Both Offenses No-Show in Jets' Ugly Loss to Falcons
The weather was ugly and so was the offense on both sides of the New York Jets' 13-8 home loss to the Atlanta Falcons.
The teams combined for 453 total yards and 16 punts on a rainy, gloomy day at MetLife Stadium. Falcons' tight end MyCole Pruitt accounted for the Week 13 game's lone touchdown, a 20-yard reception with 10:10 remaining in the second quarter.
The story was more of the same for the Jets, who were kept out of the end zone for the third time in the last five games. The Green & White managed only two field goals from Greg Zuerlein as its other two points came courtesy of the defense, which dropped Falcons' running back Bijan Robinson for a first-quarter safety and a 2-0 lead. It was the third safety by the Jets' defense this season.
The New York offense has totaled a league-low 10 touchdowns through 12 games. According to CBS, the Jets are responsible for the lowest output of any NFL team in the past 30 seasons at this point in the schedule.
"We’re searching. I felt like there was a lot of missed opportunity with possible explosives, potential touchdowns on the field today. We’ve got to find a way to take advantage when we have those opportunities," said Jets' head coach Robert Saleh.
Tim Boyle's second start ended prior to the fourth quarter with Trevor Siemian coming on in relief for the team's first offensive possession of the final period. Prior to being benched, Boyle accounted for 5.9 yards per pass and a 56.8 quarterback rating.
"I didn’t make enough plays. I thought I was seeing it good again, made a couple of plays down field, could’ve been way more aggressive on a few more throws that I want back," said Boyle in a postgame self-assessment.
Making his Jets' debut, Siemian did not fare much better. After completing his first attempt to Tyler Conklin for a 16-yard gain, the 31-year-old went 4-of-12 passing for 50 more yards.
Jets' running back Breece Hall faced tough sledding throughout the day, totaling 16 yards on 13 rushes. He added 29 yards through the air on six receptions. Veteran Dalvin Cook carried nine times for 35 yards and coughed up a costly fumble.
The Jets' defense hung on as long as it could, giving the offense multiple opportunities to drive for the go-ahead score.
"I always say if you can keep them backed up and they punt the ball and you field it at the logo, you’re supposed to score," said Saleh. "We need to expect more from ourselves when we’re in those positions to go score."
New York took possession twice over the final 6:00 while facing a 13-8 deficit. They turned the ball back over to the Falcons both times, first on a fumble followed by a turnover on downs.
"You can’t put the ball on the ground. I think the last one, it’s fourth down, so I’m trying to do something ridiculous and get the ball up the field," said Siemian. "I think I had the ball on the ground too many times."
Gang Green held Atlanta to 194 yards of offense and only 3.0 net yards per play. Falcons' quarterback Desmond Ridder completed only 44 percent of his passes and averaged a puny 4.5 yards per attempt. The Jets sacked Ridder three times and saw a D.J. Reed interception called back due to an illegal contact penalty.
The Falcons took the lead of Ridder's second-quarter pass to Pruitt and led the rest of the way. The teams combined for six points in the second half of the defensive struggle. Highly-touted running back Bijan Robinson needed 18 carries to gain 53 yards against the Green & White.
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