9 Takeaways from New York Jets' 25-27 Loss to Patriots
Despite one of their most inspired performances of the season against their biggest rivals, the New York Jets fell just a blocked kick short of pulling off an unlikely upset over the New England Patriots.
While far from perfect, the Jets put together a performance they could be proud of. Leaning on a strong running game, a turnover-free Geno Smith and a defense that came up with timely stops, the Jets played their cleanest, most efficient game of the season.
With six losses already on their record, the Jets are all but irrelevant in terms of postseason aspirations, but this was a sign that things are back on the upswing for Rex Ryan's Jets.
Here are takeaways from the Jets' loss in New England on Thursday night.
Rex Ryan Is Coaching His Heart out
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The Jets may be a 1-6 team, but not because of their head coach. On a short week coming off a game against the Denver Broncos, the Jets outplayed the Patriots in most facets of the game.
Had the Jets executed a few more times in the red zone, this game hardly would have even been close.
How dominant were the Jets? They had more than double the amount of time of possession than their rivals (40:54 to 19:06) and outgunned them by 100 yards. Ryan had an excellent game plan for Tom Brady, while he got Geno Smith to play turnover-free football.
If Nick Folk had gotten off his would-be game-winning kick, articles would be written about how good of a job Ryan and his staff did rather than lamenting yet another loss.
Few coaches survive seasons that start 1-6, but Ryan is making it as difficult as possible for the Jets to fire him. His team is back to playing inspired football, losing games because of talent—not coaching.
Chris Ivory Needs to Carry the Offense
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If the Jets are going to turn around their season at some point, they will need to ride on the back of running back Chris Ivory for the rest of the way.
Ivory was the bulk of the Jets' offense on Thursday night, and for good reason: his 21 carries went for 107 yards, good for a 5.1 average (including a touchdown).
Ivory's running did not just help sustain drives and get the Jets in favorable down-and-distance situations; the Jets were able to dominant the time of possession, giving their defense a much-needed break (especially coming off a short week of rest) to keep the score down, giving them a chance to win the game at the end.
Just as importantly, Ivory managed to stay healthy throughout the game. As long as Ivory is off the injury report, he needs to be getting a volume of at least 20 carries per game if the Jets are going to start winning games again.
Red Zone Woes Continue
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Between the 20s, the Jets beat the Patriots rather handily—it was near the end zone where the Jets ultimately lost the game on both sides of the ball.
The Jets started their scoring with four field goals. Had they scored a touchdown on just one of those opportunities, the complexity of the game would have changed entirely and the Jets may have pulled off the unlikely upset after all.
"Jets brought in Decker & drafted Amaro in large part for Red Zone. Not paying off tonight.
— Ross Tucker (@RossTuckerNFL) October 17, 2014"
Defensively, the Jets gave the Patriots offense fits for most of the game. However, the Patriots were able to score just enough on a handful of plays in (or near) the red zone, scoring the two touchdowns out of four trips that made the difference in the game.
When the field shrinks, it becomes harder to mask the Jets' talent deficiencies with scheme. At some point, players just need to out-play the guy lined up across from them—frankly, the Jets simply are not good enough to do that on a consistent basis.
Unfortunately for Rex Ryan, this is an issue that is serious enough that it may not be fixed until next season when the Jets can upgrade their personnel.
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Antonio Allen Falling Down to Earth
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To this point, Antonio Allen has been a valuable Swiss Army knife of the defensive backfield, doing everything from covering tight ends as a safety to lining up against top receivers as a cornerback.
However, as valuable as he has been to this point, there is no getting around the fact Allen was a liability in several occasions that wound up being the difference in the game.
Allen's first blunder came on the first drive of the game where his misstep allowed Shane Vereen to reel in a long touchdown. He was also in coverage on an incredible catch by Danny Amendola to convert a long third down into a touchdown.
While he surpassed all expectations as a former seventh-round pick, Allen showed off a few reasons why he was drafted so late in 2012.
Expect Allen to see a decline in his snap count over the next few weeks until he starts to play more like he did at the beginning of the season.
Calvin Pryor Steps Up
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Antonio Allen will not just lose snaps because of his own substandard performance—fellow safety Calvin Pryor gave the Jets even more reason to make a switch in the starting lineup. After Allen allowed the first long touchdown of the game, Pryor promptly replaced Allen and never looked back:
"Pryor replaces Allen in base D. Not a surprise after Allen's early mistake. Babin still in for Coples, who hasn't been producing. #nyj
— Rich Cimini (@RichCimini) October 17, 2014"
Pryor finished with a team-high eight tackles, five of which were solo. He was also sound in coverage, as the Patriots had a difficult time generating big plays against the Jets after making the personnel switch.
To this point, Pryor's rookie season has been inconsistent at best, as has his place in the starting lineup. As the first-round rookie continues to come along and Allen falls back to earth, expect to see a lot more of No. 25 on the field moving forward.
Jace Amaro Is the Top Tight End
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What was inevitable has finally come to fruition: rookie Jace Amaro has supplanted Jeff Cumberland as the top tight end on the Jets.
Cumberland enjoyed a bit of a bounce-back game after a quiet few weeks, outgaining Amaro from a yardage standpoint 50 yards to 22 (including a touchdown). However, based on how much more often Amaro was targeted and used in crucial situations, it is clear the Jets view Amaro as the top tight end on the roster.
When the game was on the line for the two-point conversion in the fourth quarter, the Jets (albeit unsuccessfully) called on Amaro's number.
Amaro still had another brutal drop (which continues to be a problem), but his raw ability has to excite the Jets. If he can improve his concentration just a bit, Amaro has a chance to be a true threat for a Jets offense that is starved for them.
Tale of Two Halves for the Offensive Line
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After a rough stretch of games, the Jets offensive line came out firing on all cylinders in both the run and passing game. Ivory had running lanes to get through while Geno Smith had enough time to eat a bowl of New England clam chowder while surveying the field.
Much of this new-found efficiency can be attributed to the insertion of Oday Aboushi at left guard, replacing the injured (and struggling) Brian Winters. While he did have a costly holding call that wiped off a touchdown, the Jets were noticeably more dominant protecting Geno since Week 1, and the Jets' time of possession numbers reflected that.
However, the line became more leaky as the game progressed, as the Patriots dialed up more blitzes to cause more confusion and missed assignments. Smith found himself on his backside far too many times (taking one hit serious enough to sideline him for a play), all the while being forced to leave the pocket quickly.
When the Jets protect Smith and give Ivory just enough running room to operate, the Jets have little difficulty moving the football, even with their depleted receiving corps. They are simply not consistent enough, particularly in the mental aspect of the game.
The good news is, if Aboushi can continue to settle into his new starting role and be an accidental upgrade over Winters, the Jets' line has a lot better chance of improving than getting worse over the course of the season.
Geno Smith Plays Clean
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It took seven weeks, but Geno Smith finally turned in a turnover-free performance—a huge step in the development of this sophomore passer trying to dig himself out of a slump.
While his 20-of-34 for 220 yards passing numbers with a touchdown don't jump off the box score, Smith played his smartest, cleanest game of the season. While he did lose the ball on a bobbled handoff, he did not let a pass go out of his hands that was in serious danger of being intercepted.
Smith was also impressive when using his mobility, picking up key first downs with his legs (seven carries for 27 yards) and getting out of the pocket to escape dead plays.
Smith still has plenty of room for improvement, especially when it comes to taking sacks—he has developed a bad tendency to drop back too far and cost the team unnecessary yards.
Still, Rex Ryan has every reason to be pleased with the performance of his quarterback, especially when the game was on the line and his pass protection was breaking down near the end of the game.
Despite getting hit over and over, Smith bounced back up and gave Nick Folk at least a somewhat-realistic chance to win the game. Even in a loss, this game was a huge bounce-back performance from a player whose attitude and ability has come into question in recent weeks.
Quinton Coples Becoming Irrelevant
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Rex Ryan can gush about the play of veteran outside linebacker Jason Babin all he wants (h/t Dom Consentino of NJ.com), but the drop in playing time for former first-round pick Quinton Coples is curious, to say the least.
With fellow outside linebacker Antwan Barnes active, a dip in snap count totals would figure to decrease for outside linebacker across the board, but Coples has been all but removed from the base Jets defense, only seeing a handful of snaps against the New England Patriots.
This is a trend that started last week, when Babin played two more snaps than the North Carolina product (36 to 34). He has just one sack on the season so far.
The front office that drafted Coples 16th overall is no longer in place, giving Ryan more leeway to bench him if he so chooses. Bringing out the "B" word is a bit harsh, but there is no beating around the bush that Coples has been a disappointment for the Jets based on where he was drafted.
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