Jets Offensive Line Rises To The Occasion
Despite a few running plays that collapsed for negative yardage, the offensive line played great today. The third down efficiency was 13-20 for 65% which is excellent. The Jets had 157 yards rushing and 331 yards passing for 488 total net yards. The Jets offensive line also cut down on their penalties. The most telling statistic is that Josh McCown was not sacked once. McCown’s skill to extend plays today and knowing when to throw the ball away helped, but the protection stood up for the whole game. When the offensive line plays together and is winning the push at the line of scrimmage it makes all the difference in the world.
Jets Defense and Tyreek Hill
If you take away all the big plays the Chiefs made, the Jets defense did not play awful. I cannot understand why the Jets would single cover Tyreek Hill, the fastest player in the NFL without help from the safeties over the top. The first TD pass to him over Rashard Robinson was just too easy. He ran right past him. The second TD over Morris Claiborne was also easy. The Chiefs picked up Hill in the fifth round of the 2016 draft. Before you pound the Jets for not taking him, keep in mind Tyreek Hill has a checkered past with a domestic violence issue against his pregnant girlfriend. I won’t give you details but if you read the report, the Jets are probably better off without him. But he is a special talent!
Linebackers Demario Davis, Julian Stanford, Jordan Jenkins were very active today and played well. Stanford missed a few big plays but the Jets linebackers may be the surprise of the year for the defense. Despite not showing up in the stats, Leonard Williams had a very good game chasing Alex Smith and disrupting the Chiefs offensive line.
Chiefs Big Plays
When you look at the time of possession, Jets 42:49, Chiefs 17:11, it is amazing the Jets didn’t win by more. This stat is a bit ambiguous when you see the number of big plays the Chiefs had throughout the game. They had two one-play drives for touchdowns.
Let’s Look at the big plays in no particular order:
Alex Smith 70 yard run
Travis Kelce 32 yard pass reception
Travis Kelce 36 yard pass reception(TD)
Tyreek Hill 79 yards pass reception (TD)
Tyreek Hill 40 yard pass reception (TD)
Tyreek Hill 40 yard pass reception (this one was at the end of the game)
More Credit For Todd Bowles
It will be hard to convince me to become a Todd Bowles fan with the in-game decisions I have witnessed in his three seasons as head coach. Game after game he seems to make the wrong decisions. His two-minute drill is atrocious. His demeanor is questionable during a game. His leadership and discipline is not up to what I like in an NFL head coach. But the one thing I have to give Todd Bowles credit for, it is his changeover in assistant coaches. Bowles realized at the end of last year he needed almost a complete make over with his assistant coaches and he went out and got a bunch of new ones. Before the season the Jets were considered the worst talented team in the NFL. Many predicted one or no victories for gang green. Surely GM Mike Maccagnan would have his choice with the three-headed can’t miss quarterbacks in college. When football fans try to find the reason or reasons the Jets are over achieving this year, maybe one should look at the new coaches he hired. Here is the list:
John Morton, Offensive Coordinator
Kevin Greene, Outside Linebackers
Jeremy Bates, Quarterbacks
Stump Mitchell, Running backs
Lennard Wilson, Defensive Backs
Robert Nunn, Defensive Line
John Morton is doing an incredible job with this offense. Kevin Greene has the linebackers playing well above what everyone expected. The other coaches have the players they focus on playing competitive in every game. It is December and the Jets incredibly are not mathematically out of the playoffs. If you detest some of the things Todd Bowles does on the field remember that the best army Generals depend on their officers for success. This is one part of the Todd Bowles coaching era that is paying dividends.
Green Tidbits
…..Chiefs allowed the Jets nine attempts from inside the five yard line…..WR rookie Chad Hansen needs to be targeted more.....Whatever Darron Lee did to be inactive, he should spend his free time working on his pass coverage…..Give the Jets credit, down 14-0 we all thought they were done and were ready to go outside and rake leaves. They played with heart today…..McCown’s running ability is more and more impressive every week…..In the second quarter, Revis did not look like he wanted to be out there. Or he belonged out there…..As well as McCown played, he did miss Robby Anderson long ahead of his defender. Too many times in a season for this…..Besides Kearse’s great one handed catch, Sefarian-Jenkins made a nice one for short yardage…..Mo Wilkerson act is wearing thin going back to missing meetings last year. He is great when he wants to play but looks too much like the typical pro who signs a big contract then coasts. Very disappointed in him…..Jermaine Kearse has 16 catches for 262 yards over the past two weeks…..Silver lining in Pats victory over Bills, if there is such a thing, David Harris had 2 tackles and 1 1/2 sacks…..
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