Bills practice squad. Essentially, a rookie QB in Justin Herbert outdueled veteran QB Joe Flacco who was making his second consecutive start for the injured QB Sam Darnold. The Jets right now remain in position to get the first overall draft pick and will likely take Trevor Lawrence, assuming he doesn’t hold out from the draft like Peyton Manning did to us Jets fans back in 1997.
The offense played well. However, I would have like to see more offensive production in the first half of the game as opposed to those screen plays or runs up the middle that do nothing. Flacco completed 15 of 30 passes for 205 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 1 interception. The lone interception he threw happened to be a pick six. Just when it appeared that the Jets were gaining momentum after recovering a Chargers fumble within the 5-yard line, Flacco threw a very costly interception, turning a 6- 0 lead into a 7-6 deficit. Oh and Sam Ficken missed two extra points after coming back from injury. A large part of the offensive production was in the second half when the Jets were already down 24-6 and it would have taken a miracle to come back from.
In terms of the defense, they were horrendous. They now lead the league with the most roughing the passer penalties and just could not get off the field. They were unable to get third down stops, continued to commit costly penalties, and allowed Chargers WR Keenan Allen to have a monster game. Just when we thought the Jets were going to make a comeback possible, the defense ended up giving the points scored by the offense right back. On a positive note, the Jets special teams were able to block a punt today on the very first Chargers possession. It was the first time since Week 13 of 2018 that the Jets blocked a punt. However, this would end up being a minor detail in the game though as the offense sputtered and the defense was burned by big plays.
This week, the Jets will travel back home for a rematch with the Miami Dolphins. Back in Week 6, the Jets were shutout 24-0. They will hopefully be looking for a different outcome though. The good news is that they hope to have Darnold back from his shoulder injury. This addition along with Perriman, Mims, and Perine should hopefully be enough to execute a winning game plan. These next six weeks will be a great indicator on whether Darnold’s future remains with the New York Jets or if he will be more successful in a different organization. Don’t worry Jets fans...maybe your team can force Tua into making some costly rookie mistakes.
-Jack Henry Cicio
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