The Jets (0-1) lost to the 49ers (1-0), 32-19, in Santa Clara, CA, on Monday night. Here are three takeaways from the season opener.
Staying Steady
The Jets have high expectations for the 2024 season and they're not wavering after their Week 1 loss. The players and coaches feel confident they can quickly right the ship before taking on the Titans in Week 2 after falling to defending NFC champion 49ers.
"It's a championship outfit and they introduced us to some championship football," HC Robert Saleh said.
RB Breece Hall added: "We know that this isn't our standard. We know that this is not how we should be playing. We're going to all come back [Tuesday], forget about it, watch the film, take constructive criticism and just get better from it."
Spread the Wealth
Wide receiver Garrett Wilson, WR Allen Lazard and RB Breece Hall combined for 242 of the offense's 271 total yards (266 net). Aaron Rodgers, who threw for 167 yards in his return from his left Achilles tendon tear, did not complete a pass to any other player and the offense couldn't fully open the playbook because it had only 49 plays to SF's 70. The 49ers won the time of possession 38:40 to 21.:20 per NFL GSS.
"We had 49 plays on offense and I think that'll happen organically," HC Robert Saleh said. "When we're able to possess the ball and have a couple of opportunities to drive, you go to all plays and then from there you're just not seeing the field as much as you want. But all of it will come together. For the first game for Aaron and for the offense and all that stuff, I thought there's going to be some good things that we can take away from. Now we just got to figure out a way to get better from Week 1 to Week 2."
The unit, however, showed its potential in different ways Monday night. Rodgers' first scoring possession as member of the Green & White was a 12-play, 70-yard drive to put the Jets up, 7-3, in the first quarter. His second, in the third quarter, took 1:49 and was capped by a 36-yard TD pass to Lazard. Rodgers' patented cadence made the defense jump offside and he capitalized on the free play.
"When we're rolling, I know what that can look like," said Wilson, who had 6 receptions for 60 yards. "We weren't rolling throughout the game, but we found it in spurts there and we have to find a way to bottle it up and take it to every drive. Maybe that's what it can look like. I feel like it can look a thousand ways. There are a million ways to skin a cat, but it felt good at the time and we have to get back to that."
All the best game photos from the Monday Night Football matchup in San Francisco.
Trench Warfare
The Jets lost the battle up front. They ran for 68 yards on 19 carries (3.6 avg) and allowed 180 yards on the ground on 38 attempts (4.7 avg). 49ers RB Jordan Mason led both teams with 147 yards, more yards than the Green & White allowed a ballcarrier the entire 2023 season.
"They were running the ball well," DT Quinnen Williams said. "I think they were just running hard, blocking it up on the right way and you've got to give it to them. They ran the ball very well and that's something we've got to get fixed. We've got a short week. We've got to look at the film, learn from the film and get it together. I think we've got the team and we've got the coaching staff to be able to get that fixed quick."
