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Maybe it wasn’t a good thing . . .
So some surmised it was good for the Jets to face the Patriots twice earlier in the season, first in Week Two, and then in Week Seven, since the Pats have a history of not having the strongest starts (by their high standards) and generally get better as the season progresses.
But as we got into yesterday, getting the Patriots early actually turned into a nightmare for the Jets on Sunday. The two biggest problematic areas were the offensive line and secondary, due to the amount of diagnosing and communication involved with those units.
Yesterday we got into the offense line, and today we will get into the pass defense; the Pats’ pass offense ran circles around the Jets, especially in the first half.
You really have no chance against New England’s passing attack when your cover guys aren’t on the same page – NO CHANCE. And that was the case for the Jets’ pass defense in New England.
And not helping matters was some of the blitzes that were called – BLITZING TOM BRADY IS A VERY BAD IDEA. Brady’s QB rating historically against blitzes is almost perfect.
The Jets’ pass defense had a lot of bad plays in New England, but one of the worst was on third-and-one on the Pats’ first drive when blocking tight end Ryan Izzo snuck out and was wide open for a gain of 41. Jamal Adams blitzed from that side. I’m not blaming Adams here because I don’t know if Izzo was his responsibility, but if Adams didn’t blitz, he would have been in space on the side the pass was completed, and could have helped prevent such a long gain. But for nobody to cover Izzo sneaking on a third-and-one is amateur hour. Blocking tight ends have been sneaking out into routes for decades. You need to be prepared for this.
Jets cornerback Nate Hairston had a rough game and one example was when he was out of position on Phillip Dorsett’s 25-yard TD catch- and-run on the right side in the first quarter. Not only was he out of position, but he stumbled trying to play catch up.
On the play before the TD, Jets cornerback Trumaine Johnson, getting a rare rep, had a play that should probably lead to him going back to the bench. It was a second-and-seven, and Johnson was so far off Josh Gordon, he was in almost in Boston. Gordon ran an out in front of him for a gain of 17. Gordon is very good, but not a speedster. This was a dereliction of duty to play that far off.
First play of the second quarter, the Patriots ran a combination route on the right side with Julian Edelman and Jacoby Meyers. Brian Poole was on Edelman, but Hairston didn’t get out fast enough to Meyers, who hauled in an easy 18-yard grab.
In the middle of the fourth quarter, on first-and-10, on Jarrett Stidham’s first NFL pass, Hairston was too far off Dorsett who caught an easy 11-yard pass. I have no idea who is teaching this kind of coverage in the NFL these days or maybe he did it on his own.
There was plenty more.
Brady vs. a secondary not on the same page is recipe for disaster.
September 26, 2019
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