3 takeaways from the Jets' Week 7 loss to the Carolina Panthers
Fans attend a game between the Jets and the Carolina Panthers at MetLife Stadium on Sunday. Credit: Jim McIsaac
The Jets are regressing offensively. Here are three takeaways from their 13-6 loss to Carolina.
1. You can’t win with this offense
It feels as if we’re back in 2022 and 2023, when the Jets’ defense played well enough to win but they got nothing from the offense. In today’s NFL, you can’t go two games without a touchdown. It’s remarkable and it’s crippling.
The Jets’ defense allowed 13 points to Denver in London last week and 13 points Sunday. That should be good enough to win, but it’s not when you produce five field goals in 23 drives.
“We gave up too many points,” Aaron Glenn said Sunday.
Glenn made the quarterback switch from Justin Fields to Tyrod Taylor, but that didn’t change anything. They led one field goal drive each. Taylor threw for 80 more yards than Fields, but Fields’ passer rating (59.7) was better than Taylor’s (25.9) because Taylor threw two interceptions.
The bottom line is the Jets don’t have enough weapons, which we all knew coming into this season. But with Garrett Wilson (knee) unable to play, Carolina loaded up the box and took the running game away.
Offensive coordinator Tanner Engstrand’s play-calling hasn’t done the Jets any favors. A running back screen once in a while would do wonders. There’s a lot of blame to go around on that side of the football, though.
2. Too many protection issues
The Panthers came in with five sacks all season. They had six against the Jets, sacking Fields and Taylor three times each. This is after the Broncos sacked Fields nine times.
Yes, the quarterback needs to get rid of the ball more quickly, but the line is not doing its job and giving the quarterback time to throw.
“We got to be better and it starts with me,” left guard John Simpson said. “I’m supposed to be the older guy on the line, and a leader, so I got to be better in that standpoint.”
Penalties by the line also are hurting the Jets. The offense has enough trouble moving the ball; going backward doesn’t help. Simpson was called for two drive-killing penalties — an unnecessary roughness and a false start. The Jets went three-and-out on both.
Simpson has been called for four unnecessary-roughness penalties this season. He said he should have avoided one Sunday, but a Carolina defender stuck his thumb in his neck, according to Simpson.
“It was the craziest thing I’ve ever experienced in a game,” he said. “I was trying to get it off, and I couldn’t. So I grabbed his facemask and I was trying to get him off like that. I could have avoided that by just simply putting my hands up, so I take full accountability for that. It was stupid on my part. It put my team in a bad spot. I can’t do that again.”
3. Breece banged up
The Jets could have used more Breece Hall, especially with Wilson out. But Hall got “dinged up” late in the first half, in his words, and it affected him for the rest of the game. He had just 13 touches for 52 yards and wasn’t in the game late.
Hall said it was a hip-drop tackle that hurt him. The NFL banned that because it causes injury. It’s a 15-yard penalty, but the officials didn’t call it.
“The ref’s right behind us and he didn’t call it,” Hall said. “I kind of could feel it. When you feel a dude’s butt following your leg, it’s not hard to tell what type of tackle it is. He’s not just falling on you to fall on you. They didn’t call it.”
If Hall is limited for next week’s game and Wilson isn’t back, the Jets’ offense could look and perform worse than it has, and that’s saying something.
Al Iannazzone covers the Jets for Newsday after spending nearly two decades on the NBA beat with Knicks and Nets.
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