New York Jets HC Aaron Glenn has stated in the past that the final four minutes of each half are the responsibility of the head coach. If that is true, then a disturbing trend has popped up for AG.
“In 19 games, the point differential in the final four minutes of each half is minus-55, including minus-10 this season. The Jets have gone seven straight games without scoring in the last four minutes of the first or second halves, dating to last season’s Week 13 win over the Atlanta Falcons. The past two games were especially alarming. They ran a combined 17 plays on their final drive of the first half, holding the ball for five minutes, 10 seconds, but failed to get past the opponents’ 47-yard line,” ESPN’s Rich Cimini wrote.
The Root of the Problem
There just seems to be a lack of urgency. For example, last week the Jets got the ball with over four minutes remaining in the first half against the Green Bay Packers.
They wanted to hold the ball for the rest of the half and punch in a score before the clock read zero. They held the ball for the rest of the time, check. However, they didn’t score. No long field goal attempt. No Hail Mary chance. Just a wasted opportunity.
The Jets are averaging 20 points per game this season on offense, which ranks 19th in the league, per ESPN. They can’t afford to give away possessions. The Jets need to try to steal extra possessions, not give them away.
Glenn said he has learned lessons from failing in year No. 1 that he can take into year No. 2. Several things are going right for the Jets: No. 1 defense in the league; the defensive play calling has been on point; they haven’t turned the ball over on offense, but there is still much to learn.
Week 3 will be a great test opportunity for the Jets against the Detroit Lions. Dan Campbell struggled as a head coach. He then learned from those mistakes and transformed Detroit into a perennial contender. Glenn was there for that turnaround for four years as the defensive coordinator. Can the student outfox the master?
A Sexy Stat Prediction
ESPN’s Ben Solak predicts that Jets QB Geno Smith will throw three passing touchdowns on Sunday, September 27, versus the Lions.
“He has only one through two games, as the Jets have largely been a run-heavy team and happy to play for field goals. Against the Lions’ defense in a dome? I think we’ll see a vintage Geno game. Plus, the Jets will likely spread the field out a little more given the absence of TE Mason Taylor (thumb) and the weak spots at the Lions CBs,” Solak wrote.
There was a funny exchange between Glenn and a media member leading into this game.
Brian Costello of the New York Post told Glenn that in Week 3 “it’s probably not going to be a 13-10 football game.” Implying that the Lions’ high-scoring offense is going to put up points regardless of how well the Jets’ defense plays. Costello asked if OC Frank Reich and Glenn have to talk about that to alter the plan at all heading into the contest.
Glenn jokingly bristled at the question as a defensive-minded head coach who refuses to admit defeat walking into the game.
“That conversation, the one thing I try to do, and we talk about this quite a bit, is how do we complement each other. I think every game is different. And depending on who the team is and how they operate, especially this team because, yeah, they are explosive. I mean, at every position that you can imagine when it comes to the skill players. Man, just formulating a plan in totality, this is how we want to play this game and (Chris) Banjo you’re a huge part of that of we’ve got to make sure we flip the field when it comes to our punt team, when it comes to our punt returns, we’ve got to make sure that we put our offense in position to really score points,” Glenn responded.
“Defensively, we have to make sure we get off the field and try to get as many possessions to our offense as we can, and same for special teams also. Every game we have those conversations and it starts on a Wednesday and then we reconvene. We’ve done a fairly good job of that, and we just have to continue to improve in that area,” Glenn added.
Disturbing Aaron Glenn Trend Revealed Hours Before Jets Lions Game