Orchard Park, NY – The noise in the tunnel was loud, but the locker room was quiet. As Robert Saleh and Zach Wilson headed toward the visitors’ locker room at Buffalo Bills Stadium, there was a commotion behind them. New York Jets defensive end Michael Clemons and Bills offensive tackle Dion Dawkins had to be separated, a cloud of dust went from the field into the tunnel as both teams headed to the locker room, which was located in the same tunnel, directly across from Without leaving much space between each other.
The nearest battle in question. Michael Clemons and Dion Dawkins have to be separated. Two big men almost collided with each other. The beef spilled over during the 32-6 Bills win. 📸 from my iPhone pic.twitter.com/P7xE0ADi3f
– Otis Livingston (@OlivingstonTV) 20 November 2023
It could have been worse, but several teammates helped hold Clemons back amid the noise and a coach attempted to calm Clemons as he walked to the locker room. The atmosphere inside was somber and words were scarce.
Saleh was on the verge of tears in his post-game press conference. When wide receiver Garrett Wilson spoke, it was barely above a whisper. Tight end Tyler Conklin admitted he has no way to explain the Jets’ mess. Typically, the same issues occur week after week. But this game, which the Jets lost 32–6, was at least worse than last year. He was outwitted, overpowered, and mocked off the field by players such as Ed Oliver, who yelled at the Jets players as they walked back to the locker room.
“What do you want me to say?” Conklin said after his team fell to 4-6. “If I had the answers or someone had the answers I think this wouldn’t be happening.”
Perhaps the answer will come with a quarterback change, but probably not. It’s hard to believe that Aaron Rodgers would actually want to return after even watching Sunday’s game. The Jets’ issues extend beyond the quarterback position, even if Zach Wilson has reached a point of no return – where the Jets could put him on the bench again, and this time forever. When he was pulled for Tim Boyle with 2:17 left in the third quarter, the Jets were losing 29–6. Wilson completed 7 of 15 passes for 81 yards, a touchdown – the Jets’ first offensive touchdown in 40 possessions – and a brutal second-quarter interception. He did not complete a single pass to a wide receiver.
Saleh made sure to say that Wilson wasn’t the problem, and that he would bench him only when it became clear that he was the one making things worse. He strongly pushed back the idea of making changes only to find a spark – and then he did just that on Sunday when the game was already very far out of his reach.
“Just tried to see if we could do something on the offensive side of the ball,” Saleh said.
Saleh would not say whether Wilson’s benching will remain in effect for Friday’s game against the Miami Dolphins and if Wilson, Boyle or Trevor Siemian will take over. It probably doesn’t matter, and it’s fair to wonder if it’s entirely Saleh’s call. The Jets have now reached a point with Wilson that if he is kept on the bench, the possibility of them moving on completely – such as releasing him in the offseason – should not be completely ruled out. If he is benched, it should be for him in a Jets uniform. Wilson is A Problem, is probably the biggest problem, but it’s not the only issue. The Jets already had one of the NFL’s worst offenses last year and having Nathaniel Hackett running the show as offensive coordinator has somehow made it even worse.
Tim Boyle takes over at QB for the Jets. pic.twitter.com/yipGuKL6eu
– NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) 20 November 2023
The unit feels as if it has reached the point of no return and the statistics are so pathetic that they are barely worth mentioning anymore. This week, Saleh said there would be some “personnel” and “planned” changes to get the offense up to speed. This included giving more playing time to younger players, such as undrafted rookie receivers Jason Brownlee and Xavier Gipson, young tight end Jeremy Ruckert and rookie running back Israel Abanicanda. The Jets also held a players-only meeting Tuesday, and Hackett went from the sideline to the press box to call plays, as Saleh said, to “give him another perspective, get up there and calm his world down.” ”
None of this worked.
Brownlee played 19 snaps and was not targeted. Gipson fumbled the opening kickoff and had one catch for 7 yards. Ruckert had a nice 18-yard catch but otherwise his impact was unnoticeable. Abanikanda barely showed any attacking play until the end of the second half, when things were already out of reach. And the play-calling didn’t get any better: The Jets were 0 for 11 on third down, further solidifying this as the NFL’s worst third-down offense, and one of the worst in recent memory. The running game, which was supposed to be the core of this offense, has also fallen off a cliff: Against the Bills, Breece Hall had 23 yards on 10 carries after gaining 28 yards on 13 carries last week against the Las Vegas Raiders. Ran a yard run. , Finally, Hackett came up with a plan to get Hall more of the ball in the passing game and it worked – five catches for 50 yards and a touchdown – but that was the only positive result of the changes this week.
It’s important to mention that the Jets’ offensive line is in disarray. Chris Glaser (zero career starts) started at right guard. When left tackle Mekhi Becton left with an injury and did not return, he was replaced by rookie Carter Warren in the first offensive snap of his career. The unit allowed a total of five sacks. But before Sunday, the only offense the Giants had was worse than the Jets in most areas (namely scoring and pass blocking), and then they scored 31 points in a win over the Washington Commanders. Quarterback Tommy DeVito threw three touchdowns, which Wilson never did.
“I don’t think anyone did anything today,” Saleh said. “The players, the coaches, the plans, it clearly wasn’t good enough. “None of it was good.”
The supporting cast around the quarterback isn’t much help either. Wilson has dropped 19 passes by his receivers this season, third-most of any quarterback. A few plays after Boyle checked in, Garrett Wilson lost another fumble.
“I’m trying to make plays, trying to catch the ball and I decided to try to get a step up at linebacker with good ball protection,” Wilson said. “That’s what happens in this league. This season, I am facing it and I have to fix it. I will.”
Garrett Wilson admitted that the struggles on offense, and his lack of targets and catches on Sunday, have put him under pressure to make plays whenever he actually gets the ball. This may also be an issue for some of his teammates.
“I feel like that, and when I do that I feel like I play worse,” Wilson said. “So I’m trying to fight human nature and we all probably feel the same way and that’s compounded with the struggle on crime. It’s tough, man, when you’re playing like this and you feel like you have to do it. I have to take those bad plays off the field because I’m applying pressure.”
And finally, the Jets defense had its first really bad game of the season. It’s hard to pin most of this team’s problems on them; At some point, the straw was going to break the camel’s back. Saleh said a few weeks ago that the Jets had “dominated” the star quarterbacks playing time this season, comments that certainly reached the Bills locker room. Josh Allen upset Buffalo that Sunday by throwing for 275 yards and three touchdowns in a get-right game, the same week it fired former offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey.
“I give them credit, they dominated us,” cornerback DJ Reed said. “It’s painful to say.”
But this is not the fault of the defence. If fingers are to be pointed at anyone, it should start at the top of the organization, towards the most important people running the show:
That’s general manager Joe Douglas, building an offense that suddenly feels devoid of talent outside of Hall and Garrett Wilson.
It is Saleh who had difficulty steering the ship back on course. The Jets have become an undisciplined team prone to penalties and back-breaking mental mistakes.
That’s Hackett, whose offense has become predictable, boring and extremely unsuccessful – less productive than many of the terrible Jets offenses of recent years.
And then there’s Zach Wilson.
Remember, he wasn’t supposed to play this year. it was supposed To learn from Aaron Rodgers. Instead, he has started every game and become the face of the organization’s biggest issue: offense.
Wilson admitted that he was “disappointed” that he was placed on the bench (again), but understood why.
“When things aren’t working out, changes have to be made and I understand that,” he said.
After not getting any first-team reps all week, Boyle took his place and completed 7 of 14 passes for 33 yards and an interception. He should do so this week, especially if he replaces Wilson as the starter.
If that happens, it will be the end of Wilson’s long tenure with the Jets.
Early in the third quarter, Wilson turned to the sideline and ran into Saleh and fouled him out, an apt image for the situation the Jets find themselves in as an organization.
At this rate, the Jets’ decision to roll with Wilson this season could also lead to Saleh going the other way.
(Top photo: Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
