When Kerry Rhodes emerged from the tunnel leading from Giants Stadium to the Jets’ locker room in the bowels underneath the stadium stands yesterday, he unleashed a one-word obscenity so loud it could probably be heard across the Hudson River, over in Long Island, where the Jets team buses would soon trudge their way through traffic in deafening silence.
Rhodes represented a mere single, dramatic symbol of the heightened level of angst and frustration that has engulfed the Jets and left them on the perilous verge of fracturing. The Jets’ enigmatic slide reached inexplicable proportions with yesterday’s 16-9 loss to the Eagles yesterday – one that leaves them floundering with a 1-5 record and with playoff hopes as faint as the chances Michael Vick might soon be given a humanitarian award.
According to the Elias Sports Bureau, only one team in NFL history (the 1970 Bengals) has started the season 1-5 and made the playoffs. This latest setback, their third in a row, left the Jets angry, confused, disillusioned and definitely deflated.
“The mood is not good,” Rhodes said. “We can’t keep lying and saying that we’re in a good mood when we’re not. We’re 1-5 and it’s not looking good. We can’t seem to get it together.”
No, they can’t.
The Jets, wearing New York Titans throwback uniforms, entered the game ranked 28th in the NFL in rushing offense, having seemingly lost touch with their running game. They came into the game throwing the ball 58 percent of the time to 42 percent running plays. The Eagles entered the game ranked eighth in the NFL in run defense.
And yet yesterday, the Jets finally broke the door down with the running game, breaking Thomas Jones out for 130 yards.
That’s good news.
Now for the maddening news: With the Jets trailing 16-9 late in the fourth quarter and faced with a third-and-one from the Eagles’ 4 yard line, they opted for a Chad Pennington quarterback sneak play that got smothered for no gain.
How – after Jones had battered the Eagles’ defense for 5.4 yards per clip on his 24 carries – he didn’t get a 25th carry there is a question every Jets fan undoubtedly went to bed agonizing over last night. Jones, after all, was the Jets’ most significant offseason acquisition, a player who they brought here for this very situation.
The Jets’ season essentially ended prematurely on the next play, fourth-and-one, when Pennington failed to complete a pass to Laveranues Coles in the end zone. The inexplicable decision to quarterback sneak on that third down left a number of players grumbling and mumbling afterward.
“Thomas had 100 yards in the first half … and we don’t give him the ball on third-and-one … no, it didn’t surprise me,” Jets tight end Chris Baker said incredulously. “That’s the problem; I wasn’t surprised by it. What can you do? The guy [Jones] has been running the ball all over the place and he doesn’t get it … it’s unfortunate. Nothing surprises me anymore.”
The implication from Baker and other players was clearly that offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer outsmarted himself.
“I don’t call the plays. I’m not the offensive coordinator. I do what I’m asked to do,” Jones said.
“They were up in there pretty good,” Pennington said of the Eagles defense. “I’m not do sure the running game would have helped there, but you can always second guess.”
Eric Mangini said, “The quarterback sneak had been very effective throughout the game. You look at what has been working percentage wise and you go with it.”
Right now, neither Mangini nor Schottenheimer nor anyone else associated with the Jets seems to be pushing the right buttons. The result is the mess they find themselves in now.
“Right now I’m just numb,” Pennington said.
“We can say what we want,” Rhodes said. “We can say we’re a good team. We can say we have good players, which we do. But our record’s 1-5 and that’s not good.”
To borrow a rather famous quote from former Knicks guard Micheal Ray Richardson: “The ship be sinking.”