Jet loss not worth price of discounted tickets
The poor souls who shelled out five bucks to attend the latest chapter of this miserable Jets season were the real losers on Monday night. They severely overpaid. Desperate online brokers tried to unload tickets at bargain-basement prices. You could gain entry for the same cost as a MetLife Stadium hot dog, which turned out to be way too expensive given the home team’s lifeless performance in a 41-10 loss to the Colts.
The Jets were an unmitigated disaster in their fourth consecutive defeat, a disjointed mess playing at a comically poor level in front of a half house.
“They kicked our ass,” Todd Bowles said. “I don’t think we had a lot of effort…. It’s very troubling when you get your ass kicked.”
Vice President-elect Mike Pence witnessed the carnage with Woody Johnson in the owner’s box. It’s too bad The Donald wasn’t there, too. He would have fired all of their underachieving derrieres.
The Jets were mathematically eliminated from the playoffs after suffering their worst loss since a 31-0 drubbing in San Diego two years ago (see: Geno Smith’s missed meeting/movie-going saga).
There was a preseason vibe about this night, filled with golf claps, tepid boos and plenty of apathy.
Jets fans were cheated by an undisciplined and uninspired team that dropped to 3-9.
It was a pathetic performance by everyone. The defense was beyond embarrassing. The offense was a no-show. Even the punter was bad.
“We all played like s-—-,” Mo Wilkerson said.
Ryan Fitzpatrick (5-for-12, 81 yards, INT) was replaced by Bryce Petty (11 for 25, 135 yards, 1 TD, 2 INTs) in the second half. Bowles revealed his plan all along was to start Petty for the final four games of the season regardless of this outcome.
“I didn’t get it done,” said Fitzpatrick, who will transition to full-time mentor to Petty and rookie Christian Hackenberg.
Bowles presumably fielded 11 guys on defense, but Andrew Luck looked like he was throwing against air for much of the night. The Jets defensive line was manhandled by one of the worst offensive lines in pro football. Bowles’ unit gave up nearly five yards a clip to a fossil running back before intermission. His linebackers and defensive backs were awful. Evidently covering Indy’s tight ends was optional.
Luck (22-for-28 for 278 yards, 4 TDs, 147.6 passer rating) hooked up with tight end Dwayne Allen for three first-half touchdowns. He would have thrown a fourth to tight end Jack Doyle just before halftime if Doyle didn’t fumble out of the end zone. Chan Gailey’s offense was equally brutal. “We probably had six or seven mistakes in the first eight plays all from different players, myself included,” Fitzpatrick said.
Petty hooked up for a 40-yard touchdown to Robby Anderson in the fourth quarter, but hardly looked sharp.
“I’m going to work my ass off,” Petty said about his impending month-long audition. “These next four games are going to be big….This is what I want. I want a long career and I want to be here. This is where this starts.”
There were a million reasons why the Jets looked lost in primetime.
Bowles’ team committed a ridiculous three personal fouls in the first 20 minutes. The lack of discipline falls directly on Bowles, who was heated on the sideline in the first half after his team’s comedy of errors.
“I’m angry every time we lose,” Bowles said. “I’m not going to sit here and throw the podium at anybody because that would be a lawsuit. But if I could, I would.”
For all the talk about playing for professional pride in the final month of the season, it looked like nobody in green and white wanted to actually play football in front of a national TV audience. It’s fair to wonder whether some players have quit on Bowles, who will certainly hear rumblings about whether he’s now coaching for his job.
“I coach for my job the first day I took this job,” Bowles said.
Luck, whose team moved into a threeway tie atop the AFC South at 6-6, easily carved up Jets on his first two drives to seize control. He found a wide-open Allen twice for 7- and 21-yard touchdowns to take a 14-0 lead midway through the first quarter. The Jets were out-gained 144-29 in an embarrassing opening quarter, but Johnson’s paying customers barely had enough energy to boo.
Luck & Co. piled on with Allen’s third touchdown to give Indy a 24-3 cushion at intermission. The Jets justifiably were booed off the field.
Bowles’ defense, so ticked off by its anemic first-half performance, gave up a 70yard touchdown drive to begin the third quarter, prompting inquiring minds to wonder what the heck they actually talked about at halftime.
Everybody should be ashamed. Everybody should be embarrassed.
Everybody should wonder about their future on this team, because nobody is safe. ROBERT SABO/DAILY NEWS Number of times Todd Bowles used the word ass or asses as in “They kicked our ass” during postgame presser.
Leonard Williams. We’re reaching here, but the secondyear defensive lineman had three quarterback hits, a half sack and 10 tackles.
The New York Jets football team.
Nobody showed up.
A cross-country trip to visit the one-win San Francisco 49ers.
Todd Bowles finally waved the white flag and turned the quarterback page. Bryce Petty will start for the rest of the season. “We all played like s---.” – Mo Wilkerson
FBoth quarterbacks were awful. A pathetic display and effort by just about everyone.
FEven the punter was bad.