Three stats to know, and more, from the Jets' 26-21 loss to Seattle at MetLife Stadium on Sunday:
McDialing Up the Pressure
Will McDonald IV, after a four-game sackless streak, roared to life against Seattle with two sacks and four QB hits on Geno Smith. It was young McDonald's third 2-sacks-plus game of the season, coming after his 5 sacks combined in Games 2-3 vs. the Titans and Patriots. And it propelled him further up the Jets' sack charts.
McDonald's 10 sacks not only lead the Jets, not only are tied for fourth-most in the NFL, but also mark one of the handful of times a Jets rookie or second-year player has reached double-digit sacks in a season. Officially (from 1982-present), only John Abraham in 2001, rookie Hugh Douglas in 1995 and Dennis Byrd in 1990 did it. Before '82, when individual sacks weren't officially recorded, add Mark Gastineau in '80, John Elliott in '68 and Verlon Biggs in '66 to the list. Byrd had the most in his breakout season, 13 sacks.
Just as important as McDonald's individual growth is the projection of the Jets' pass rush into 2025. Even without Jermaine Johnson, lost for the season due to a Week 2 Achilles injury, the Green & White lead the NFL, not in total sacks but in sacks/pass attempt at 10.9%. And with 37 takedowns through 12 games, the Jets are on pace for a 52-sack campaign that would rank second in franchise history behind only the team-record 66 logged by the Sack Exchange in 1981.
Stand and Deliver
The defense's third-quarter goal line stand could have been the centerpiece of a victory over their visitors from the Pacific Northwest. From first-and-goal at their 4 for six plays and two penalties, the Jets kept the Seahawks out of the end zone. Four of those plays were after first-and-a-foot, with the final two stops coming on Sauce Gardner's artful end zone PD on D.K. Metcalf followed by Quincy Williams' forceful 15-yard sack of Smith.
The only first-and-goal-from-the-1 stands of the past two decades occurred in the 2021 win vs. Cincinnati, four plays ending on big bro Quinnen Williams' sack of Joe Burrow, and the '09 loss at New Orleans, two runs followed by two Drew Brees incompletions. Honorable mention for the stand vs. Cleveland in '13, from second-and-goal at the 4, which a roughing converted into first-and-goal from the 2. The last three plays from the 1: three Jason Campbell incompletions, leading to the Jets' 24-13 win.
Fast Start, Then Hold That Lead
When the Jets took their 14-0 lead into the second quarter, it was the first 14-points-plus lead after an opening period since last year's 17-0 lead en route to the 30-27 Christmas Eve home win over Washington. Before that, we have to go back to 2019 and the home game vs. the Giants, 14-0 leading to a 34-27 triumph.
But the Jets didn't hold the lead vs. Seattle, even though Isaiah Davis' first pro TD off a short Aaron Rodgers pass was pivotal in a 42:54 time-ahead advantage over the Seahawks. Time leading by that much usually results in victories. The last time the Jets logged more time ahead and lost was 2021 Week 17 vs. Tampa Bay, when they took the early lead on Braxton Berrios' 1-yard run and held it for 49:49, only to lose, 28-24, on a botched fourth-down play followed by the Tom Brady-engineered 93-yard game-winning TD drive.
What the Jets need to cleanse their palate Sunday at Miami is something akin to their '22 home recipe against the Tua Tagovailoa-less Dolphins: Take the lead on a safety 2:22 in, hold it for 57:38 — their most time ahead in a game in the last 16 seasons — and win going away, 40-17. However, Tua and the 'Fins don't figure to be so cooperative this time around.
