Two Year Ago, Williams and Jets’ Defense Made A Difference

by Jeff Moeller ,The New York Extra/TheNYExtra.com

You can look at the Jets’ current state of affairs –mainly the defense — and possibly begin to see how it evolved to its current state possibly in part from a December 6, 2020 game.

The Jets welcomed the then Oakland Raiders to MetLife, and had a 28-24 lead with 12 seconds left to play. 

Defensive coordinator Gregg Williams called for a “zero blitz” sending everybody except corner Lamar Jackson to cover the speedy and now controversial Henry Ruggs III. Quarterback Derek Carr managed to have enough time to beautifully lead Ruggs down field on a 46-yard scoring strike.

Ball game over and so was Williams the next day.  Jets’ safety Marcus Maye publicly criticized his coordinator’s decision after the game. Williams took a major gamble, and it backfired. However, he shouldn’t have been discredited.

The Jets remained winless, but, ironically, upset the Rams and Browns down the road, and took a step back to draft Zach Wilson instead of Trevor Lawrence. (Would you rather have Lawrence at this point?) Another story for another day.

A year earlier, though, Williams was hailed as one of the best in the game, and even was regarded as the team’s next head coach. His defense, which was ranked seventh overall, was the catalyst for the team’s 6-2 finish that raised their record to 7-9.

But the Jets pulled the rug out from under him.

They traded defensive leaders safety Jamal Adams, defensive tackle Steve McLendon and linebacker Avery Williamson. C.J.Mosley decided to sit out because of COVID.  

Williams’ unit slipped to the bottom quarter of the league, and it was inevitable the Jest would eventually clean house.

This past offseason, the Jets rid themselves of linebackers Neville Hewitt, Jordan Jenkins, Harvey Langi,  Frankie Luvu, along with lineman Tarrell Basham and Henry Anderson, and cornerbacks Jackson, Bless Austin and Arthur Maulet.

The Jets did add pass rushers Carl Lawson and Shaq Lawson, defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins, safety Lamarcus Joyner, and linebacker Jarrad Davis.

They have lost Maye, Joyner, Carl Lawson, and Blake Cashman to injuries.

Because of the injuries, there can be some sympathy leveled for the Jets’ defense. They certainly set back GM Joe Douglas’ rebuilding plan.

When you look at a young core of linebackers and a rotating secondary with more game-to-game injuries, the picture becomes clearer. Davis’ play also has slipped.

First-year defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich has been questioned for some of his moves –leaving single coverage on Buffalo’s Sheldon Diggs most of the day and staying with it after a touchdown was recalled and then scored on the following same exact play — but he hasn’t had a full deck.

Mosley and defensive tackle Quinnen Williams have done what they can, even though they don’t have a consistent supporting cast around them.

The defense allowing an average of 43 points over the last four games shouldn’t be a total shock. It’s really about the reality of it all with a -15 in takeaways. Safety Sharrad Neasman’s interception in garbage time was their first in 318 pass attempts (Think about that.) 

The Jets’ defense has reached its level, and it’s not pretty.  Head coach Robert Saleh vowed to fix it, and the final eight games will be a major hurdle and could even get uglier.

Two years ago, the Jets had a defense that was a difference maker. Now, they can’t make a difference. And somewhere Williams may be laughing.