Week 2 Jets Report Card

September 16, 2012; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown (84) runs after a pass reception against New York Jets defensive back Kyle Wilson (20) during the third quarter at Heinz Field. The Pittsburgh Steelers won 27-10. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-US PRESSWIRE

The grades are in from yesterday’s 27-10 loss to the Steelers. Needless to say, these aren’t going to help the GPA very much. Let’s get right to it, starting with the offensive grades:

QUARTERBACK:C+

Mark Sanchez had quite the off game, going 10-27 throwing for 138 yards and 1 TD. He didn’t turn the ball over, which is always a good sign. He led a great first drive, and certainly had his share of drops from his receivers. But, he clearly was not as accurate as he was in week 1, missing guys that he hit last week. Overthrows, throws that were wide, and things of that nature. He wasn’t on the same page with his wide receivers, and yes that is partly on them, but it’s also on the quarterback.

Tim Tebow was only in the game for 3 snaps at quarterback, so he doesn’t really affect the grade.

RUNNING BACKS:C

It was another mediocre day for the Ground and Pound. Shonn Greene was running well early, but after a head injury, he came back into the game and wasn’t the same, finishing the game with 11 carries for 23 yards. Bilal Powell showed some potential with 9 carries for 33 yards. But all in all it was pretty lackluster for the running game. The average per carry only exceeded 4 yards per carry thanks to a 22 yarder by Tebow, and a 12 yarder by McKnight.

Sep 16, 2012; Pittsburgh , PA, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Ike Taylor (24) breaks up a pass intended for New York Jets wide receiver Santonio Holmes (10) during the first half of the game at Heinz Field. Mandatory Credit: Jason Bridge-US PRESSWIRE

RECEIVERS/TIGHT ENDS:C

After a good start, the dropsies syndrome went through the group, and they played pretty badly. Jeremy Kerley led with 2 catches for 67 yards, but he had his share of drops. Santonio Holmes had more than his fair share of drops, after a solid first drive. When you get 11 targets, a total of 3 receptions is just unacceptable. Jeff Cumberland would have had a huge first down if he had realized he needed to turn around and catch the football. He has to realize that he is the hot route on that play, on the blitz, and get his head around fast. That is all forgetting the fact that the receivers had a tough time with the task of getting open all day. Bad day for the receivers.

OFFENSIVE LINE:B-

The offensive line wasn’t great, but wasn’t bad either. They gave Sanchez time, for the most part. Yes, Austin Howard got beaten for a sack. But they held their own. A lot of the pressure on Mark had to do with the coverage. Nobody was getting open down the field, and the defense didn’t leave many open lanes for Mark to scramble. The offensive line grade goes down because of the running game. The backs didn’t look good, but they didn’t have enough holes to get through either.

September 16, 2012; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (7) throws a pass against pressure from New York Jets defensive end Quinton Coples (98) during the third quarter at Heinz Field. The Pittsburgh Steelers won 27-10. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-US PRESSWIRE

DEFENSIVE LINE:C+

As expected, the Steelers had a difficult time running the football against this line and the Jets defense. They didn’t even average 3 yards per carry, so that is a positive. However, they could never get any consistent pressure on Big Ben, and when they did, they couldn’t bring him down. This defense let him break tackles far too much, as they let the entire Pittsburgh offense break tackles far too much. Whether they got tired, or whatever, it can’t happen. There were missed tackles at the end of the Buffalo game, but we all passed that off on the big league. Now, you have to worry that this is starting to become a trend.

LINEBACKERS:C+

Same story for the linebackers as the line. For the most part, good job against the run. But too many missed tackles, and not enough pressure on the quarterback. When they did get pressure on the quarterback, they could not wrap up. Rex Ryan and Mike Pettine put them in good positions to succeed. Often times, they had a free rusher coming on the blitz, that gave them a free shot on Ben. But they didn’t cash in. A big guy like Roethlisberger has to be tackled low. If you go high like the Jets did, he is going to make you miss more often than not.

Garrett McIntyre made some nice plays, recording 2 sacks on the night, that kept the linebackers at a C+.

Sep 16, 2012; Pittsburgh , PA, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown (84) is tackled by New York Jets safety LaRon Landry (30) during the second half of the game at Heinz Field. The Steelers won the game, 27-10. Mandatory Credit: Jason Bridge-US PRESSWIRE

DEFENSIVE BACKS:D

Without Darrelle Revis, this group looked absolutely terrible. You have to begin with the stupid penalties. LaRon Landry is a wonderful presence in the secondary, but he has to keep his play on the right side of the line of aggressive, vs. stupid. Yesterday, his two penalties were stupid. He has to know better than to take a late hit out of bounds penalty, and not grab guys by the collar. Even the blind replacement refs are going to make that call.

The grade can come all the way down to a D on the Antonio Cromartie play. On that touchdown he gave up, the ball had so much hang time it looked like a punt. Can you have some idea where the ball is Antonio? Just a terrible play, and a terrible day for the defensive backs.

SPECIAL TEAMS:C

The specials were fine for the most part, but when you muff a punt after a big defensive stop, you change the momentum so drastically that it can be difficult to recover. That play affects the grade as much as an essay does on a short test. It’s huge.

Hopefully this team can earn some credit back next week.