The Jets’ home opener couldn’t have gone much better for Gang Green as the Metlife Stadium crowd was treated to a vintage Aaron Rodgers performance.
Rodgers completed 27 of 35 passes for 281 yards and two touchdowns as the Jets took the lead on their second drive and never looked back. He connected on touchdown passes to Allen Lazard and Garrett Wilson, with Breece Hall adding a short touchdown run as the Jets built a 21-3 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Greg Zuerlein’s fourth-quarter field goal provided the final margin, as the Jets outgained the Patriots by 400 yards to 139.
Although they had been competitive in their first two games, New England is dealing with multiple key injuries and were overmatched throughout, so this win might not have everyone sold on the fact that the Jets could be one of the league’s best teams by the end of the season. There’s no doubt they’re trending in the right direction, though.
Here are the takeaways…
-It was obvious from the start that Rodgers was going to have success spreading the ball around and, when he’s in a rhythm like this, everybody gets fed. Rodgers started off by completing eight of his first nine passes, to six different players. Having been a non-factor in the first two games, the tight ends were heavily involved this week with Tyler Conklin racking up a career-high 93 yards on five catches.
-The most impressive thing about Rodgers’ performance was how well he was moving. He eluded pressure a few times, ran for a couple of first downs and extended multiple plays by rolling out and keeping his eyes downfield to find an open receiver. He also constantly hit receivers in stride, generating plenty of yardage after the catch.
-It’s been a while since the Jets have dominated a game like this on offense. At one stage in the third quarter, they were outgaining New England by 318 yards to 46. Their eight first downs in the first quarter were the most they’ve had since 2021. In the first half, they controlled the time of possession for over 20 minutes and had 17 first downs to New England’s four. You get the sense we will see more numbers like this as the season rolls along.
-Perhaps the most impressive statistic is that the Jets scored three offensive touchdowns for the third game in a row for the first time in 35 years. It shows the difference a quarterback can make that Rodgers already has the Jets looking like a well-oiled machine.
-It wasn’t just on offense where they were dominant, though. New England were held to 40 yards in the first half, their lowest total since 2010. This was despite the fact that New York was without CJ Mosley. The run defense gave up 78 yards after averaging 155 per game in the first two and the pass rush was effective again with seven sacks, including another 2.5 from Will McDonald. He now has 5.5 on the season and is tied for the NFL lead with Aidan Hutchinson.
-It still wasn’t a completely clean performance from the Jets. They had a season-high 106 penalty yards, Zuerlein missed a short field goal and Morgan Moses injured his left leg on a play where Tyron Smith was beaten for a sack on the last play of the third quarter.
-Having been named as the rookie of the week during the week, Braelon Allen’s role continues to grow, and he ended up as the leading rusher in a running attack that ground out 133 yards. Allen ended up with 55 yards on 11 carries, along with three catches. The combination of Allen and Hall is working well, with some packages that feature both of them on the field together proving effective.
-Lazard made some good plays as he continues to bounce back from a disappointing first season with the Jets, but it was another quiet game for Wilson, despite the touchdown. He had just 33 yards on five catches. The optimistic takeaway here is that the offense had a great day without him making much of a contribution, so they still aren’t firing on all cylinders.
-First-round rookie Olu Fashanu saw his first action in relief of Moses, playing the entire fourth quarter at right tackle. In addition, rookie running back Isaiah Davis received his first NFL touches on offense. Undrafted defensive tackle Leonard Taylor III also made his debut.
Highlights
What’s next
The Jets get an extended break before their Week 4 matchup against the Denver Broncos.
Gang Green will host the Broncos on Sunday, Sept. 29 at 1 p.m.
