Zach Wilson did not win over his teammates either during or after the New York Jets' 10-3 loss to the New England Patriots on Sunday.
Wilson struggled mightily and the Jets produced only 103 total yards and six first downs on offense. Coach Robert Saleh was even critical of the team and said New York's offense was “dog s***.”
Yet, New York seemed headed to overtime because of a terrific effort by its defense. That was before New England’s Marcus Jones returned a punt 84 yards for the game-winning touchdown with five seconds to play.
When asked postgame if he felt the offense let the defense down, Wilson had a simple, one-word answer.
“No.”
It’s difficult to imagine that went over well in the frustrated Jets locker room, especially among the defensive players who had six sacks, 10 plays for negative yards and held the Patriots to a single field goal Sunday.
Rookie corner Sauce Gardner said that he was “definitely” thinking the defense needed to make a big play or score a touchdown in overtime if the Jets were going to win.
That's because the defense didn't believe the offense was capable of putting points on the board.
Wilson was 9-for-22 in the air (40.9 percent) for 77 yards. He missed several easy throws to Denzel Mims and Braxton Berrios. He had no rhythm nor was he in sync with any of his receivers, including Garrett Wilson who caught two passes for 12 yards.
Zach Wilson said it was “super frustrating” and added “it was windy as hell out there.” Likely that excuse won’t sit well with his teammates either. Patriots quarterback Mac Jones completed 23 of 27 passes (85.2 percent) for 246 yards.
When asked if Wilson is holding the Jets back with his erratic play, coach Robert Saleh demurred.
“I don’t know, we couldn’t run the ball either, so there’s a lot of things that we’ve got to look at,” Saleh said. “It just wasn’t good enough. It’s not about pointing fingers at any one individual or one unit or one anything, it’s just about finding the answers so we can start moving the ball … the consistency needs to get found.”
Saleh was also asked if he considered benching Wilson in favor of Mike White during the disastrous second half, but he said “it was the furthest thing from my mind.”
Garrett Wilson looked downright angry on the field several times. The Jets leading receiver did not hold back after the game either, though he never specifically called out his QB.
Zach Wilson may not have endeared himself to the offense either when he said that frustration “goes both ways” between him and his receivers.
“There’s stuff I want them to do different and I get frustrated, as well,” Wilson said. “And then there’s stuff, I miss a throw high there and they’re frustrated, as well. It goes both ways. It’s not anyone pointing fingers here. This is everybody taking accountability.”
The loss dropped the Jets (6-4) into last place in the AFC East. However, they’re still in the thick of the playoff race. But Wilson and the offense will need to do their part moving forward, starting with a Week 12 home game against the Chicago Bears.
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