JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jets dropped to 1-6 on Sunday with another ugly loss, this one 29-15 to the Jaguars. Here are some thoughts and observations from the game:
1. The question I have gotten more than any other from people both privately and in any interviews I’ve done recently is about Adam Gase and his future. When the game ended Sunday, I had a text from a coach of another team who asked “one and done?” and I feel like that is what is on the minds of fans on Monday morning.
I don’t think the Jets will get rid of Gase after one season. I also don’t think they should. The issues run deeper than the coaching right now. I’m not saying he is doing a good job because the last two games have been awful and he has done poorly making adjustments.
But I don’t even want to argue the question of whether he should be back. Here are three reasons I believe he will be back that are more objective than subjective:
– The Jets handed him the keys to the franchise in May when they bounced Mike Maccagnan as general manager and then turned around and hired Joe Douglas, who was Gase’s top choice for the job. Christopher Johnson committed to Gase at that point. I don’t think he will reverse course seven months later.
– Todd Bowles and Maccagnan are both under contract through 2020. So, if the Jets fired Gase, they would be paying Bowles, Gase, the new coach, Maccagnan and Douglas next season. That feels untenable and financially irresponsible for any organization when each of them makes millions of dollars.
– You will stunt the growth of Sam Darnold if you fire Gase. Now, you will be asking him to learn a third offensive system in three years in the NFL. That is a recipe for ruining a young quarterback. Look at what happened to Alex Smith in San Francisco. He did not play well until he got stability with Jim Harbaugh.
The results for Gase have not been there. The light portion of the Jets schedule now begins. He needs to get this offense going to salvage something from this season, but he should not be coaching for his job.
2. The Jets have a long list of problems right now, but to me the No. 1 issue is the offensive line. This group is as bad as I’ve ever seen and it’s not getting better. I’m not sure how the Jets can fix it in season. In the offseason, this has to be priority No. 1 for Douglas. They are going to have to spend money in free agency and use draft picks to restock this line. I think there could be four new starters in 2020. Alex Lewis looks like the only keeper right now.
But that does not help the Jets for the next nine games. Darnold was under siege on Sunday, sacked eight times and hit 13. He had no chance behind that line. The running game is non-existent because there are no holes. You can scream that Gase needs to call screens or roll Darnold out more and that would help, but that is not the solution.
Maccagnan had a blind spot when it came to the offensive line. He did not draft linemen enough and felt he could plug holes with “value” players like Kelvin Beachum, Brian Winters and Jonotthan Harrison. That is coming back to bite the Jets. They knew this was a vulnerability going into the year. That is why Douglas signed Ryan Kalil and traded for Lewis. That did not fix the problem.
The Jets are not going to see front sevens as strong as the Jaguars and Patriots all season, but right now it feels like even a weaker defense will have success against this group.
3. Le’Veon Bell has been a stand-up guy all season and has said all the right things to support his team. But Sunday he was not in the postgame locker room when reporters were allowed in. It may have been as simple as he had family at the game he wanted to get to quickly. But it could have been about him being upset with his usage Sunday. Bell touched the ball 12 times. He had nine rushes for 23 yards and caught three passes for 12 yards. He was targeted two more times.
Bell is the Jets’ best player. They need to get him move involved. Yes, the holes are not there, but the Jets can’t abandon the run. Gase has to commit to feeding Bell the ball and not relent. In the passing game, there have to be ways to get him more involved with short throws and screen passes.
4. The Jets defense should not escape blame for Sunday. They gave up big plays, allowed receivers to run open and committed some terrible penalties. The unit clearly misses C.J. Mosley, who ran the defense. The news on Mosley is not looking good. The Jets have not said anything yet, but the signs are pointing to Mosley being done for the season.
The Mosley situation is just another case of the Jets’ terrible luck. Mosley missed three games in five years with the Ravens. He’s missed five games already this season and it looks like it could be 14 total.
Revealing stat: The Jets have allowed 34 sacks already this season in seven games. In 2009, when the Jets had the best offensive line in football, they gave up 30 sacks in 16 regular-season games.
Surprising snap count: Defensive lineman Kyle Phillips played 46 out of 76 snaps (61 percent), the exact same amount as Leonard Williams and Quinnen Williams. Phillips, an undrafted free agent out of Tennessee, has been a bright spot for the Jets.
Game ball: Tight end Ryan Griffin scored two touchdowns in the game. That is the first time a Jets tight end had two touchdowns since Dustin Keller in 2011, according to ESPN. Griffin has done a nice job filling in for Chris Herndon and the Jets offense will be able to do some two tight-end looks when Herndon returns.
For more on the Jets’ loss to the Jaguars, listen to the latest episode of the “Gang’s All Here” podcast: