Dallas Cowboys vs. Jets Week 5 takeaways
George Pickens of the Dallas Cowboys hauls in a touchdown reception against Sauce Gardner of the Jets during the third quarter at MetLife Stadium on Sunday. Credit: Jim McIsaac
The Jets fell to 0-5 with their 37-22 loss to Dallas on Sunday. Here are three takeaways:
1. The defense has too many holes
This was the third time in five games that the Jets allowed at least 30 points. But Aaron Glenn, a former defensive coordinator, has no plans to take play-calling away from coordinator Steve Wilks.
“I always go back to my first year in Detroit when we struggled on defense and our head coach had a lot of confidence in me making sure we get it right,” Glenn said. “I feel the exact same way. I have a lot of confidence in Wilks. He’s done a lot of great things in this league as a defensive coordinator, and I’m going to allow him to do his job.”
Wilks has to figure out how to get more pressure on the quarterback and get his defense to stop giving up explosive plays.
The Jets were credited with one sack even though Dallas had three backup offensive linemen starting. The Jets had four sacks in Week 1 against Pittsburgh and three since then.
The big plays are burying the Jets. Dallas had six of at least 19 yards and four of at least 40. Two were by Ryan Flournoy, who had four catches before this game. He caught six passes for 116 yards, including plays of 46 and 40 yards.
Javonte Williams broke free for a 66-yard run after Tyler Baron had him wrapped up. The Jets had 16 missed tackles overall.
George Pickens had a 43-yard touchdown catch. Sauce Gardner, who was defending Pickens, said it was “busted coverage.”
2. They give, but they don’t take away
The Jets established another terrible record. They’re the first team in NFL history to have zero takeaways in the first five games of a season.
“You have to take the ball away,” Glenn said. “That’s what you have to do with defense. That has to be the mentality on defense. We have to go and get it because no one’s going to give it to us.”
The Jets give it to their opponents, though. Breece Hall lost a fumble late in the first half that Dallas converted into a touchdown. It was their seventh lost fumble of the season and eighth overall turnover.
Opponents have turned them into 41 points — five touchdowns and two field goals.
“I put it on myself,” Hall said. “It turned into a 14-point swing real fast. Put it on me at the end of the day.”
Hall went on to say that in four of the Jets’ five losses, “we beat ourselves. Teams didn’t beat us.”
3. Fields could have run more
The Jets ran for 144 yards, with Hall doing most of the heavy lifting. It was a little surprising that Fields didn’t run more, considering what he did in Week 1 against Pittsburgh and last week in Miami when he avoided a sack, reversed course and rushed for a 43-yard touchdown.
Fields had 26 yards on seven carries on Sunday. Dallas’ defense did a good job of stopping him on a couple of fourth-and-1s.
But there were opportunities for him to take off, lanes for him to run. He was sacked five times. On a couple of them, he held on to the ball too long and should have run.
“I’m just playing the play,” Fields said.
“I’m not necessarily looking to scramble. I’m dropping back. I thought their D-line did a good job creating pressure. I just got to get the ball out faster when that happens.”
Al Iannazzone covers the Jets for Newsday after spending nearly two decades on the NBA beat with Knicks and Nets.
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