When people talk about the New York Jets, the first thing that comes to mind is the quarterback position. Their Super Bowl aspirations went right out the window when Aaron Rodgers suffered his Achilles injury on the team’s fourth offensive play of the season.
Without Rodgers, they had to turn the offense over again to Zach Wilson. Despite what head coach Robert Saleh pitched about him improving over the offseason, the proof is in the pudding. On the field, Wilson was still performing at a low level.
His lack of production on the field is a big reason the Jets are now riding a three-game losing streak heading into their game against the Denver Broncos in Week 5. While Wilson is shouldering a lot of the blame, in the opinion of one NFL analyst, he isn’t their biggest problem.
In the opinion of former NFL linebacker Emanuel Acho, it is actually their defense that is the big problem. During a recent episode of Speak on FS1 and FOX Sports on Sirius XM Radio, Acho called out the defense for their performance.
As Acho noted, in every game that Wilson has started, he has taken the field already trailing, putting an already struggling player behind the eight-ball. Wilson responded well against the Kansas City Chiefs, having the best game of his career, but he didn’t get going until the Jets were already trailing 17-0.
Coming into the season, there were players on the Jets’ defense who thought their unit was the best the NFL has ever seen. They haven’t come close to that level of play, as they aren’t even in the top of the league this season.
Explosive plays have been an issue for New York, as they are susceptible to surrendering big-chunk gains throughout the game. That is something that cannot happen, especially when you know that your offense isn’t built to light up the scoreboard.
Acho certainly has a case when calling out the defense. Yes, it is likely demoralizing to know that you cannot count on the offense to consistently produce. But, the version of Wilson that came to play on Sunday Night Football is one that the Jets can win games with.
Alas, for that to happen, the Jets’ defense has to play up to their potential and they haven’t done that consistently enough this season.
