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Florham Park – While the Jets’ first game of the 2026 season, a win over the Tennessee Titans, was a great way for Gang Green to start the season, they have a lot of things to clean up entering Week 2, and they would be the first to admit it.
Like that last series of the first half in Nashville. They should have at least been able to get in field goal range. Remember, they were on the Titans’ 49-yard line with 36 seconds left in the half, after an 18-yard completion from Geno Smith to Adanoi Mitchell. Then, after a two-yard pass to Mitchell, the wheels fell off. There was a false start on Garrett Wilson, and then they could not get a play off before the clock ran out.
“Aaron (Glenn) was a little frustrated with how that first half ended,” said CBS broadcaster Spero Dedas, who was calling the game.
He should have been. This was sloppy game management, and it needs to be cleaned up. Remember, the Jets were only up 10-3 at the time, so a field goal would have been helpful…
In the third quarter, Smith took some heat for what some perceived as a business decision: a scramble in the red zone.
The Jets had the ball on the Tennessee 11, and Smith scrambled 7 yards to the four-yard line, but then slid.
It looked like he could have tried to perhaps dive into the end zone. There was some space that made that possible. However, he slid.
If some want to call it a “business decision,” maybe they were right, but you could argue it was a smart “business decision.” You are in Week 1, in the first game of 17 regular-season contests. The team needs their starting QB to stay healthy, especially with a rookie middle-round backup. You see two defenders, safety Malik Hooker and linebacker James Williams, bearing down on you, both in positions to level you. You know what, it’s not a time to play hero-ball. If there was a playoff game, or a late-season game for the division title, something like that, of course you throw caution to the wind, but not in Week 1.
How often have we talked about the need for QBs to slide more? Remember when Mark Sanchez was the Jets QB, and Rex Ryan brought in Yankees manager Joe Girardi to work with him on sliding, because the coach felt he was taking too many hits while scrambling?
So we can’t have it both ways. Telling guys they need to slide more, and then when they slide, say they are making “business decisions.”
This was a savvy veteran move by Smith, and the Jets ended up scoring on the next play, on a 4-yard TD run by RB Breece Hall . . .
Not predicting the game, but certainly helping the Jets chances, aside from clearly being a much-improved team, is the Green Bay Packers being without arguably their two most talented players, RB Josh Jacobs and LB Micah Parsons. Jacobs is suspended by the league due to a legal issue, and Parsons is still rehabbing a knee injury from last season.
As some around the league like to say, “It’s not who you play, but when you play them.”
“They are in the deep end right now,” said Jacob Hester on SiriusXM NFL Radio. “Their best players on offense and defense are not in sight right now, and it’s going to be some time. Can you doggie paddle long enough to be able to swim to shore? That is something to watch from the Green Bay Packers.” . . .
It’s funny sometimes when teams are trying to figure out what an ideal position is for a young player.
On Thursday, when the Jets did individual position drills, where players go work with their position coach early in practice, practice squad offensive lineman Brant Banks, at first, didn’t seem sure whether to do the interior lineman or the tackles. He started to run to the interior line drill, but then ran back to the tackles.
At 6-7, clearly his best position is tackle, but you gotta have position “flex” in the NFL with roster limitations.
Like Max Mitchell is a tackle by trade, but needs to work on his guard skills sometimes, in case he’s needed at that position due to an injury or two on game day…
Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur said this week about the Jets: “They’re a complete football team; I don’t see any glaring weaknesses.”
Hey, it’s understandable that he would say this with the Jets being this team’s next opponent, but it’s hard to know if this is the case just yet.
We will find out more about the 2026 New York Jets this Sunday against Green Bay, a better opponent than they faced last week. The Jets played well last week to their credit, but Tennessee is not a good team right now.
As for an area they need to show they don’t have a weakness, that is linebacker pass coverage. We will certainly find out more about this on Sunday, with tight end Tyler Kraft coming to town.
September 18, 2026
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