Inside the Jets loss - Rich Cimini

[19andOhWait]

Inside the Jets' loss

By Rich Cimini

Reviewed the tape of the Jets' 30-21 loss to the Patriots. Thoughts and observations:

ENOUGH SCHOTTS?: A lot of folks were upset with O.C. Brian Schottenheimer because the Jets didn't throw more often against the league's worst pass defense. As Rex Ryan explained, they were intent on running the ball and used their "regular" personnel more than usual, cutting back on their three-receiver packages. But here's a stat that suggests they should've gone to more three-wide formations:

QB Mark Sanchez recorded his second-highest passer rating in 3+ WR formations, according to ESPN Stats and Information. Mind you, the Patriots' pass defense began the day as the worst in the league against 3+ WR packages (8.9 yards per pass attempt).

Sanchez's numbers with 3+ WR on the field:

Completion percentage -- 73.3

Yds/attempt -- 7.7

TD/INT -- 2-0

Passer rating -- 134.7

THIRD-DOWN BLAME: The Jets were awful on third down, failing on their first four tries and finishing 3-for-11. Was there a common thread? Not really.

There was a poor throw by Sanchez (to TE Dustin Keller), a drop by FB John Conner, a late blitz pick-up by RB LaDainian Tomlinson (that resulted in an incompletion) and poor pass protection by the O-line out of an empty set (sack).

And, yes, Schottenheimer deserves some blame, too. On a third-and-6, the Jets went "empty," sending five into pass routes. Problem was, all five ran short routes -- to the sticks or short of the sticks. It's like they anticipated a blitz, but the Patriots rushed only three. Sanchez completed a pass to WR Jeremy Kerley, but for only four yards.

The two third-down conversions were well-designed plays. On a third-and-2 from the Patriots' 16, the Jets ran a "bunch" formation and confused the Patriots, with WR Plaxico Burress getting open on a shallow cross. Actually, Kerley was wide open in the middle of the field and would've scored easily if Sanchez had spotted him. Turns out they scored anyway on Shonn Greene's three-yard run.

Later, Santonio Holmes' 21-yard TD grab came on a third-and-7. He ran a great route, shaking CB Kyle Arrington with a head fake on a corner route. It was great anticipation by Sanchez, who delivered the ball on the money.

SECOND-GUESSING THE GAME PLAN: Schottenheimer is taking a lot of heat for running too much against the Patriots' porous secondary. Frankly, I didn't have a problem with the run-pass ratio. Yeah, maybe they got a little stubborn in the second half, continuing to run on first down even though they weren't as successful as the first half. But, clearly, Ryan wanted to go Ground & Pound to shorten the game and limit Tom Brady's touches -- and it might have worked if the defense had delivered a late stop.

The problem I had with the game plan wasn't how often they threw the ball, but how they threw it. They attempted only two passes over 20 yards, Holmes' TD and the sideline incompletion to Burress (the catch that was overturned by replay). The Patriots were sitting on the short routes all day; the Jets should've tried to stretch the field. It's hard to believe they couldn't find a way to pick on former Jets S James Ihedigbo, never known for his pass coverage. He played the entire game because of an injury to the starter.

CHECK MATE: Ryan said it would be a chess match, and he was right -- except he and D.C. Mike Pettine made the wrong moves on the Patriots' final possession -- a 13-play, 69-yard drive that ended with a game-clinching FG.

Thinking Brady would throw, the Jets used seven DBs on the first four plays, and the Patriots ran for eight, three, 15 and six yards against the smaller personnel. That gave them the momentum. Finally, the Jets got their run stoppers in the game and they got the Patriots into a third-and-4 -- and got fooled again.

The Patriots went with four WRs and the Jets countered with 6 DBs. They were thinking pass, and the Patriots gashed them for 14 yards with a direct snap to BenJarvus Green-Ellis. That put the Patriots into FG range. Game over.

Throughout the game, the Jets were so concerned by Brady that they put six or fewer defenders in the box on 58 of 79 snaps, according to ESPN Stats and Information. Green-Ellis capitalized on the extra room, rushing for 99 yards and a touchdown in those situations.

SWINGS AND MISSES: The Jets missed an inordinate number of tackles -- eight, according to my count. Those missed accounted for 68 extra yards. DT Mike DeVito, one of the best run stoppers, missed tackles on back-to-back plays. S Jim Leonhard also missed two tackles.

ODDS AND ENDS: Here's the downside to LB Aaron Maybin. As soon as he came into the game, on a second-and-24, the Patriots ran an inside draw for eight yards, hitting the gap vacated by Maybin on his outside rush ... CB Kyle Wilson is a tenacious tackler. You won't find too many cornerbacks more physical than him. He's still lacking ball awareness, especially in all-out blitz situations ... Tomlinson made a great block on former Jets DE Shaun Ellis on the nine-yard TD pass to Kerley. It was a well-designed rollout by Sanchez; there should've been more of those ... Excellent block by LG Matt Slauson on Greene's 3-yard TD run ... CB Antonio Cromartie got caught napping on Deion Branch's 2-yard TD catch. If you're wondering why Brady had all day to throw, it's because the Jets rushed only three.

[19andOhWait]

"They attempted only two passes over 20 yards, Holmes' TD and the sideline incompletion to Burress (the catch that was overturned by replay)"

against the worst secondary in the league, that is fvcking pathetic. i know ground and blah blah blah, f that. this game was not managed properly by the coaches and now Sanchez is taking the heat for it. all of you who on here who don't blame the coaches, you are retarded. sure Sanchez misses throws, everyone does not named Rodgers or Brady.

GET RID OF THE DIP S HIT SCHOTT

[Bugg]

"a drop by FB John Conner"

That play was on the first drive, and it bothered me on so many levels. Conner is a blocking fullback. If we run a handoff to him there and fail, at least it's defensible. But he is not paid to catch passes.To date he ash caught exaclty 3 passes in his 2 season here. You do have 2 highly-paid WRs who are paid to do exactly that. How about getting the ball to them on a passing play? You can blame Conner for a drop, but why are we running a play like that in that situation? It puts a player out of his comfort zone, inviting failure. It makes no sense, and it's part and parcel of Schitty's usual too clever by half bullsh*t playcalls. If the idea is "ground and pound'" on 3rd and 1 of your opening drive, there is exactly where you do that.

[BroadwayJoe12]

I actually like that play for connor as he has shown he is a pretty athletic fullback, I just don't like the call on our first drive. We had a 3rd and short and our ground game was working early, you want to establish momentum and pace in the first few posessions, the last thing you want is a 3 and out on a drop. Getting that first down and setting the tone for the game would have drastically changed the outcome...but that's where I dislike Schotty's playcalling the most. He can design some very nice plays and call a good game, I just disagree with the situations he calls those plays sometimes in.

[jack48]

Inside the Jets' loss

By Rich Cimini

Reviewed the tape of the Jets' 30-21 loss to the Patriots. Thoughts and observations:

ENOUGH SCHOTTS?: A lot of folks were upset with O.C. Brian Schottenheimer because the Jets didn't throw more often against the league's worst pass defense. As Rex Ryan explained, they were intent on running the ball and used their "regular" personnel more than usual, cutting back on their three-receiver packages. But here's a stat that suggests they should've gone to more three-wide formations:

QB Mark Sanchez recorded his second-highest passer rating in 3+ WR formations, according to ESPN Stats and Information. Mind you, the Patriots' pass defense began the day as the worst in the league against 3+ WR packages (8.9 yards per pass attempt).

Sanchez's numbers with 3+ WR on the field:

Completion percentage -- 73.3

Yds/attempt -- 7.7

TD/INT -- 2-0

Passer rating -- 134.7

THIRD-DOWN BLAME: The Jets were awful on third down, failing on their first four tries and finishing 3-for-11. Was there a common thread? Not really.

There was a poor throw by Sanchez (to TE Dustin Keller), a drop by FB John Conner, a late blitz pick-up by RB LaDainian Tomlinson (that resulted in an incompletion) and poor pass protection by the O-line out of an empty set (sack).

And, yes, Schottenheimer deserves some blame, too. On a third-and-6, the Jets went "empty," sending five into pass routes. Problem was, all five ran short routes -- to the sticks or short of the sticks. It's like they anticipated a blitz, but the Patriots rushed only three. Sanchez completed a pass to WR Jeremy Kerley, but for only four yards.

The two third-down conversions were well-designed plays. On a third-and-2 from the Patriots' 16, the Jets ran a "bunch" formation and confused the Patriots, with WR Plaxico Burress getting open on a shallow cross. Actually, Kerley was wide open in the middle of the field and would've scored easily if Sanchez had spotted him. Turns out they scored anyway on Shonn Greene's three-yard run.

Later, Santonio Holmes' 21-yard TD grab came on a third-and-7. He ran a great route, shaking CB Kyle Arrington with a head fake on a corner route. It was great anticipation by Sanchez, who delivered the ball on the money.

SECOND-GUESSING THE GAME PLAN: Schottenheimer is taking a lot of heat for running too much against the Patriots' porous secondary. Frankly, I didn't have a problem with the run-pass ratio. Yeah, maybe they got a little stubborn in the second half, continuing to run on first down even though they weren't as successful as the first half. But, clearly, Ryan wanted to go Ground & Pound to shorten the game and limit Tom Brady's touches -- and it might have worked if the defense had delivered a late stop.

The problem I had with the game plan wasn't how often they threw the ball, but how they threw it. They attempted only two passes over 20 yards, Holmes' TD and the sideline incompletion to Burress (the catch that was overturned by replay). The Patriots were sitting on the short routes all day; the Jets should've tried to stretch the field. It's hard to believe they couldn't find a way to pick on former Jets S James Ihedigbo, never known for his pass coverage. He played the entire game because of an injury to the starter.

CHECK MATE: Ryan said it would be a chess match, and he was right -- except he and D.C. Mike Pettine made the wrong moves on the Patriots' final possession -- a 13-play, 69-yard drive that ended with a game-clinching FG.

Thinking Brady would throw, the Jets used seven DBs on the first four plays, and the Patriots ran for eight, three, 15 and six yards against the smaller personnel. That gave them the momentum. Finally, the Jets got their run stoppers in the game and they got the Patriots into a third-and-4 -- and got fooled again.

The Patriots went with four WRs and the Jets countered with 6 DBs. They were thinking pass, and the Patriots gashed them for 14 yards with a direct snap to BenJarvus Green-Ellis. That put the Patriots into FG range. Game over.

Throughout the game, the Jets were so concerned by Brady that they put six or fewer defenders in the box on 58 of 79 snaps, according to ESPN Stats and Information. Green-Ellis capitalized on the extra room, rushing for 99 yards and a touchdown in those situations.

SWINGS AND MISSES: The Jets missed an inordinate number of tackles -- eight, according to my count. Those missed accounted for 68 extra yards. DT Mike DeVito, one of the best run stoppers, missed tackles on back-to-back plays. S Jim Leonhard also missed two tackles.

ODDS AND ENDS: Here's the downside to LB Aaron Maybin. As soon as he came into the game, on a second-and-24, the Patriots ran an inside draw for eight yards, hitting the gap vacated by Maybin on his outside rush ... CB Kyle Wilson is a tenacious tackler. You won't find too many cornerbacks more physical than him. He's still lacking ball awareness, especially in all-out blitz situations ... Tomlinson made a great block on former Jets DE Shaun Ellis on the nine-yard TD pass to Kerley. It was a well-designed rollout by Sanchez; there should've been more of those ... Excellent block by LG Matt Slauson on Greene's 3-yard TD run ... CB Antonio Cromartie got caught napping on Deion Branch's 2-yard TD catch. If you're wondering why Brady had all day to throw, it's because the Jets rushed only three.

I don't necessarily care if they run, but I do not like the way they throw. Their plays are not vertical, not designed to get the receiver good separation, are slant crazy, and they do not screen enough. Even against bad teams their receivers catch the ball with guys all over them. NE picks like crazy. Their receivers run free against mediocre D's, because their play design is infinitely superior. Would going with 3 or 4 wideouts more often be such a bad idea?

[jack48]

I actually like that play for connor as he has shown he is a pretty athletic fullback, I just don't like the call on our first drive. We had a 3rd and short and our ground game was working early, you want to establish momentum and pace in the first few posessions, the last thing you want is a 3 and out on a drop. Getting that first down and setting the tone for the game would have drastically changed the outcome...but that's where I dislike Schotty's playcalling the most. He can design some very nice plays and call a good game, I just disagree with the situations he calls those plays sometimes in.

Here is what i hate. Where is it written that on third and 4 you have to throw for 4.

[BroadwayJoe12]

Here is what i hate. Where is it written that on third and 4 you have to throw for 4.

I'm not sure what the exact plays that are called or what's coached to the receivers, but it could very well be that they thought they were playing a deeper zone and blitzing heavy and thought a shorter route would work. You can see those very plays against us when Cromartie was covering Branch 8 yards deep on a 3rd and 3...sometimes you guess what the defense is doing and you get it wrong, I'm guessing that was one of those times.

That's a very large reason why Schotty has our TEs and RBs in motion so much, he helps Sanchez get a lot of pre-snap reads that he's unable of figuring out on his own.

[jack48]

I'm not sure what the exact plays that are called or what's coached to the receivers, but it could very well be that they thought they were playing a deeper zone and blitzing heavy and thought a shorter route would work. You can see those very plays against us when Cromartie was covering Branch 8 yards deep on a 3rd and 3...sometimes you guess what the defense is doing and you get it wrong, I'm guessing that was one of those times.

That's a very large reason why Schotty has our TEs and RBs in motion so much, he helps Sanchez get a lot of pre-snap reads that he's unable of figuring out on his own.

But we do it all the time, not just last Sunday. If you go 10 or 15 yards downfield once in a while you make the defense think.

[BroadwayJoe12]

But we do it all the time, not just last Sunday. If you go 10 or 15 yards downfield once in a while you make the defense think.

I agree that it happens more than you'd like to see and it is terribly frustrating, it makes no sense to me. I am 100% with Jason that the Jets definitely miss the aspect of the game that Braylon brought to the table; he was a great vertical threat and I always thought Sanchez threw a heck of a deep ball. We were constantly taking shots down field last year to Bray and it's annoying as hell that we don't let Holmes or Kerley take a few shots. Throw it to the outside shoulder, worse thing that happens is an uncatchable ball out of bounds, but at least you bring into play pass-interference and keep the defense honest. There was always that option to go deep with braylon that we just haven't seen this year, it most certainly has shortened the field on us.

[Larz]

that was pretty fair and with no douchiness

is he auditioning for nfl.com now ?

[Ghost]

The fact that I don't remember us ATTEMPTING a pass for more than 40 yards in 5 games is mind boggling. I can NOT believe this, I really can't.

[19andOhWait]

The fact that I don't remember us ATTEMPTING a pass for more than 40 yards in 5 games is mind boggling. I can NOT believe this, I really can't.

really is sad.

who is to blame more for this little tidbit.. Shott or Sanchez? for me its without a doubt Schott. we can talk identity all we want, you have to adapt at times. for me, Schott never seems to do this. 1st down singleback, run inside left is fine, HOW ABOUT ONCE IN A WHILE YOU TAKE A SHOT ON 2nd and short sorry hit caps lock on accident there *not

[Ghost]

100% on sh*tty. Sanchez can't throw deep when his receivers are doing nothing past 10 yards.