The Jets managed to beat Buffalo 27-20 despite a team-record 20 penalties for 168 yards, and there was no bigger meltdown or guiltier culprit than Kyle Wilson.
The volatile cornerback had a meltdown of epic proportions, with penalties on four straight fourth-quarter snaps to get benched and hand the Bills a game-tying score.
“In the heat of battle, some things happen. We needed to get him out of there, sit back, think about it, calm down — and that’s exactly what we did,’’ said coach Rex Ryan. “You can’t put your personal situation in front of the team’s. I think that’s what we had to remind him of. Kyle came back and responded, played well after that.’’
It’s a lesson that nearly cost the Jets, who somehow overcame Wilson collecting more flags than the Opening Ceremonies of the Olympics.
“Rex wanted to cool me off. But that’s officiating, and I’m not going to comment on that,’’ said Wilson, who sat the rest of that drive and the next before returning for the Billls’ last three possessions. “Rex wanted to take me out and just cool me off. I played physical out there and that’s all that was.’’
With the Jets leading 20-6 in the third quarter and threatening to blow the game open, Wilson was called for a 24-yard pass interference on T.J. Graham, setting up a 43-yard field goal. But Wilson was just getting warmed up. With Gang Green up 20-12 in the fourth, Wilson was flagged on four consecutive snaps, the latter two rushes of temper and personal fouls.
On third-and-6 from the Buffalo 24, he got called for defensive holding, but a Buffalo taunting penalty offset the flag and negated the play. When they finally ran the play, EJ Manuel threw incomplete to Stevie Johnson but Wilson got flagged for illegal contact that negated that play and handed the Bills a first down.
On the next play, David Harris forced a Fred Jackson fumble that Sheldon Richardson recovered at the Buffalo 32, but Wilson got caught pushing a Bills player for another flag that negated the turnover. The MetLife crowd had barely finished booing by the time Wilson gave up a 14-yard catch to Johnson, then followed with a 15-yard personal foul.
Wilson sat out the rest of that drive — which Manuel capped with a 33-yard touchdown and game-tying two-point conversion — and the next, as the staff let him mull the error of his ways. But he returned as the Jets held Buffalo scoreless in the last three possessions.
“We had to keep our composure because there was a lot of foolishness going on that drive. It came back to bite us in the butt, because we gave up a touchdown in that drive. But it will get fixed. It will get fixed,’’ Harris said forcibly.
“It’s football: Everybody’s competitive. Every now and then you lose your head, but the coaches on the sideline calmed him down, told him he means more to the defense than a few penalties and he came back and played well for us. We’re all professionals at the end of the day. He knew what he had to do to get back on the field and he did it, and he helped us out a lot.’’