What’s next for Jets with season unofficially over following one-point loss to Colts?

The Jets had precise precocious expectations coming into the 2024 season.

After Aaron Rodgers‘ instrumentality from his season-ending Achilles tear 4 plays into past season, galore thought the Jets were poised to situation the Chiefs for a travel to New Orleans for Super Bowl LIX.

Those dreams unofficially ended connected Sunday aft the Jets’ latest 28-27 nonaccomplishment to the Colts. After their seventh nonaccomplishment successful 8 games, the Jets are 3-8 and would request to tally the array to adjacent person a accidental to marque the playoffs astatine this point.

The Jets play astir apt officially ended the infinitesimal proprietor Woody Johnson fired manager Robert Saleh and made defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich the interim manager for the remainder of the season. Johnson told reporters aft helium fired Saleh that this was the astir talented team helium had during his 25 seasons arsenic owner.

However, the Jets haven’t played anyplace adjacent to 1 of the champion teams successful the league. Outside of a dominant triumph against the Patriots connected Sept. 19, the Jets person not played complimentary shot this season.

That continued to beryllium the lawsuit against a Colts squad that reinserted Anthony Richardson nether halfway for the archetypal clip successful 2 weeks aft helium was benched for Joe Flacco. Richardson, who completed 44% of his passes successful six games earlier Sunday, looked similar a Pro Bowl backmost against a Jets defence that came into the crippled ranking successful the apical 10 successful full defense. He completed 20-of-30 passes for 272 yards and registered 3 touchdowns, including the game-winning four-yard tally with 51 seconds remaining.

This was aft the Colts discourtesy went 70 yards successful six plays and took conscionable 1:55 disconnected the clock. Ulbrich enactment his religion successful the Jets’ defence with 2:44 remaining aft helium elected to nonstop Anders Carlson retired to marque a 35-yard tract extremity connected a 4th and 2 play connected the Colts’ 17-yard line. Although the Jets took a 27-22 pb astatine the time, it yet came backmost to wound them.

Ulbrich has been playing dual roles, serving some arsenic the Jets’ antiaircraft coordinator and caput coach, and adjacent the players person noticed the alteration successful play defensively.

“The past mates of games, we haven’t played to our modular connected defense,” Jets cornerback D.J. Reed said. “We’ve fixed up touchdowns, we are giving up explosive plays.

“I can’t truly relationship to what it is. Coach Ulbrich has a batch connected his plate, but he’s a grown antheral and helium tin grip it. It conscionable comes down to executing and playing our role.”

Since Saleh’s firing, the Jets are 1-5, and their defence is allowing 26.1 points per crippled successful those contests.

“We request to beryllium better,” Ulbrich said. “We request to beryllium better.

“This bye week volition let maine an accidental to truly instrumentality a hard look astatine myself and instrumentality a hard look astatine everything that we are doing. Not conscionable defensively but everything.”

“True spot is demonstrated successful these moments wherever adversity hits and it is hitting america from a shot perspective. This is astir apt 1 of the higher levels of adversity that we’ve faced. It’s an accidental to not fto your concern specify who you are and amusement the satellite who you truly are successful these pugnacious moments.”

It isn’t conscionable the defence that has struggled since Saleh’s firing, but offensively, the Jets person been stuck successful the mud astatine times and proceed to commencement games slowly. After Saleh was fired, Ulbrich changed violative play-callers, going from Nathaniel Hackett to Todd Downing, but the losses proceed to heap up.

At halftime, Rodgers had completed lone 7-of-16 passes for 76 yards and a touchdown. He finished the crippled 22-of-29 for 184 yards and 2 touchdowns.

However, Rodgers isn’t the aforesaid player he was with the Packers anterior to the trade to the Jets, post-Achilles injury. His pinpoint accuracy has declined, and helium cannot determination astir the pocket, which was evident erstwhile helium was sacked by Kwity Paye doubly connected the Jets’ last drive, including connected a 3rd and 7 play, which ended the crippled aft the Jets had zero timeouts remaining.

Earlier this week, Rodgers said he wanted to instrumentality to the Jets for his 21st season, but astatine this point, it whitethorn beryllium omniscient for the squad to determination on.

Rodgers, 40, is nether declaration for $23.5 cardinal adjacent season, but helium has nary guaranteed wealth remaining connected his contract. However, if the Jets determine to determination on, they would person a $49 cardinal dormant headdress deed adjacent season.

The Jets volition astir surely person a caller manager adjacent play and apt a caller wide manager with Joe Douglas successful the last months of a six-year declaration helium signed successful 2019. With Rodgers astir to crook 41 connected Dec. 2, the caller authorities could determine it’s champion to bring successful a younger backmost for a imaginable rebuild.

“We’ve been truly hard trying to fig retired what the issues are,” a dejected Rodgers said aft the game. “It is conscionable not 1 person. Sometimes it’s me, sometimes it is idiosyncratic else, but I felt bully astir the two-minute thrust we had.

“We got a turnover and the momentum was going and the assemblage was getting into it, but unfortunately, we didn’t people capable points.”

Without a playoff carrot dangling successful beforehand of the Jets, they volition person six games to effort and extremity the play connected a affirmative note. In 2022, the Jets played meaningful shot successful December earlier losing six consecutive ended their playoff hopes. Last year, Gang Green didn’t get officially eliminated from postseason contention until Dec. 15 aft a 30-0 nonaccomplishment to the Dolphins.

Although not officially eliminated, the Jets’ playoff chances are up successful fume earlier Thanksgiving. A squad with large names specified arsenic Rodgers, Davante Adams, Garrett Wilson, Haason Reddick, and Breece Hall, it is unimaginable that the Jets would person conscionable 3 wins successful 11 games.

With each the expectations of this team, the 2024 Jets volition spell down with the 2000 Washington squad and the 2011 “Dream Team” Eagles squad successful presumption of teams that failed to unrecorded up to the offseason hype and expectations.

“It is precise hard to fathom,” Reed said astir the season. “I’m inactive processing it close now, I’m inactive processing that past drive.

“If we triumph that crippled and it is an AFC squad that we beat, the percentages are mode higher. It is unfortunate. It is decidedly hard to fathom, but we person the close quality guys successful this locker country to fastener arms and get a triumph aft the bye week.”

Originally Published: November 17, 2024 astatine 6:50 PM EST