Jets defense kicks Eagles, Football Gods in the ass with shocking victory
The Jets pull-off a stunning comeback in the final two minutes to beat the previously undefeated Eagles, 20-14. Plus, how New York isn’t letting adversity beat them.
What’s Up with the Jets? 🛩️
The Jets won their second straight game, defeating the Eagles by a 20-14 score at MetLife Stadium (box)
New York defeated Philadelphia for the first time in franchise history, after entering the game with an 0-12 all-time record against them
With two minutes and no timeouts remaining, S Tony Adams forced a critical interception on a third down pass that could have iced the game for the Eagles, returning it to the red zone
RB Breece Hall, who rushed for 39 yards and had 54 receiving yards, ran in for a touchdown on the very next play to give the Jets their first lead of the game
New York’s defense was incredible on the day, allowing just 14 points while forcing four turnovers (three interceptions and one fumble) and shut the door with a four-and-out on the game’s final drive
QB Zach Wilson regressed but avoided the killer mistake in the victory, going 19/33 (57.5 percent) for 186 yards, no touchdowns and no turnovers
WR Garrett Wilson caught a team-high eight passes for 90 yards in the win, and despite coming off the field multiple times should be healthy after the bye week
OG Joe Tippmann left the game with a thigh injury and could be out for “awhile,” per head coach Robert Saleh
QB Aaron Rodgers was on the sideline during the victory, wearing a headset and giving suggestions to the coaching staff – Rodgers was also on the field prior to the game throwing for the first time since tearing his Achilles
Game Balls 🏈
OFFENSE
🏈 Garrett Wilson: We all know it, but we gotta say it: Garrett Wilson is really fucking good, man. There was so little from the Jets offense in this game, and while Breece Hall had the team’s lone touchdown on the day (one that the Eagles allowed him to score), Wilson was the biggest difference maker.
The second year wide-out had a team-high eight grabs for 90 yards, including a 33-yarder that completely flipped field position in a game where that wound up being pivotal. He is the biggest game-changer the Jets have, and is the one target that Zach Wilson can trust in most.
DEFENSE
🏈 Everyone: You may consider this to be a cop-out, but we’ve gotta give the game ball to the entire defense for that effort. Four turnovers, 14 total points and a second half shutout against that quarterback and those playmakers? That would have been insane for the Jets to do at full strength but they were missing three corners in D.J. Reed, Sauce Gardner and Brandon Echols, and even lost Michael Carter II toward the end of the game, as well.
There were some missed tackles, specifically early in the game, but this Jets defense was constantly pressuring Jalen Hurts, didn’t allow the Eagles run defense to do a damn thing all day, and pulled off one of the most magical, fortune-changing interceptions in some time. Hats off to this entire unit for an elite performance.
Play of the Week 📺
Make no mistake – this football game was over. With two minutes remaining and the Jets without a timeout, one final third down conversion would have iced the game for the Eagles. Even if Philadelphia hadn’t converted, it would have been very unlikely that Zach Wilson would’ve been able lead the Jets down the field with no timeouts for a game-winning field goal attempt.
Just when all seemed lost and the result felt as if it were already written, Eagles QB Jalen Hurts dropped back and fired one across the middle of the field only for it to be – wait, what??!! INTERCEPTED!
Jets safety Tony Adams picked the ball off and was suddenly streaking down the sideline toward the end zone. In that moment every Jets fan was one, jumping up and down in their seats or their living rooms yelling “go! go! go!” until he was finally tackled at the 8-yard line. New York would score the go-ahead touchdown on the very next play thanks to Breece Hall and clamped down one more time to force a four-and-out to close out the victory.
It was the ultimate “snatching a victory from the jaws of defeat” moment for the Jets, and one that we’ll remember for quite a long time.
This time, the Jets are refusing to let adversity beat them… ✍️
It would have been easy for the Jets to give up when Aaron Rodgers went down four plays into his team debut. It would have been easy for the Jets to give up when the referees stole a game from them on a Sunday night against the Chiefs. It would have been easy for the Jets to give up when they lost Alijah Vera-Tucker or D.J. Reed or Sauce Gardner.
Most years, they would have given up. And would anyone have blamed them for it? There have been countless times this season when you’ve caught yourself watching what was happening to them and ask yourself “how is this happening?” The injuries, the calls that never go their way, and even just plain ole’ bad luck.
So many times this season I’d sit there and wonder what this franchise did in the past to deserve such a cruel fate, and what I had done in a past life to have deserved the fate I chose for myself with this fandom.
The Football Gods, or in less omnipotent terms, "adversity," can feel relentless at times. That has certainly been the case when it comes to the Jets 2023-24 season.
Yet throughout all that, with bad luck or bad juju seemingly stacking up higher and higher with each week that passes, the Jets find themselves at 3-3 at the bye week – a mark some didn’t even believe this team was good enough to accomplish with a healthy Rodgers under center, let alone Zach Wilson.
The resilience of this team and their coaching staff has been nothing but a marvel through six weeks of an already wild rollercoaster ride of a season. It’s only been five weeks since Rodgers tore his Achilles on Monday Night Football, and yet it feels as if we’ve all lived 10 different lives since then. The season felt over then and there, and it’s felt over at several other points throughout the early turbulence, and yet here we stand, heading into the bye with this season very much alive.
There’s a lot to be said about the mental fortitude of this team, going through everything they’ve gone through and still managing to pull out these wins – even if they’ve had to come ugly. The team’s walk-off punt return in Week One, at the time, felt as if it were a consolation prize – the last bit of good vibes before the bad news that we were all dreading was announced. What it wound up being, though, was a sign of things to come.
That win on opening night proved to this fanbase and to the entire football world that the New York Jets are a group of tough bastards. The message was sent that this was not a team that was going to curl up and die, letting another season wither away just as quickly as it began. And that resilience has shown itself time-and-time again over the last several weeks.
After losing two straight games with the season looking like it was on the brink, the Jets stunned everyone with their effort vs the Chiefs on Sunday Night Football. Ultimately, the Jets should have found themselves in a position to win that game, but thanks to the refs it was not to be. There are no points for moral victories, especially around these parts, but it was at least notable that the Jets played the defending champions so tough when the expectations were focused on a nationally televised blowout.
New York has backed up that big-time effort in the two weeks since, first slogging out a victory in Denver to get revenge on Sean Payton and the Broncos, who picked the wrong Jets team to talk shit about this offseason, and then what they were able to pull-off today.
Yet again, with time ticking away under the two minute warning, the Jets chances in this game appeared to be finished. Their offense was struggling to do anything positive, especially in the fourth quarter, and the undefeated Eagles were one first down conversion away from icing this game and sending the Jets to the bye week with a sour-tasting 2-4 record.
Just when it all seemed over, the tides turned in the blink of an eye when Jets safety Tony Adams intercepted a pass from Jalen Hurts and began running down the sideline toward the end zone. In an instant, millions of Jets fans around the country came back to life, jumping around in both joy and utter disbelief.
What?! This was over. The Jets never win games like this.
Maybe this year, they do. Two times in six weeks the Jets have stolen a victory from an elite opposing quarterback in what seemed to be a certain loss. And unlike other seasons where they’d tease us with these types of come-from-behind, feel-good wins, they’ve actually been able to pull it off and finish these games. No mind numbing turnovers in the red zone, no Rex-ian lapses where the defense slacks off and gives up a score in the final two minutes. Nope – the Jets merely scored a touchdown and forced the Eagles to go four-and-out to end the game.
This team is different. And while they have still had to deal with the awful luck, injuries, Bill Belichick witchcraft and awful refereeing, they have not let it sink them. They simply won’t let it.
Next Week’s Game 🗓
The Jets are on their bye next Sunday and will return to action in two weeks against the Giants.
Around the NFL 🏁
There are no remaining undefeated teams in the NFL after the Browns were able to knock-off the previously unbeaten 49ers by a 19-17 score
Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa continued his hot play, throwing three touchdowns in Miami’s blowout win over the Panthers
The Jaguars won their third straight game thanks to a big performance by RB Travis Etienne on the ground, defeating the Colts by a 37-20 score
The Patriots lost again (lol) and fell to 1-5 despite Raiders QB Jimmy Garoppolo leaving the game with an injury, 21-17
Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown had a career-high 12 catches and 124 yards with a touchdown as Detroit improved to 5-1, tied for the best record in the NFL
Giants RB Saquon Barkley returned from a high ankle sprain but that was not enough as New York was blown out by the Bills on Sunday night