Tag: Jets vs. Seahawks

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On the one hand, the Jets made it all the way to Week 17 with hopes for the playoffs. On the other hand, a better offense and the Jets could have cruised into the playoffs.

That’s been the story over the past few weeks and was magnified in Week 17 against the Seattle Seahawks. The offense, including quarterback Mike White, crumbled in the spotlight of what amounted to a playoff game for the Jets and, as a result, the Jets lost 23-6 and saw their playoff hopes officially fade away with the loss. It is now 12 seasons without a postseason appearance for the Jets, the longest such streak in the NFL.

The Jets recorded their second straight game without a touchdown after their 19-3 loss in Week 16 to the Jaguars. They have scored nine total points and had under 300 yards of offense each across their last two games.

White went 23/46 for 240 yards and two interceptions with a fumble lost as the Jets lost their fifth straight after sitting with a 7-4 record. There’s no other way to say it: White was not good and today proved the Jets’ 2023 quarterback is not on this roster, no matter how much the Jets want to try and sell folks on the idea of not giving up on Zach Wilson.

One question from this game is why did the Jets abandon the run in the second half? They were having success in the first half and then just decided not to do anything on the ground. The Jets had 76 yards on 13 carries in the first half. They ended up with 75 yards on 17 carries.

The Jets wound up being a team that was severely held back by their offense. Their defense did all they could all season to give the Jets a chance and the offense couldn’t get the job done. Week 17 was no different. The defense tightened up after two early scores from Geno Smith, holding the Seahawks to just six points in the second half.

But these were the results of the Jets’ second-half possessions:

• Missed field goal
• Punt
• Punt
• Punt
• Interception
• Downs
• End of Game

Those drives totaled 98 yards, including three three-and-outs. That’s not going to get it done in what was effectively a playoff game for the Jets.

Robert Saleh said a few weeks ago that the playoffs were “farfetched”. Now, they’re just a pipe dream for the 2022 season. The Jets started 5-2 and were 6-3 and even 7-4 at one point. They now sit at 7-9 and are assured of their 7th straight losing season.

The Jets will finish the season next week against the Dolphins and can play spoiler to Miami’s playoff hopes. Other than that, it becomes full-speed ahead for 2023 for the Jets with some major questions to be answered.

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Even Mike White can’t give this offense a spark and now the New York Jets are 30 minutes away from officially seeing their playoff hopes go up in smoke, as the Jets trail the Seahawks at halftime 17-6.

After two early scores, the Jets’ defense stepped up in the second half. The Seahawks had 193 yards of offense in the first quarter, including a 60-yard run on the first play from scrimmage by Kenneth Walker. Seattle has just 17 yards in the second quarter.

Jets defense was much better in second quarter. Seattle only had 17 yards in the second quarter after gaining 193 in the first quarter.

— Brian Costello (@BrianCoz) January 1, 2023

The key so far is New York is losing the turnover battle 2-0, though the second turnover came right at the end of the half.

Then there’s this stat showing White has not been good while under duress.

Mike White was sacked twice in the first half and was 0-of-5 with an interception while passing under duress, per @ESPNStatsInfo

He was 12-for-21, 122 yards, 54.1 rating. #Jets

— Rich Cimini (@RichCimini) January 1, 2023

At least the rushing attack has gotten going again. The Jets have 76 rushing yards on 13 carries (5.8 yards per carry), led by Ty Johnson with 46 yards on seven attempts.

On the flip side, the Seahawks have already rushed for 113 yards on 14 carries, including the 60-yard run by Walker. Geno Smith is 8/12 for 120 yards and two touchdowns with a 138.9 quarterback rating.

Props to the defensive line, who have three sacks of Smith (John Franklin-Myers and Carl Lawson each have one, Solomon Thomas and Micheal Clemons each have a half). And Sauce Gardner has added two passes defended to his league-leading total and he and D.J. Reed have done well thus far against DK Metcalf, who is yet to have a catch today.

But unless something drastically changes in the second half, the Jets will extend their postseason drought yet another year. They have 30 minutes to change that.

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It’s win or go home. Plain and simple. The Jets must win in Seattle Sunday or their playoff hopes will go up in smoke. Can they keep their season alive?

It certainly won’t be easy. Seattle is one of the toughest places to play in the entire NFL. It is going to be loud at Lumen Field. It’s also a place the Jets haven’t won at very much in their history. Just three times out of nine to be exact. The Jets haven’t won in Seattle since Neil O’Donnell led the Jets to a 41-3 win back on August 31, 1997.

New York has lost three straight in Seattle and four straight overall. Their last win at all against the Seahawks was back in 2004, a 37-14 decision.

It is going to be fun watching DK Metcalf vs. Sauce Gardner and Garrett Wilson vs. Tariq Woolen. Tyler Lockett vs. DJ Reed or Michael Carter II will be fun as well.

The key for the Jets is getting the rushing attack back in action. It has been nonexistant over the last couple of games, but this week, they face the 31st-ranked rushing defense in Seattle, allowing 155.5 rushing yards per game. If there was ever a time for Zonovan Knight and Michael Carter to get back on track, this is it.

Needless to say, this is the biggest game of Mike White’s career. The Jets are in the playoff hunt and White is the man tasked with getting the Jets there and ending a 12-year drought. After missing the last two games with fractured ribs, White is back after playing well but falling short at times in starts against the Bears, Vikings and Bills. He could be playing for a starting role or at least a shot in a competition next summer, be it with the Jets or another team.

All that said, it’s a tough task for the Jets. The offensive line has struggled of late, which will make things tougher for White, who is already facing a tough task, effectively in a playoff game in Seattle.

It will be interesting to see how the Jets use Chris Streveler on offense. But the guess is Geno Smith gets the last laugh and eliminates the team that drafted him.

Prediction: Seahawks 20, Jets 16

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We already know two players that will not play for the New York Jets in Week 17 against the Seattle Seahawks due to injury.

Brandin Echols (quad) and Jeff Smith (knee) were already ruled out on Friday. In fact, Smith was placed on injured reserve Saturday, effectively ending his season. The Jets activated Cedric Ogbuehi and elevated Chris Streveler.

With the Jets only elevating Streveler this week from the practice squad, they’ll only need to make six players inactive for Sunday. With Smith now on injured reserve, only Echols will be on the inactives list among the two. Here’s a prediction as to who will be joining him on that list in Week 17.

We know one of the other inactive players will be quarterback Zach Wilson, as the Jets have been making the No. 3 quarterback inactive all season and the team already said he would be inactive after renaming Mike White as the starter.

James Robinson will likely continue to be a healthy scratch. Since Zonovan Knight has emerged, the Jets have had no need for Robinson and not playing him also assures a lower draft pick that they’ll have to send to the Jaguars as part of the trade from earlier this season.

The same goes for tight end Jeremy Ruckert. He’ll likely be a healthy scratch again as well as his rookie season has become more of a redshirt season. If the Jets are eliminated after today, perhaps Ruckert gets some playing time next week in Miami to get him some film for the offseason.

It’s also possible the Jets make both Vinny Curry and Nate Herbig inactive after being late adds to the injury report Friday. They both were still able to practice, but in a limited fashion.

The quick list version:

QB Zach Wilson
CB Brandin Echols
RB James Robinson
TE Jeremy Ruckert
DE Vinny Curry
OG Nate Herbig

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It’s been a while since the Jets have played meaningful football this late in the season, but that’s exactly where they stand as they flip the calendar to January and take a cross-country trip to the Pacific Northwest to take on the Seattle Seahawks.

Ahead of their Week 17 showdown, let’s take a look at some of the top storylines surrounding this game.