Zach Wilson of the Jets can capitalize on his great performance by breaking the slow-starts pattern.
Stephen A. sends a strong message to the Jets: “You better win this game” (1:41)Rich Cimini, ESPN editorOctober 8, 2023, 6 a.m.
ETDENVER – A look at what’s happening around the New York Jets:1.
Avoid the chicken egg: Quarterback Zach Wilson hopes to achieve some level of consistency with another good game Sunday against the Denver Broncos (4:25 p.m. ET, CBS).
He can start by…well, start quickly. The Jets and Minnesota Vikings are the only teams yet to score in the first quarter, with Wilson making eight consecutive starts without a touchdown in the opening period.
As a result, the Jets are always playing catch-up. The Jets and New York Giants are the only teams that have not played a lead offensive game this season.
Wilson is well aware of the slow start and is committed to reversing the trend.“Absolutely, we have to do it, and it all starts with me,” he said. “I need to play better from the start and get the boys going.”
Jets quarterback Zach Wilson comes out of his first game with two touchdown passes and no interceptions.
AP /Adam Hungry The Jets punted on their first three possessions and found themselves down 17-0 in last week’s 23-20 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, with Wilson taking responsibility for punting on his first pass to third position, victim of a missed shot.
Young quarter backs sometimes struggle at first because they need time to get used to the pace of the game. They also need to process what they see from the defense and figure out the best way to attack.
Not everyone can be Aaron Rodgers, who has an incredible 110-17 touchdown-to-interception ratio in the first quarter of his career. Of course, it’s a one-way street.
“I definitely think you go into a game, but I almost feel like the defense does too, so we have to come out fast as well,” Wilson said. “They’re getting more and more accustomed to what we’re doing on offense, so we have to be able to come out early.
Screw third downs. Let’s do some first tries on the first and second try. Let’s start fast and take some big actions right from the start.”2. Perennial problem: Slow starts are nothing new for the Jets.
In two seasons plus coach Robert Saleh, their first-quarter point differential (minus-92) is at the bottom of the league. This year they are tied with the Giants for the worst differential (-30).3. Triplet?
Wilson posted his first NFL game last week with two touchdown passes and no interceptions; it took him 25 starts to do so. He has never had three touchdown passes in a game, which is unusual for a player with so many starts.
Only seven quarterbacks in the last 20 seasons have failed to record a three-touchdown game in their first 25 games as a starter, including Chad Henne, who recently attracted interest from the Jets.4. Motion Man: One way the Jets tweaked the offense last week was to incorporate more pre-snap moves. According to ESPN Stats & Information, they made some form of movement on 40% of their plays. The previous high was 28%.
The movement often forces the defense to reveal its coverage, which can allow Wilson to better understand the play before the snap. Rodgers is not a fan of pre-snap moves because they can slow down the pace.
We’ll see if the Jets offense continues to develop this way.5. Invisible WR: Mecole Hardman’s last trip to Denver was great: eight catches for 103 yards in the 2021 season finale, a 28-24 victory for the Chiefs.
The times are changing. Hardman, good enough to play a starring role in a perennial Super Bowl contender, is a small player for the 1-3 Jets. Sunday could be a good scratch.It’s the biggest mystery of the Jets season:
Where is Hardman? Hardman, who played just 22 carries (one reception, no rushes), wonders the same thing. He is an explosive player with the ball in his hands, but last week he was the only position player who didn’t receive a single touch.
Hardman, who signed a one-year contract worth $4 million in free agency, was behind rookie Xavier Gipson in the wide receiver pecking order. “I’m probably the best in the league in space,” he told ESPN. “Maybe (the coaches) see something different.
I’m just waiting for the opportunity to present itself to me. I think when I was in K.C. I proved that I was probably the most dangerous man on the jet, whether it was on the end or on screen.
I think I’ve proven over the last year that I’m the guy you need to worry about if you’re doing this.6. Stat of the Week: The defense has gone seven straight games without allowing a touchdown in the second half.
That’s what we call good halftime adjustments.7. Zoom, Zoom: Need someone to pressure the quarterback? Bryce Huff is your guy. Few players in the league do it better than the Jets linebacker.
Huff, who joined the roster as an undrafted rookie in 2020, ranks seventh in overall pressure rate (20.7%) among edge players with at least 50 pass rushes, according to NFL Next Gen Stats.
He’s in pretty good company. The group ahead of him includes Micah Parsons of the Dallas Cowboys (27.3%) and Myles Garrett of the Cleveland Browns (25.6%).
Here’s a nugget that might blow your mind: Since 2022, Huff leads the league in this category (24.4%) despite only 217 pass rushing opportunities.
That’s the problem with Huff; he’s a third-down specialist. He won’t get much playing time, although he saw more first- and second-down action than usual last week. “When you think of Bryce Huff, you think of a Lamborghini,” former Jets defensive end Vinny Curry said on the “Flight Deck” podcast. «He Enlarges. He’s zooming, man.’Huff smiled when he heard Curry’s comment.
“He’s the OG,” said Huff, who added that Curry’s no-holds-barred approach to training “changed the way I prepared for games, practices, camp and everything. ” Super Bowl. I took the same approach to everything.
Huff, who will be a free agent after the season, said they “haven’t even talked [about a new contract] yet.”8. Back and ready: Carl Lawson, their high-profile 2021 signing, has slipped to the back of the defensive line rotation in terms of playing time.
He has just three tackles and one quarterback pressure. back. Coaches insisted it was only because he needed time to acclimate after missing a month of training camp with a back injury.
Law son said he’s ready – now.“I feel like my body finally got me back,” he said, adding that he expects to be more productive than last year (seven sacks).9. Rocky Mountain Jets: The focus is on offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett versus Broncos coach Sean Payton, but there are other coaching subplots for this game.
The Broncos’ staff includes four former Jets assistants: Mike Westhoff (assistant coach), Ben Kotwica (special teams coordinator), John Morton (passing game coordinator) and Joe Vitt (senior defensive assistant).
Then of course there’s Vance Joseph (defensive coordinator), who played cornerback for the Jets in 1995.10. The Last Word:
“There isn’t a better booster in the NFL right now. He’s playing at an elite level in my opinion.” – defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich on Quincy Williams, who leads the Jets with 39 tackles
