New York Jets vs. Tennessee Titans: Full Report Card Grades for New York
In what was an ugly and mistake-filled contest, the New York Jets claimed their first road win and just their third victory of the season.
Both the Jets and the Tennessee Titans entered the game with 2-11 records, and the Week 15 battle will go a long way toward deciding the draft order.
New York was flat for most of the day, particularly in the first half. It made several key mistakes and was consistently victimized by its own penalties.
However, the ineptitude of the Titans kept Rex Ryan and Co. in the game and ultimately allowed them to come from behind and claim the victory.
Click through for full grades and analysis for each of Gang Green's positional units in the win.
Quarterback
1 of 10
No one in this game played particularly well, but Geno Smith showcased some grit and toughness.
The second-year quarterback, fighting off the speculation of Marcus Mariota, started off slowly, as he failed to connect with his receivers and move the offense.
He was even called for an intentional grounding in his own end zone, which gave the Titans a safety and added to their lead.
Additionally, Smith sometimes struggled with pocket awareness. He failed to identify where the pass-rushers were coming from and paid the price on multiple occasions.
However, Smith woke up when he needed to, leading two impressive touchdown drives in the final quarter-and-a-half.
The West Virginia product made some nice throws on both drives, and his downfield block on a Chris Johnson Wildcat run put the game in New York's corner.
Smith's performance won't be revered, but he did enough to earn a positive grade.
Grade: B
Running Back
2 of 10
The Jets were expected to tear up the Titans on the ground.
New York entered Week 15 with the second-best rushing attack in the league, while Tennessee ranked dead last in run defense.
However, the Titans made things a lot tougher for the Jets than most thought, as they stacked the box and got push up front throughout the afternoon.
Chris Johnson, playing against his former team, was bottled up for most of the day. However, he exploded through a big hole for a 38-yard gain to set up the game-winning touchdown in the final minutes.
Chris Ivory had no such big run, as he managed just 25 yards on 12 carries. Ivory's play has dropped off in recent weeks, possibly because of the damage his running style does to his body.
Johnson and Ivory weren't helped by their blocking, but both struggled to locate holes and make an impact on a day where they should have shined.
Grade: D+
Wide Receiver/Tight End
3 of 10
The receiving corps had one of its worst outings of the year on Sunday.
Percy Harvin, playing in obvious discomfort after spraining his ankle last week, didn't catch a single pass on three targets.
The other top target, Eric Decker, did finish with 100 yards—his first 100-yard outing of the year. However, he was responsible for a crucial drop late, and he stepped out of bounds on what would have been an 81-yard touchdown in the third quarter.
The secondary targets continued to be invisible, as Jeremy Kerley, Jace Amaro and Jeff Cumberland combined for just three catches on the afternoon.
Smith gets a lot of flak for his struggles this season, but the receiving corps certainly hasn't given him a lot of help.
Grade: D
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Offensive Line
4 of 10
The offensive line should have dominated in this one, as it was matched up against a terrible Tennessee defensive front.
However, the unit struggled to get any consistent push over the course of the game, and it was subpar in both run blocking and pass protection.
Against the league's worst run defense, the Jets averaged fewer than four yards per carry. The line was the primary reason for the abysmal showing, as it showed no toughness or strength at the point of attack.
Smith was also under pressure for most of the day. He ended up taking three sacks and five quarterback hits, per ESPN.com, despite his mobility saving a couple of takedowns.
Additionally, the line was responsible for several key penalties that backed the offense up and stunted drives.
The line has talent, but it's made up of veterans who are seemingly incapable of stringing together consistent performances.
It needs to be revamped in the offseason.
Grade: D
Defensive Line
5 of 10
The defensive line, once again playing without superstar Muhammad Wilkerson, couldn't repeat its disruptive performance from last week.
The unit struggled to get to the Titans' signal-callers, particularly Jake Locker. Locker eluded several pass-rushers and used his legs to make plays.
With Charlie Whitehurst in the lineup, the pass rush was more visible, as it forced several errant throws from the veteran signal-caller.
Sheldon Richardson was quiet after last week's epic performance, but Quinton Coples, who started for the injured Wilkerson, was terrific.
The third-year man recorded the team's only sack, along with two tackles for loss and four quarterback hits. With more playing time, Coples has shown that he is a dangerous pass-rusher.
The line was solid against a weak Titans run throughout the night as well, with the exception of one drive in which former Jet Shonn Greene rattled off several nice runs.
Grade: B-
Linebacker
6 of 10
Along with the defensive line, the linebacker corps failed to get a hold of the Tennessee signal-callers.
None of the linebackers recorded a single sack or quarterback hit, and pressure provided by the unit was few and far between.
In the running game, the unit was much better. It slowed down Shonn Greene and the other struggling Titans runners, and Tennessee averaged just 3.2 yards per carry on the day.
David Harris and Demario Davis didn't have the kind of impact they normally do, combining for just 13 tackles. In addition, Harris dropped an easy interception that probably would have gone for six points.
Mark that up as another missed opportunity for this defense.
Grade: C+
Secondary
7 of 10
The secondary wasn't terrific, but it was good enough to put the Jets in a good position to win.
The unit started off soft, as it struggled to keep hold of Tennessee's receivers, especially when Jake Locker extended plays with his feet.
Phillip Adams was especially bad. He continues to have a tough time in the starting role.
However, the secondary got better as the game went along, although it was certainly aided by Charlie Whitehurst's poor accuracy.
Calvin Pryor made a couple plays on the afternoon, and Dawan Landry made a huge game-saving tackle on Delanie Walker to prevent a Titans touchdown as the clock expired.
This unit has been so bad this year that a mediocre performance from it can be classified as a good one. That's exactly how it played today.
Grade: C+
Special Teams
8 of 10
Nick Folk missed his third field goal in as many weeks in the first quarter and came extremely close to missing another a quarter later.
Granted, both kicks were from beyond 50 yards, but Folk's reliability has certainly dwindled in recent weeks.
The return game was also solid, as Percy Harvin and Jeremy Kerley had a couple nice runbacks to put the offense in decent starting position.
In a game decided by field position, Ryan Quigley was the standout, though.
Quigley averaged over 50 yards a punt on seven attempts. He consistently backed up Tennessee's offense and made life easy for Gang Green's defense.
You could make the argument that he was the MVP of Sunday's game.
Grade: B
Coaching
9 of 10
Rex Ryan's troops came out of the gate looking slow, soft and disinterested, and they remained that way for two-and-a-half quarters.
Penalties and missed opportunities continued to plague the team. The Jets have shot themselves in the foot so many times that it's hard to even think there's any part of the foot remaining.
However, the team, perhaps sparked by a big brawl midway through the third quarter, came to life late.
It's hard for Ryan to get anything out of his players in such a trying season, and it doesn't help that the Jets lack the talent to win games consistently.
It's clear the head coach still cares, though, and a victory, although sloppy and insignificant in the long run, is still a victory.
Marty Mornhinweg's offense struggled to move the ball in the first half but had a lot more success later on. Mornhinweg obviously came in expecting to dominate Tennessee on the ground, but that wasn't the case in the slightest.
Nonetheless, Mornhinweg did a nice job changing up his game plan and opening up the offense a little bit. His changes ultimately led to some success.
Grade: B-
Cumulative Grade
10 of 10
| Positional Unit | Grade |
| QB | B |
| RB | D+ |
| WR/TE | D |
| OL | D |
| DL | B- |
| LB | C+ |
| Secondary | C+ |
| Special Teams | B |
| Coaching | B- |
Cumulative Grade: C-
This wasn't a good performance from the Jets. In fact, it was a pretty poor one.
However, the Jets did something they have struggled to do all season—win in a close game, albeit against a terrible opponent.
New York played sloppy and mistake-filled football for the entire contest, and its long-run prospects were certainly hurt by the victory. But the point of football is to win games, and that's what the Jets did.
Rex Ryan and Co. are still a bad team. They might even be an awful team. But Sunday proved that they aren't the worst team and that they still care about wins and losses.
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