EAST RUTHERFORD – There were 78,160 fans on attendance for Sunday’s contest between the New York Jets and the Denver Broncos. The Broncos fans were well represented at MetLife, as the crowd was a fair mix of green and orange. Gang Green was coming off an embarrassing performance in San Diego in which they were shut out 31-0. The Jets were looking to protect their home field, as they knew they had a tough task in containing the high powered Mile High offense. All year the Jets had struggled in their secondary, and leaned on their strong run defense and rushing attack. This game however would be a lot different then most expected it would turn out.
The Jets defense looked strong early by limiting Peyton Manning to a FG on the Broncos opening drive. Manning usually finds success in the end zone early on, so this was a huge momentum boost for Gang Green. The defense was getting pressure on Manning early as they recorded 2 sacks on him. The Jets would force four straight punts after the FG on the opening possession.
Geno Smith led the Jets to an unexpected early lead, when he hit Jace Amaro for a 2 yard TD reception. They led the game 7-3 on the score. Amaro was targeted frequently and early on in this game. When asked how big it was to get his first NFL touchdown, he replied “… it woulda been better if we won the game.”
It seemed then after this point, that Manning would start to hit his groove. He then led a 43 yard drive in 10 plays, which resulted in a TD pass to Demaryius Thomas. Demaryius finished with 10 receptions for 124 yards and that TD. The very next drive before the end of the half, he would get his 2nd TD pass of the day to Julius Thomas. On the opening drive of the 2nd half, Manning would find Julius Thomas again for his 2nd TD reception. Julius had 4 receptions for 51 yards and those 2 TD’s. This put the Broncos up 24-7 and they would never look back. The Jets would rally by holding the Broncos to four consecutive punts after the Thomas TD catch to begin the 2nd half.
Smith also looked decent in leading drives that led to both a FG, and an Eric Decker TD catch on a slant in the end zone. This being crucial as the Jets have failed to be successful in their red zone efficiency. The scores brought them to within one score, at 24-17. However, with the Jets making a critical stop with 1:07 left in the game, Smith had the chance to drive his team down the field to tie the game. He would in classic “Geno” fashion, throw a pick six to Aqib Talib to put the game on ice, and the Jets would fall 31-17. Manning finished 22 of 33 for 237 yards and 3 TD passes. Smith finished 23 of 43 for 190 yards with 2 TD’s and a game ending INT. Smith has now thrown an interception in all 6 games of the season so far.
The Jets showed a lot more heart and put up a fight against one of the best teams in the AFC. They got a very good showing from their defense. You can never look to stop Manning, but only contain him and that is what they did. The defense gave its offense opportunities to win, however the offense could not make crucial plays when they needed them. The rushing attack also was non existent. In the 1st half, the Jets were held to just 8 rushing yards which is pathetic considering their personnel. To finish the game, they only had 31 yards. Especially when you’re passing attack is sub-par at best, its going to be hard to win games with that lack of production out of Chris Ivory and Chris Johnson.
Up until the the last drive, Smith had played well aside from his usual couple of overthrown balls. Bottom line is though, is that Smith has proven that he is not someone that can bring your team to the promise land. He is an okay quarterback that will not make the necessary plays to win you ball games. He also took a critical sack which pinned his team deep, before throwing the game sealing pick six. When the spotlight is on, and his team needs him, Smith doesn’t deliver. It will not get any easier, as they play their division rival, the New England Patriots on Thursday. The Patriots are on a 2 game win streak, and took out the Bengals (undefeated at the time) last time they were in Foxboro.
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