With the Jets in the midst of the longest playoff drought in all major North American sports (15 years), fans don’t want to hear about how things are “getting better”. But we’re going to say it here and now; things at 1 Jets drive, are in fact getting better. Yes, they did drop to 2-9 with yesterday’s loss to the Ravens, but there are some positive takeaways.
The Discipline is back:
When was the last time you could say the Jets weren’t having a hard time getting out of their own way in terms of penalties? Under Robert Saleh, a flag earned you an “attaboy” and smack on the helmet. With Aaron Glenn in town, it’s been the exact opposite. He hasn’t hesitated to get in a guy’s face to let him know he made a mistake, and the results are staring to show. After committing 42 penalties through their first five games, the Jets have seen that number drop to just 31 in the six games that followed.
The sloppy defense is a thing of the past:
The defense has been far from perfect, but after a disastrous start to the season, it’s another key area where things have been cleaned up. After missing 10 or more tackles in three of their first four games this season, they’ve had that happen just one other time since when they missed a season-high 17 tackles vs Cincinnati. Aside from that one game, the Jets have missed more than 8 tackles just once since week four.
The Draft Class is Coming Along Nicely:
First-round offensive tackle Armand Membou’s high level play has been apparent from the moment he stepped on the field. But Mason Taylor, Azareye’h Thomas, Malachi Moore and Mason Taylor have all impressed in starting roles. It’s been an up and down year for LB Francisco Mauigoa and we need to see more from WR Arian Smith and DL Tyler Baron, but for the most part this class is looking very impressive.
While NFL weekly predictions is a great place to go for all of your gambling needs, we’re not saying you should be betting the Jets will run the table, but progress has been evident, and Darren Mougey deserves plenty of love for our next point.
The Projects and Experiments are yielding very good results:
The Jets rookie GM made an under-the-radar move as the season approached and flipped day 3 picks with the Browns to acquire little-known defensive tackle Jowon Briggs who started the year strong and has gradually improved as the year has moved on. It’s fair to say he has gone from buried on the Browns depth chart to solidifying himself as a likely long-term piece on defense for the Jets.
Then of course there are wide receivers John Methie and AD Mitchell. Metchie came over from Philadelphia in a deal for slot corner Michael Carter while Mougey reportedly insisted on Mitchell being included in the deal that sent Sauce Gardner to the Colts. In just two games, both players have flashed the ability that had them coming out of college as big time prospects. Metchine has scored touchdowns in each of his two games while Mitchell had three drops in his first game, but has already shown that he can consistently create separation and threaten defenses deep down the field.
Even better for the Jets is that while there’s little to play for in terms of the standings, Aaron Glenn still has them playing hard which bodes well for further evaluation as the back half of the season comes to a close.
