When you put the New York Jets and New England Patriots on the field together, the latter almost always dominate. But there’s one statistical category in which the Jets are just as good as their superior division rivals.
In Thursday night’s 42-21 loss to the Ravens, the Jets scored their sixth non-offensive touchdown of the season when a blocked punt that was recovered by B.J. Bello for a touchdown. That score tied New York with the Patriots for the most non-offensive touchdowns in the NFL this season.
Three of Gang Green’s six non-offensive touchdowns have come on interceptions that have been returned for touchdowns. Jamal Adams, Brian Poole and C.J. Mosley each have one. Adams also has a fumble that he returned for a touchdown against the Giants. Lastly, Arthur Maulet recovered a muffed punt against the Patriots in the end zone.
It’s a good sign that the Jets are creating different ways to score touchdowns because their offense hasn’t scored many this season. For a stretch early in the season, the Jets had more non-offensive touchdowns than offensive touchdowns.
However, if the Jets want to be a respected football team, they can’t only be as good as the Patriots in one small category. The offense has been inconsistent all season long even, while the defense has done what it can given the number of injuries New York has suffered. These are all areas in which the Jets can drastically improve.
It has been an underwhelming season that has been filled with too many injuries, bad coaching and inconsistent play. While the Jets should be thrilled that they’re even in the same discussion as the Patriots in one category, the bigger picture is that the Jets are lightyears away from being nearly as good as their division rival.