1 week Ago
PITTSBURGH – It turns out Davante Adams wasn‘t the answer to all the Jets’ problems. And former coach Robert Saleh wasn’t the cause of all of them. Now their season, which started with championship aspirations and has already seen their coach fired, is on life support long before they reach November.
The Jets lost to the Steelers 37-15 on Sunday night, extending their losing streak to a dismal four straight games. The first three losses of the streak were marked by squandered opportunities in close games, with the Jets losing by a combined 10 points. This was an embarrassing beatdown, in which the Jets lost a game they had to have, to a team they were more talented than, because they got outplayed badly when it mattered most.
Championship contenders? The Jets didn’t even look like a playoff team as they surrendered 31unanswered to end the game on a night their untimely mistakes cost them dearly. And none was more costly than Aaron Rodgers’ interception in the final two minutes of the first half that changed everything. Adams was a non-factor, catching three passes for 30 yards in his Jets debut.
Rodgers finished 24-of-39 for 276 yards, a touchdown, and two interceptions. And Breece Hall’s impressive night – he finished with 141 yards and a touchdown on 18 touches, including six catches for 103 – was for naught as the Jets (2-5) once again found a way to lose. The Jets gave up 24 unanswered points over a 19-minute span from the end of the first half to early in the fourth quarter to dig themselves into a 30-15 hole with 12:09 left in the game.
The turning point was an interception by Rodgers in the final moments of the first half. The Jets were in control of the game at that point, leading 15-6 after scoring back-to-back touchdowns and they were in a prime position to add to their lead at their own 36 with 1:30 left in the half and the Steelers kicking off the ball to start the second half. But everything changed when Rodgers forced a pass to over the middle of the field to Garrett Wilson, who was well covered.
Steelers rookie cornerback Beanie Bishop picked it off and the Steelers quickly marched down the field for a touchdown to cut the deficit to 15-13 at halftime. By midway through the third quarter, the Steelers led 16-15 when Rodgers threw another interception trying to get the ball to Wilson – although this one fell squarely on the hands of the receiver, who dropped a ball he should have caught, and could only watch as it careened right into the hands of Bishop who nearly returned it for a touchdown – Adams made a remarkable tackle to keep him out of the end zone, but backup offensive lineman Xavier Newman suffered a neck injury and was quickly ruled out of the game after being carted off the field on a spinal board. The Steelers scored on the very next play: a one-yard run by Russell Wilson to take command of the game.
And they didn’t look back adding another touchdown early in the fourth quarter to extend the lead to 30-15. The Jets drove down the field midway thorugh the fourth quarter with a chance to cut into the lead, but their drive stalled out at the Steelers 25 when Rodgers couldn’t find Adams on fourth-and-5 and they turned the ball over on downs. It was a nightmare night for Wilson, who also committed multiple false start penalties.
And another poor game for Rodgers, who couldn’t keep the momentum the Jets had in the first half when they scored touchdowns on back-to-back drives and had made the raucous crowd at Acrisure Stadium go silent. By the start of the fourth quarter, the Terrible Towels were waving relentlessly, the noise was deafening, and they now find themselves in a 2-5 hole that Rodgers, Adams, and Haason Reddick, who is set to finally report to the team on Monday, might not be able to dig this team out of. Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust.
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