Photo via Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images
The New York Jets’ three-game winning streak that helped turn their season around came to an abrupt halt Sunday evening. The final score 45-19 doesn’t even begin to tell the complete story. To sum it up, the Philadelphia Eagles outplayed the Jets at every position on the field. It was ugly. Very ugly.
THE GOOD
- Despite getting their asses handed to them by the Eagles, the Jets are not out of playoff contention. They are tied with the Cincinnati Bengals for the sixth and final wild card spot. However, with two winnable regular season games left on the calendar, the Jets still control their own destiny.
- For once, a team’s special teams unit played worse than the Jets. The Jets recovered two fumbles, a muffed punt and a fumbled kickoff by the Eagles. And, Antonio Cromartie was effective returning punts (five kickoff returns, 146 yards). But none of this mattered because the Jets were unable to capitalize.
THE BAD/THE UGLY
- The Jets were terrible on offense. Well, defense too, but let’s start with offense. Early on, their momentum was thrown off due to turnovers (4), penalties, and a collapsing offensive line. Mark Sanchez (15/26, 150 yards, 2 TDs) did not have much support from his teammates. Santonio Holmes dropped the ball, literally, and was the cause of an interception on the next drive. Both turnovers resulted in TDs for the Eagles. Then, after Holmes and the Jets were finally able to score a touchdown, Holmes was hit with a 15-yard taunting penalty. It was just one of those frustrating days when Gang Green looked completely unprepared and out of synch.
- One week after Shonn Greene had his way against the Kansas City Chiefs, the Jets ground ‘n pound defense was simply grounded by the Eagles. Philly held the Jets to 94 rushing yards and 0 rushing TDs. And here comes my obligatory Brian Schottenheimer complaint. The Jets ran the ball fairly well very early on, but seemed to switch game plans after a couple of turnovers. They never recovered.
- Wayne Hunter continues to put Sanchez’s life at risk, week after week. Sanchez was sacked four times and two were credited to Hunter. Pass rusher, Jason Babin, was simply too much for him to handle, as most pass rushers have been this season. Babin continuously blew past Hunter and racked up three sacks for the day, while Sanchez struggled to get comfortable as he stayed under pressure the majority of the game.
-Opposing tight ends and running backs have posed a problem for the Jets D, all season. These problems were magnified on Sunday as Brent Celek and LeSean McCoy shredded the Jets defense to pieces. Celek finished the game with 1 TD and 156 yards, while McCoy rushed for 102 yards and had 3 TDs on the day. With no Jim Leonhard, quarterbacks will continue to avoid throwing toward Antonio Cromartie and Darrelle Revis. Instead, they’ll take advantage of Eric Smith and Brodney Poole because those two haven’t shown they have a clue about how to cover the middle…at all.
Next week, the Jets face the New York Giants on Christmas Eve. Both teams are coming off embarrassing losses and desperately need to win out if they intend to make the playoffs. I’ve said it before, but this time it’s really true, the Jets’ playoffs begin now!
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The “sweet” JETS must have thought they wearing Tutu’s vs. the Eagles this past Sunday becuse they were playing like Ballerinas.