Things are getting dicey for Aaron Glenn and the New York Jets.
Again.
And just four games into the season.
Coming off a 3-14 first year under Glenn, the Jets have lost three in a row after winning their opener. They were thoroughly dominated by Chicago in a 23-12 loss
on Sunday, a performance that left fans increasingly frustrated and the Jets insisting the franchise's past failures weren't seeping into the locker room.“We're not going to let one game
define us,” center Josh Myers said.
Glenn will be in serious trouble if they do. Losses to Green Bay — when they blew a 10-point lead and lost in overtime — and Detroit — when they rallied from 14 down to tie late, only to lose in the final moments — included some flashes of improvements and optimism, providing a vibe that seemed different, and in a good way.
But the beatdown by the Bears was a huge step back. Chicago had more first downs (34) than New York had total plays on offense (32), perhaps the most mind-blowing stat in a game with so many lopsided examples. The Bears, by the way, ran 89 plays and never punted.
“We don't really have much time to be ‘woe is me,’” defensive tackle Jowon Briggs said.
After the game, Bears linebacker Devin Bush said it was "one of the easiest NFL games I ever played in. I’m not sore at all.”
Glenn wasn't miffed by the comment, saying it's “common sense” if the Jets' offense was only on the field for 32 plays.
New York had only seven first downs, 157 yards and was 0 for 7 on third down. The offense couldn't get going and the defense couldn't get off the field.
“Our guys are not broken,” Glenn said when asked about the defense allowing a game-ending drive of more than nine minutes. “Our guys are all-in and I have total confidence in every player we have on that defense.”
Judging from social media and sports talk radio, the fans, however, might not feel the same about Glenn or many of those players.
“There are some positives that come out of this and sometimes everybody just focuses on the negative part of it," Glenn said. “But our deal is, man, we’re going to make sure to try to continue to improve on that. And hopefully, from the outside, our fans will see that. Again, we’re just looking at next week. We’re just trying to go 1-0 each week. That’s the only thing we’re focused on.
“And that’s the only thing I want our fans to focus on. We’re going to flush this game. We’re going to move ahead."
Not much, if anything. But one of the positives Glenn highlighted was the defense stiffening in the red zone against Chicago, which went 2 of 7 inside the New York 20-yard line.
You name it, but penalties were a glaring problem for the Jets, who had 12 in Chicago and rank fifth in the NFL with 37 this season. New York would've had five takeaways against the Bears, but three interceptions — yes, three! — were nullified by penalties.
Safeties Minkah Fitzpatrick and Dane Belton. In his return from a groin injury suffered in the season opener, Fitzpatrick ended the Jets' 20-game interception drought and had 16 total tackles. Belton, perhaps the Jets' best free agent signing this offseason, has been a solid starter and had 14 total tackles and a pass defensed against Chicago.
Frank Reich's offense. Geno Smith threw 15 passes the entire game and Garrett Wilson was targeted four times, finishing with three catches for 27 yards. Running back Braelon Allen shouldered some blame saying he “let the team down” for failing on two early blitz pickups. “That hindered us from getting the pass game going,” he said. But Allen, who ran for 59 yards on 14 carries, was far from the only culprit. “We never really got into a rhythm,” Myers said. Reich needs to adjust things for an offense that's missing a few key players because of injuries.
CB Jarvis Brownlee Jr. is in the concussion protocol. ... Edge rusher Braiden McGregor could miss significant time with a chest injury. ... RB Breece Hall (quadriceps), WR Adonai Mitchell (finger), TE Mason Taylor (thumb), LG Dylan Parham (knee) and LB Kiko Mauigoa (quadriceps) all missed the game with injuries.
45 — That's how many seconds the Jets had the ball on offense in the fourth quarter while trying to mount a comeback. “It's definitely different,” Allen said. “It's unfortunate. ... I thought our defense played well all day and we've got to do better capitalizing off the turnovers they make and when we get a short field.”
A must-win game in early October? Well, it very well might be when the Jets host the Cleveland Browns, who are off to a 3-1 start.
“Three straight losses, it’s tough to stomach," Myers said. "And we all do feel it and we need to win. We didn’t necessarily see the results in these last three games, but we will, we’re going to.
“We’re going to win games. I have all the faith in the world in that.”
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