EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — For the third straight week, New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers had to explain a loss in which his team lost a chance to win the game on its final possession. This time he seemed more frustrated (and worried) than ever.
“We need to get going,” Rodgers said Monday night after the Jets, in their first game under interim coach Jeff Ulbrich, fell to 2-4 with a 23-20 loss to the Buffalo Bills in MetLife Stadium. “This was a golden opportunity. Some games are won in the NFL and others are given away. This was a gift.”
Not only did he criticize the Jets' performance, but Rodgers also questioned the officiating. The teams combined for 22 penalties and 204 yards, including 11 for 110 yards by the Jets, who suffered the same problems under former coach Robert Saleh.
“It seemed a little ridiculous,” Rodgers said of the officiating. “Some of [the calls] I thought it was really bad, including the aggression that the quarterback gave me. [by AJ Epenesa]. That's not roughing the passer. You could also play Sarcastaball. [a reference to the TV show ‘South Park’] If we are going to call those things. And I thought that the [Javon] “Kinlaw wasn't roughing up the passer either.”
Rodgers also lamented a “phantom holding call” by tackle Tyron Smith that negated a Braelon Allen scoring run that would have given the Jets a 27-20 lead in the third quarter. They earned no points, as Greg Zuerlein missed his second field goal of the night.
The Jets, who fired Saleh last Tuesday, capped a tumultuous week with a performance that smacked of many others. There were too many penalties and too many wasted opportunities.
Under new playmaker Todd Downing, who replaced the demoted Nathaniel Hackett, the offense managed to produce 393 total yards, but went 1-for-4 in the red zone. One of his two touchdowns was a miracle play: a 52-yard Hail Mary to Allen Lazard late in the first half that closed the Bills' lead to 20-17.
“Demoralizing” was how wide receiver Garrett Wilson described the penalties, mistakes and missed opportunities. “We have to find a way to score touchdowns because I don't want to feel like this anymore,” he said.
The Jets have lost three straight games by a combined 10 points, and the last two games ended with a Rodgers interception on their final possession. For the first time in his 20-year career, Rodgers has a losing record after six games.
“It's frustrating,” he said. “I'm here to win those games.”
This time, Rodgers got the ball at his 30 with 3:43 left in the game, 70 yards short of a touchdown that could have moved the Jets into a first-place tie with the Bills (4-2). The last time the Jets shared first place after Week 6 was in 2012 — the NFL's longest drought.
There was no magic from Rodgers.
The drive imploded with a sack and two Jets penalties (one offset), ending with a deep pass on third-and-16 to Mike Williams that was intercepted by Taron Johnson at the Bills' 18-yard line. Rodgers suggested there was a miscommunication between him and Williams, who suffered a head injury on the play.
Rodgers (23 of 35) passed for a season-high 294 yards, including two touchdowns, but was unhappy with the overall execution of the offense. He said attention to detail needs to improve. He could improve too. In the red zone, he was just 3-of-8, including four passes that were deflected or defended.
“I thought we were going to have a great night offensively,” he said. “Again, this should have been a 30-plus point game on offense, and this shouldn't even be a conversation.”
Owner Woody Johnson fired Saleh in hopes of creating a new energy under the fiery Ulbrich. It worked… for a short time. After Rodgers' Hail Mary to Lazard, the fourth Hail Mary touchdown of Rodgers' career, the Jets went into halftime with the momentum. But they left him in the locker room, making only one field goal in the second half.
Now they are in danger of being left out of the competition.
“There is no way we are out of this. No way,” Ulbrich said. “I know the character of that locker room. I know the way we will respond… We have to start accumulating these weeks of exceptional preparation. I promise you it will start to pay off on Sundays.”
