Don't say these Jets have quit on their coach or themselves, because they haven't. The Jets put together a spirited effort Saturday night against a playoff-bound Houston Texans team and nearly pulled out the upset.
Certainly in the NFL there is no such things as a morale victory, but Saturday's game certainly felt like it. The Jets played with a pizzaz and determination that we have not seen since the very early part of the season. For a team that was supposed to roll over for the Texans, they gave Houston everything they could.
Sam Darnold was nothing short of brilliant as he guided the Jets to one of his best days of the season, completing 24 of 38 passes for 253 yards and two touchdowns, as the Jets held a 22-19 with five minutes to go in the game before Houston stormed back for the winning touchdown.
On Saturday Darnold showed both poise, accuracy, and a willingness to improvise to make plays for his football team. And the Jets fed off his every move.
Trailing 16-3 lat in the second quarter, Darnold just turned things up to a second gear. On third and three from the Jets own 24, he scrambled for 10-yards and a first down. On the next play he connected with Chris Herndon for 16-yards to move the ball to midfield. Four plays later, Darnold went up top to Robby Anderson for 26-yards to the Houston five.
Finally, the Jets franchise quarterback scrambled out of trouble and dumped the ball off to Andreson who was standing in single coverage in the end zone for the score to make it 16-9.
Darnold and the Jets kept their feet to the pedal in the second half, as the quarterback guided New York on an eight-play 60-yard scoring drive to start the third quarter. The biggest play of the drive came on third down when Darnold hit Anderson for 20-yards whiles scrambling to his left, away from defensive tackle JJ Watt. Soon Elijah McGuire and Trenton Cannon got into the mix, as the Jets pounded the rock on three consecutive plays to move to the Houston 13, before Darnold sent a dart to the back of the end zone and into the hands of Andre Roberts for the score.
Unfortunately for the Jets they trailed 16-15 only because kicker Jason Meyers missed two critical extra points. Had Meyers made those kicks the Jets would have had a 17-16 lead. Later on when the Jets found themselves down 26-22, those two points proved critical to New York's last attempt to win the game late.
Still, trailing 16-15, the Jets defense pinned its ears back and started to harass quarterback DeShaun Watson, who had no chance against the Jets vaunted pass rush. Whatever Todd Bowles dialed up on Saturday it worked. The Jets sacked Watson six times on Saturday, three of them coming from defensive end Henry Anderson. Even Jamal Adams collected a sack on the day, and Buster Skrine almost had a sack on a safety blitz. Until the Texans late rally in the fourth quarter, the Jets defensively were putting on a clinic on the Texans.
New York finally grabbed the lead when McGuire was carried in by his offensive line from the two-yard line to give the Jets a 22-19 lead. Darnold was - of course - on point on the drive, completing four of six passes, and even running for a 14-yard gain to move the ball to the Texan two.
Unfortunately for the Jets, it wasn't enough. The sloppiness that hurt the Jets early in the game started to rear its ugly head again. Morris Claibourne was called for holding on DeAndre Hopkins that cost the Jets dearly on third down.
Watson started to pick apart the Jets after that as he connected on four straight passes, including the touchdown to Hopkins to give the Texans a 26-22 lead.
While the Jets let this game slip out of their hands, they played with the kind of guts that fans have been looking for all year. Unfortunately for Todd Bowles, it may be too little too late. But for Sam Darnold? Well, let's just say the Jets are in good hands at the quarterback position for years to come.
No comments:
Post a Comment