The “Flacc Attack” was back, but the Jets offense failed to muster enough points as Gang Green lost, 24-17, to the Miami Dolphins.
It was a close-fought matchup, which differed from the last three losses when they’re outscored by 84 points. But Robert Saleh, whose Jets are 2-8, was still frustrated by the end result because he feels they gave the game away versus the Dolphins taking it.
“You lose by one or 50, it doesn’t freaking matter,” Saleh said. “This one we lost.”
The Jets went with QB Joe Flacco over Mike White because of his experience against the blitzing defensive scheme the Dolphins love to run. White has struggled against the blitz this year and the Dolphins scheme would have given White some trouble. White has a passer rating of 37 when blitzed.
But Flacco justified Saleh’s decision. He thrived against the blitz, going 12-of-19 for 166 yards and two touchdowns, one of which came in the third quarter.
“I think they got to us a couple of times. I think you can tell a lot of times there were some balls that we were able to get out,” Flacco said. “I might have been getting hit as I was doing it, but I was able to get them out and get them into some guys’ hands. I think overall, we probably handled it pretty well.”
One of the plays that stood out happened late in the third quarter.
Elijah Moore burned Dolphins’ cornerback Bryon Jones for a 62-yard touchdown grab. Moore ran a skinny post and Jones went for the interception and missed. It was a foot race between Moore and Dolphins safety Jevon Holland in the middle of the field. The second round pick turned on the jets and scored untouched.
Moore knew the Dolphins were sending an exotic blitz and knew he had to win, quickly.
“I felt the pressure by the way the first nickel blitzed. So I knew I had to speed my route up. It was probably like 10 yards,” Moore said. “I think I went eight. So, I just adjusted… It’s definitely a feel thing. If you feel like your quarterback is gonna get hit, you don’t want him to get hit. You want him to get the ball out.”
That was the highlight play on a day where Moore totaled eight catches for 141 yards and a touchdown.
The Jets didn’t always handle the blitz well, though. Flacco fumbled the ball inside the 10-yard line after getting smashed by safety Brandon Jones in the second quarter. That cost the Jets points.
Overall, Flacco gave a valiant effort, going 24-of-39 for 291 yards with two touchdowns.
But the Jets offense scored only 17 points.
In today’s NFL, teams can’t win with that output. Defenses need to perform almost perfectly to overcome that.
And yes, the Jets put up 380 yards, but plays like that electric score from Moore were rare.
There were moments when the offense showed potential, like when Michael Carter sprinted for a 39-yard gain on the second drive of the game. That set up Flacco’s first touchdown pass to Jamison Crowder.
In some promising news for Jets fans, the Jets’ defense finally resembled a competent unit, holding the Dolphins offense to 24 points. Granted, it wasn’t like the Jets defense was going against an explosive unit.
The Dolphins offense was averaging 17 points per game, 28th in the NFL, coming into Sunday. But that’s still an improvement from a Jets group that allowed 175 points in their last four games.
However, Saleh is nowhere near satisfied.
“Still could have been better,” Saleh said. “Thought they played their butts off. They’ve worked hard. They’re dialed in all week…[Had] penalties to keep drives going. Had a chance to win in the red zone on a couple of occasions. So it still has to be so much better if we want to be more consistent and play good football.”
The defense had bone-headed moments in the third quarter when Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa threw a 65-yard touchdown pass to Mack Hollins in the third.
The Jets were in cover three and blitzed Michael Carter II from the slot. Hollins ran a fade route from the slot also and cornerback Isaiah Dunn bit on a hitch route from Albert Wilson. That left a gigantic hole down the sideline for Tagovailoa to hit to put the Dolphins up 14-7.
Saleh cited “poor eye discipline” for the defensive breakdown.
Plays like that are inexcusable, especially when the Dolphins struggled throwing down the field.
Other breakdowns happened in critical parts of the fourth.
With 11 minutes left in the game, tied at 14-14, Tagovailoa threw it over the middle to Myles Gaskins and Bryce Hall broke the pass up on third-and four from the goal line.
But John Franklin-Myers was flagged for roughing the passer, which extended the drive, and Tagovailoa threw a touchdown pass a few plays later to put the Dolphins up 20-14.
Another example was when Tagovailoa was sacked by Quinnen Williams, on a third-and-three with 5:30 remaining, as the Jets trailed by seven.
But Jason Pinnock was flagged for a defensive hold, which extended the drive. And led to a field goal, to seal the loss for Gang Green.
It wasn’t all bad. Ashtyn Davis snagged his first interception of his career. And the run defense held the Dolphins to 3.5 yards per carry.
So there was some progress for the Jets defense. But mistakes on both sides ended up sinking them.
NEXT UP: The Jets play the Texans in Houston Week 12.
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