What Went Well: Thought long and hard about this one. Could not come up with anything.
What Did Not Go Well: I will make my life easier by saying everything.
What Else: For those like myself who have always valued special teams, this game is a great way to showcase how valuable special teams can be. Over his tenure as Jets special teams coordinator, Mike Westhoff has built the Jets into one of the league's best special team units. For whatever reason, those days have come to an end. This game had many special teams mistakes that put the Jets in a hole. Getting caught off guard on the Dolphins first kickoff is excusable but it shows the mentality that the Dolphins had going into this game. More on that later. After that there was a blocked punt and field goal, Jets players running into Clyde Gates preventing him from a kickoff return for a touchdown, not covering the ensuing kickoff well after the Jets finally scored points, and Jeremy Kerley's ability to field punts inside the Jets 10. It was a total disaster.
A few weeks ago, I had given up on Mark Sanchez as a franchise quarterback. This game displayed why. He is not a difference maker at the position. He has had too many games disrupted by erratic throws. I can't recall another quarterback who has that many batted balls at the line of scrimmage especially on screen passes. I have this worry that Mark Sanchez may be someone's reclamation project in 5 years but nothing can be done about that. For cap reasons, he will probably be on the team for at least one more year. He has to play better. I am not calling for Tim Tebow and I won't be at any point this season. It has become apparent to me and many others that Tebow's presence is cosmetic only and the coaching staff wants to use him as little as possible.
It never concerned me how much the Jets talked trash. It was all in fun for me and did not take away or add to the result of games. However, after the talk this week, I would hope the Jets would have come out with some fire. That did not happen. The Dolphins came out intensely and the Jets did not match that. After playing so well last week, being at home against a division rival was not enough for the team to come out like they cared. A lot of that is on the plate of the coaching staff. They were out thought by their Dolphins counterparts. From the early onside kick, using corner blitzes, or through exposing Tim Tebow as a punt protector the Dolphins beat the Jets at every corner. I never thought that Rex Ryan was on the hot seat this season but the Jets did not show up for 2 games this season and the blame has to be on his door.
The hottest seat in the entire New York Jets organization belongs to Mike Tannenbaum. As I have said before, the Jets roster holes are huge and there is no quick fix. That has to be part of the reason why the special teams have deteriorated over the last few years. Three of the four Jets starting linebackers are older than me and the Demario Davis era may have begun. Sanchez's failings aside, the offensive line has had it. Brandon Moore may be past it, Matt Slauson has regressed, and Austin Howard is shaky. I don't think that Woody Johnson should take a page out of the Jerry Richardson playbook and fire his general manager during the season. It won't change anything now as could be seen in the Panthers vs Bears today where the Panthers again lost a close game they could have easily won. But there is a rebuilding job that needs to be done and it must be decided if Tannenbaum is the man to do that. With the Jets next game taking place after the election, it may be an opportunity for Mr. Johnson to focus on what the Jets need to do in 2013 and beyond.
Now What: I won't be watching too much television over the next two weeks as it pertains to the NFL knowing how much the media loves to take shots at the Jets when there is no reason. After that display, I am sure the ESPN suits are licking their chops. It would be great to find a silver lining in this but there isn't one. The Jets go into the bye week with more questions and the season looks like it is spiraling out of control. The Jets still are in touching distance of a wild card spot but seeing this squad reach 9 wins looks unlikely.
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