A season full of promise and hope, so quickly dashed. The Jets lost to the Steelers on Sunday 31-13 to fall to a putrid 1-4 for the season.
There are many fingers that can be pointed at this point in the season. One can look at Ryan Fitzpatrick's offensive inefficiency, especially in the red zone. Another can look at the star-studded defensive front that has failed to put any pressure on the opposite quarterback since they sacked Andy Dalton seven times in the first week.Others will be quick to point to Todd Bowles' lack of risk-taking in his play calls, evident in his decision to punt on fourth and inches at midfield. Or maybe one can lambast the disastrous secondary, with or without Revis, that continues to give up big yardage plays--Sammy Coates was this week's lucky winner for the Steelers.
Whomever you want to point your finger(s) at, there is no denying that the team as a collective has simply underperformed. Apologists will point to their brutal schedule to start the season, something that's been highlighted too many times to count. However, it's simply: the Jets have shown that they aren't in the same class as the elite teams in the NFL.
Now is this all Fitzpatrick's fault? Some will have you believe that a quarterback change is what the Jets need at this time, even myself last week. Yet, even Fitzpatrick had a fairly decent game, going 25/38 for 255 yards, 1 TD and no picks. It's actually the supposedly vaunted defense that let the team down. As previously mentioned, defensive front has shown no production since Week 1.
But even when the defense is solid, the offense will sputter. There hasn't been a game this season where both the offense and defense have look good at the same time. This lack of cohesion is concerning and doesn't bode well for the rest of the season. Todd Bowles realizes this and has taken responsibility for the joint woes of the team. Without that cohesion, a team can't win on a consistent basis. The defense relies on the offense and vice versa. When one is functioning and the other isn't you get games like this week, where the offense had no turnovers but the defense didn't fulfill its part. Good teams don't have this problem.
Now at 1-4, the Jets would have to put in a lot of work to make the playoffs. Only five teams have ever started the season 1-4 and have had the playoffs, including the 2002 Jets. As their schedule gets considerably easier the rest of the way, the Jets would conceivably have to go at least 8-3 to even be a fringe Wild Card team. The bad news is that they still haven;t played the Patriots, meaning those two games will be hard to win. Plus, the next two games are at Arizona and home for the Ravens.
Therefore, it is safe to say that the Jets' playoff hopes are grim and their chances of making it are slim to none. So what should the Jets do? Should they start one of their rookie quarterbacks and tank for a high pick? Or should they try and remain competitive for the rest of the year and at least attempt at making the playoffs? That decision will be made by the man who is under a good deal of scrutiny in Todd Bowles. How he manages the rest of the season will determine whether or not he returns as the HC in 2017.
For now, it's onto Week 6 against a Cardinals team that has performed below their own expectations. As of now, it seems Fitz still has the starting gig, but he is definitely on a short leash. But even with good quarterback play, the Jets still need to step it up defensively. If the New York Sack Exchange can have a midseason revival, and Revis comes back healthy and ready to ball, perhaps there will be some glimmer of hope for a season that started out so dismally.
