The New York Jets beat the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday with a comeback victory 24–20, in a game that marked the return of quarterback Zach Wilson, and brought the team to a 2–2 record on the young season.
While their performance was at times messy, and there continue to be obvious problems with the Gang Green roster, the game showed a team that believes in themselves, and has significant upside.
Now, we’ll take a look at who stepped up and who struggled in Week 4, and what fans can expect from the Gang Green squad in the weeks to come.
Duds
There were some porous performances from the Jets on Sunday, and we’ll start there.
The offensive line
The Jets have dealt with significant injuries to their o-line this year, as three starting left tackles (Mekhi Becton, Duane Brown and George Fant) were already on the injured reserve list. Now, right tackle Max Mitchell was carted off the field with a knee injury — dealing yet another blow to the already-decimated squad. Alijah Vera-Tucker, who normally plays the guard position, actually started the game at left tackle.
As a result, the Jets are starting tackles way down on the depth chart, which is never a good sign when you have a young quarterback and a rookie feature running back.
While they only allowed one sack in thee game, that number is misleading — as Wilson was constantly under pressure, and given little time to throw the football. Their 98 yards in the rushing game on Sunday marked yet another game where they failed to rack up 100-or-more yards on the ground, a feat that they have yet to achieve this season.
The offensive line is a major source of headaches for Gang Green.
Garrett Wilson
Rookie wide receiver Garrett Wilson, who the Jets drafted 10th overall in the 2022 NFL Draft, was on his way towards building a solid rapport with Joe Flacco, who was under cement for the Jets while Wilson was injured.
But on Sunday, he caught just two passes. Granted, he recorded 41 yards, so those two catches were fairly impactful, but it’s troubling to see Garrett Wilson and Zach Wilson failing to connect more. The quarterback-and-wide receiver duo haven’t played together (other than the opening half of one preseason game), so hopefully they can get a better feel for one another.
But the young wide receiver was not the stud that fans were hoping for on Sunday.
The secondary
The Jets defensive front has been a bright spot for the team this season, and managed to get solid pressure on the pair of Steelers quarterbacks who played on Sunday.
But the secondary continued to falter at times.
The Steellers, who benched quarterback Mitch Trubisky during the game, coming after he has struggled all season long, and inserted rookie Kenny Pickett into his first NFL game, recorded 178 yards in the air.
That’s a fine amount to give up, but troublingly, they did so on a combined 17 completions. That means the Steelers averaged 7.8 yards per completion.
The secondary, which features cornerback Sauce Gardner, a rookie drafted as the fourth overall pick, made several mistakes, and often looked confused about their individual assignments. They need to tidy-up their game if they have any chance of going up against more explosive NFL offenses.
Studs
Now, let’s look at the good stuff.
Zach Wilson
The game originally looked like it was going to be a rough return for Wilson, as his first three quarters looked messy, and he was clearly still adjusting to the speed of the game in his season debut.
However, he didn’t give up or falter, and maintained a sense of composure throughout the game.
Wilson tossed an 81-yard touchdown pass, as well as a 65-yard touchdown throw that brought the Jets back from a double-digit deficit, all while dealing with this troubling offensive line. And anyone who was worried about his knee, Wilson put those concerns to rest — as he was constantly moving to avoid sacks, and even racked up 15 yards on the ground.
If this game is any indication, Wilson is growing into his own, and finding a good mental state for his approach to the game.
C.J. Mosley
Linebacker C.J. Mosley was everywhere on Sunday, creating a daunting presence for the Steelers offense.
Mosley recorded a whopping 11 tackles, including five solo tackles, and defending one pass. Even beyond his stats, he was constantly getting after receivers, running backs, and the duo of quarterbacks for Pittsburgh.
His size, speed and feel for the game is evident, and Mosley is quickly becoming the irreplaceable member of the Gang Green defense.
Robert Saleh
Head coach Robert Saleh said earlier this year that he’s “keeping receipts” about anyone who doubts the Jets. That was taken, at the time, as perhaps a bit of overconfidence on the coach’s part.
But, the team has now won two out of four games, and doing so while dealing with injuries up-and-down the roster.
There is much to criticize about the second-year coach, and there were examples of the team being disorganized and confused — but Saleh is a true leader of men, and the resiliency that thee jets have shown in their two comeback wins speaks volumes about the mindset that Saleh has instilled in the roster.
A decimated o-line, a young secondary, a starting quarterback who missed three games, and several other wounds have plagued the Jets — but Saleh has his team believing in itself, and that makes him a “stud” this week.
