Despite beating the Bengals 25-17, Jets fans and coaches could not have been happy with what they saw on Saturday. Despite offensive starters being moderately effective, the defense could not stop the Bengals. Andy Dalton was very effective as he did not even have an incomplete pass. Against an injury plagued secondary, Dalton was 8 of 8 for 144 yards including a 43 yard scoring strike to Mohamed Sanu. Despite the fact that Dee Milliner is expected to be back for the start of the regular season, the Jets could be in for some high-scoring games if the secondary does not improve. Despite the flat performance, Rex Ryan does not seem to be worried about his defense. After the game he was quoted by NY Daily News saying,
“I guess I’ll rely on what I know. Twenty-some years of experience gives me plenty of experience.”
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In addition to the struggles in the secondary, the Jets were penalized far too often. They drew a total of 12 flags for 133 yards, showing a lack of discipline at times. Of course some of those statistics were racked up by players who won't see many snaps in the regular season, but it may speak to a larger problem. Penalties could be a killer this season as clearly the defense is not good enough to be giving away yards and first downs.
On the offensive side of the ball, the Jets were decent aside from a miscue by Geno Smith leading to an interception. Chris
Chris Johnson had a nice game versus the Bengals, averaging 6.3 ypc on 10 carries.(Photo Credit: Mark Zerof-USA TODAY Sports)
Johnson had a solid showing, rushing for 63 yards on 10 carries as well as narrowly missing a touchdown. Meanwhile Bilal Powell ran 4 times for 41 yards and a score. Despite his interception. Geno Smith managed a line of 10 for 13 and 98 yards passing. He also rushed for 20 yards and a score. Nine different Jets receivers had catches over the course of the game, but none of them had more than 2 receptions.
It remains to be seen how the offense will improve when they are joined by Eric Decker, but his presence should certainly open things up for the remainder of the receiving corps. The coaching staff will need to see continued development by prize rookie tight end Jace Amaro, but the team is shaping up to have a dynamic offense.
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