JACKSONVILLE – Senior writer John Oehser each week during the 2024 regular season will speak with a writer or media member covering the Jaguars' opponent.
Up this week:
New York Jets vice president of news strategy Eric Allen on the Jets’ matchup with the Jaguars at EverBank Stadium Sunday.
Q: The Jets are 3-10 after a 2-1 start, having parted ways with Head Coach Robert Saleh and General Manager Joe Douglas during the season. They lost a road game, 32-26, to the Miami Dolphins in overtime on Sunday. What's the state of the Jets entering Sunday's game against the Jaguars?
A: They certainly are going to continue to try to close the door. You're talking about a team so far this season that has seven losses by six points or less. It has been a problem in terms of finishing. The latest example was against the Dolphins on Sunday. The Jets lose the coin toss at the beginning of overtime, and the offense never takes the field. You could say this for multiple games and the past three: Indianapolis, Seattle, Miami … the Jets have had opportunities to win those games in the fourth quarter, but it seems like every week something different is happening. The margin is so thin between winning and losing in the National Football League, and the Jets are the biggest example of that throughout the league this year, I would say.
Q: Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers remains one of the NFL's highest-profile players. He's in his second season with the team, having missed most of his first season with an Achilles injury. Assess Rodgers' 2024 season.
A: It's interesting because at the end of the day, he will have statistically one of the best seasons in franchise history. He's on the cusp of reaching 3,000 yards. He'll do that against the Jaguars on Sunday. He has 20 touchdown passes, eight interceptions and has completed 63 percent of his passes. Early in the season he got banged up. He was dealing with knee injuries, hamstring injuries, ankle injuries. His mobility was ultimately impacted in those ensuing games, but in the last couple weeks he has felt as good as he had since early in the year. I don't know if he's feeling as good as he did in Week 1, but it's a lot better than since Week 3. In turn, the offense is playing a lot better. He played his best game Sunday against the Dolphins, passing for more than 300 yards for the first time in 36 games. He's playing his best ball, which is ironic right now.
Q: When the Jets are right offensively, what are they? They rank 25th in the NFL with 19.3 points per game and 26th with 299.8 yards per game. What's their identity?
A: [Running back] Breece Hall didn't play against the Dolphins, but he remains one of the best dual threats in the game. When they're right offensively, they have balance where it doesn't get out of whack in terms of the pass attempts to the rush attempts. The offensive line has been pretty good. Offensively when they're good, they're getting their playmakers the ball – and they have a lot of playmakers. You have Hall. You have [wide receiver] Garrett Wilson, who has become one of the top receivers in football. You have [wide receiver] Davante Adams as well. When they're protecting and Rodgers has time, there's balance. When they're behind, they can become one-dimensional. But of late, they haven't been in those games.
Q: The Jets' reputation is as one of the NFL's best defenses. They rank 19th in the NFL with 23.1 points per game and fourth with 306.8 yards per game. Assess the Jets defensively.
A: They haven't played up their standard. The Jets have been better of late against the primary ball carriers, but the Jets' front is predicated on getting pressure on the quarterback. This defense is playing as best when they play with the lead. Early in the year, the Jets got behind. So, teams were dictating what they could do. [Defensive end] Will McDonald IV has had a sophomore surge with 10 sacks. You still have one of the better foundational interior pieces on defensive side of the ball in the middle of Quentin Williams, who has six sacks this season. A big loss was [defensive end] Jermaine Johnson going down with an Achilles injury in Week 1, which changed the dynamic on the edge. The other thing from an injury perspective is this team has missed [linebacker] C.J. Mosley for the majority of the season. [Cornerbacks] Sauce Gardner and D.J. Reed are still one of the better tandems of football. The thing is, the takeaways have not been there. If you look at the Jets statistically, they have pretty good numbers defensively. But they have two interceptions this year and both have come from Brandin Echols, who is their fourth corner. Their pressure numbers are good. The sack numbers are good. But the Jets are not turning people over.
Q: What's left for the Jets this season?
A: I like what [Interim Head Coach] Jeff Ulbrich has said, and here's a guy who played the National Football League for 10 seasons. He was a linebacker, old school. He said the tape has no context. All these guys, do they want to win? No doubt about it. But big picture, some of them don't know where they're going to be next year. You have a new program coming in. If Ulbrich doesn't get the job full time and it is somebody else, and then you have a new general manager, schematically you could change things up. The systems could change. Aaron Rodgers talked about playing for pride. Whenever you go out there, you're going to play for pride. You want to see young guys continue to develop, and I think you've seen that. You have a young stable of running backs back and you have had some young guys step up on defense. Ultimately, the Jets are tired of losing. They have lost nine of 10 games and they want to get the taste out of their mouth. They have to get over that hump. I don't care who's running the ship next year for the Jets. It's never too late or early to get a victory.
