The New York Jets Stumble at Home Against the Denver Broncos, 10-9
The New York Jets faced a demoralizing defeat at home with a 10-9 loss to the Denver Broncos. A flurry of penalties played a crucial role in their undoing, marking Week 4 as one of their most undisciplined performances to date.
With 13 penalties committed, the Jets took the unwanted title of the most penalized team of the week in the NFL. Eight of these penalties were committed by the offense, further exacerbating the team’s struggles to maintain any offensive rhythm.
“We got to figure it out. Whether or not we're good enough to handle or ready enough to handle all the cadence. Cadence had not been an issue all camp. Felt like our operation had been operating pretty good. Obviously today took a major step back,” expressed head coach Robert Saleh, reflecting a sentiment of concern and urgency to address these recurring issues.
The Jets now have a 2-2 record for the 2024 season, a stark reminder of the inconsistency that has plagued them. Coming into Week 4, the Jets’ offense had only committed eight penalties over the first three weeks, ranking them as the 10th-fewest in the league. However, their sudden rise in penalties has put a glaring spotlight on their inability to maintain discipline under pressure.
Offensive penalties have been particularly problematic. The team ranked as the second-most penalized offense of the week, just behind the Houston Texans. Five of these penalties were false starts, dragging down any momentum the Jets' offense attempted to build. Left guard John Simpson and running back Breece Hall were each flagged for two false starts, while left tackle Tyron Smith was noted for one.
"That's one way to do it. The other way is to hold them accountable. We haven't had an issue. We've only had one false start. [Right tackle] Morgan had one false start I believe until this. You know it's been a weapon. We use it every day in practice. We rarely have a false start. To have five today it seemed like, four or five. Yeah, it seems like an outlier. I don't know if we need to make mass changes based on kind of an outlier game," stated veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers, highlighting that such an error-riddled performance is not characteristic of their usual standards.
Despite Rodgers' view on the outlier nature of the penalties, the issue of pre-snap discipline remains. Former NFL linebacker Luke Kuechly notably remarked on the effectiveness of Rodgers' hard count, emphasizing the significance it holds in the gameplay: “He nailed it: 'my hard count is a weapon.' The amount of big plays, go ask Jordy Nelson. 'Hey Jordy, do you think the hard count that Aaron Rodgers has is effective?' He would say, 'Yeah, I got paid a lot of money on go balls that Aaron threw me after a defensive lineman jumped offsides.'"
A critical moment in the final minute saw kicker Greg Zuerlein miss a 50-yard, go-ahead field goal with just 51 seconds left, sealing the Jets' fate. The missed opportunity underscored the day’s frustrations and inefficacies. As former Green Bay Packers receiver Davante Adams noted, “Aaron is all about the attention to detail. So, snap count, that's attention to detail. You got to be locked in on something like that. We always talked about in Green Bay 'that the play is hard enough to win on its own, so let's not lose it pre-snap.' ... At least let's get our pre-snap operation smooth.' Everybody hears the same snap count in the huddle, so there's really no excuse for one of these things. Holding people accountable, I agree (with Rodgers). Sometimes that's what you have to do versus run from it. Have certain consequences if guys can't get right.”
The Jets now face the challenge of correcting these errors and regaining their composure. As they move forward from this narrow loss, the team must confront these issues directly if they hope to revert to the disciplined form they exhibited in the season’s opening weeks.