Jets do not have a true playmaker on offense

What we’ve learned about the New York Jets in Week 4 was no surprise as it’s what we’ve probably always known. They can’t score against good defenses and struggle to stop average offenses.

At best, on both sides of the ball, the New York Jets performance thus far has been consistently inconsistent and only showing few and far between glimpses of hope and possibility. Additionally, what we’ve seen up to this point is not about a young quarterback who was drafted with unrealistic expectations but a flawed system in a labyrinth of confusion, dropped passes, broken tackles, and mediocracy.

There will be no name calling here. But moving forward, one thing is absolute. The Jets must change their frequency before the football gods turn away for good.

But for the sake of argument, let’s just say the quarterback issue wasn’t the greatest part of the Jets problem. Often times whose throwing the ball has been overshadowed by the people responsible for protecting the person throwing the ball.

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Who’s the difference maker?

Yes, Sam Darnold would love a few extra seconds in the pocket to go through his progressions. Absolutely, he could then find his target downfield. But the greatest question here is no matter the number on the jersey, if a Jets quarterback had better pocket protectors who played hard every play what would the offense look like? Could or would they then seize an opportunity to finally top the AFC East and beyond?

Pass-protectors are the new playmakers. They are the guardians of the line of scrimmage and the real difference makers for any quarterback no matter the stage in his career.

Conversely, what happened in the Jets Week 4 matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars was as much about lazy defense as it was about dropped passes and shrinking pockets. The adage, defense is the best offense is particularly meaningful for the Jets as they are again flirting with the appearance of another season of disappointment.

Fortunately, for Jets fans, it’s too early to fold as there is still time to improve on the season and most importantly, there’s still time for this team and its coach to find their identity. It would certainly help if an offensive playmaker stepped up and delivered big results but it’s evident he’s nowhere to be found.

Until the Jets add some bonafide playmakers on offense, they’ll always be on the outside looking in. Always at the bottom of the division. Always dealing with being a laughingstock and disappointment in the NFL. Always the same old Jets.