The Jets' three players and three plays of the game from their season-ending 22-17 loss to the Bills at Ralph Wilson Stadium on Sunday:
Players of the Game
WR Brandon Marshall — Marshall celebrated being named the Curtis Martin Team MVP two days earlier with another high-impact game. His 126 yards on eight receptions gave him 10 games of 100-plus receiving yards, breaking the 48-year-old franchise record set by Don Maynard in 1967. Six of his eight catches went for first downs, giving him a team-leading 76 FDs for the season. He also reset the team season standards for receptions (109) and yardage (1,502) and tied the franchise mark with his 14th touchdown reception.
WR Eric Decker — As was the case all year, Decker played some exquisite counterpoint off of Marshall. He had five catches for 50 yards and his 12th TD catch of the season in the third quarter put the Jets a field goal away from taking the lead. Four of his five catches went for first downs and two converted third downs, both on the drive to his TD, giving him a team-high 25 third/fourth-down conversions for the year (Marshall had 24, all on third down).
LB David Harris — Harris was all over the field in compiling a game-high 14 tackles, giving him a team-leading 127 for the season. He had the only two sacks of the elusive Tyrod Taylor, both for zero yards in the third quarter, and he was in on three tackles at or behind the line of RB Mike Gillislee as the defense held Bills RBs (but not Taylor) to less than 2 yards/carry. He even notched his seventh pass defense of the season in the first quarter.
Plays of the Game
Chris Ivory 58-yard run to Bills 22, 12:21 to play, second quarter — The Jets had gained 19 yards on their first four drives. Then on one play, Ivory tripled that amount. Ivory, who had come in on third downs in the first quarter, took the first handoff of the second frame, his first touch of the game, ripped past blocks by Nick Mangold and James Carpenter, veered right, and was off on his longest run of the year. The Jets didn't score immediately (Randy Bullock missed a 40-yard field goal) but the run broke the Jets outside their own 25 and helped set up the next drive, when they scored their first touchdown.
Brandon Marshall 41-yard reception from Ryan Fitzpatrick, 10:24 to play, second quarter — That next drive also required an electric boost and Marshall provided it on his straight route down the left sideline. Then the 6'4" Marshall "boxed out" the 5'10" Leodis McKelvin, leaped, and brought the longball down at the Bills 19. Two players later, he caught his touchdown pass on a 17-yard slant and the Jets were down by 13-7 but finally on the board.
Eric Decker 21-yard TD reception from Ryan Fitzpatrick, 1:10 to play, third quarter —Time was running out and the visitors, trailing, 19-10, needed points. They got seven on their best drive of the day, 11 plays and 77 yards, which was kept moving by a Decker 5-yard catch-and-stretch on third-and-5 and then a second-down 15-yarder to the Bills 21. Finally, on third down, Fitzpatrick stepped up and found Deck on the post separating from S Corey Graham. He gathered the ball in at the goal line and the Jets were seemingly back in business, trailing only by 19-17.
