New York Jets Offensive Report Card: Week 1 vs. Buffalo Bills

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ – SEPTEMBER 8: Le’Veon Bell #26 of the New York Jets celebrates his touchdown with Robby Anderson #11 against the Buffalo Bills during a game at MetLife Stadium on September 8, 2019 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. New York Jets (Photo by Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images) /

The New York Jets lost a heartbreaking Week 1 matchup to the Buffalo Bills on Sunday. Let’s take a look back and grade the performance of each of the offensive units.

Devastation is what New York Jets fans are feeling after blowing a 16-0 lead against their division rivals, the Buffalo Bills, in a game in which they absolutely should have won.

The Jets offense had a hard time finding the end zone early on. In fact, the Jets only reached the red zone once in their 11 offensive drives on Sunday.

The Jets offense was dreadful to watch as they could not get anything going for most of the game. If it wasn’t for the defense playing well for most of the afternoon, this game would’ve gotten out of hand early on.

After an offseason of hype and optimism, the offense did not play to their true potential so here is a breakdown on how the offense did in the team’s Week 1 matchup with Buffalo and how they can improve ahead of next week.

Next: Quarterback

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ – SEPTEMBER 08: Sam Darnold #14 of the New York Jets drops back to pass during the second quarter against the Buffalo Bills at MetLife Stadium on September 8, 2019 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. New York Jets (Photo by Brett Carlsen/Getty Images) /

Quarterback

Grade: C

The quarterback play from Sam Darnold was not what we wanted to see. In Darnold’s defense, the offensive line did not give him time to throw on a lot of plays but there were some plays that got away from him.

One play that stood out, in particular, came late in the fourth quarter where Darnold had a chance to lead the team down the field for a game-winning touchdown and he underthrew Robby Anderson on a deep pass.

Running Backs

Grade: B

The running backs get a ‘B’ this week because of one man, Le’Veon Bell. Bell looked like he never took a year off from football and if you look at his stats from Sunday’s game, they don’t immediately jump out at you.

But given the way the rest of the Jets offense played, he was the guy who carried most of the workload. Bell had 17 carries for only 60 yards, averaging 3.5 yards per carry, and contributed in the passing game by catching the only offensive touchdown in the game.

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After the game, the new Jets running back had the following to say to the New York Post’s Greg Joyce.

“It felt like normal, I still had fun playing the game today. Even though the outcome wasn’t what I wanted it to be — obviously I’m a competitive guy, so I’m not happy at the fact we lost the game — but I’m just happy I went out there and was able to compete again.”

What was disappointing was that we did not see enough of Ty Montgomery, not even as a wide receiver. Montgomery only had two carries and was nonexistent in the passing game. Hopefully, we get to see more of Montgomery with Bell in this Jets offense next week.

Next: Wide Receivers

EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY – SEPTEMBER 08: Jamison Crowder #82 of the New York Jets is tackled by Siran Neal #33 of the Buffalo Bills at MetLife Stadium on September 08, 2019 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Buffalo Bills defeated the New York Jets 17-16. New York Jets (Photo by Michael Owens/Getty Images) /

Wide Receivers

Grade: C

Aside from Jamison Crowder, the Jets wide receivers were nonexistent for most of the game. Obviously, it’s not easy for receivers to get open when their quarterback has no time to throw, but the receivers were still a big disappointment on Sunday.

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Let’s start with Robby Anderson who finished with only three catches for 23 yards. For the most part, Anderson was shut down by Buffalo cornerback Tre’Davious White and could not get open for most of the game.

Quincy Enunwa also had a poor performance only catching one pass for negative four yards — not an ideal stat line.

It seemed like the only receiver that could get open up the middle was Crowder who the Jets acquired via free agency in the offseason. Crowder ended the day with 14 catches for 99 yards and had some crucial catches on third down early on.

The former Washington Redskins receiver had the following to say when he spoke to the New York Post’s Zach Braziller about how he always tries to get open on crucial third-down plays.

“My mentality, just individually, is when it’s third down, I try to be as much of a valued option and be available as [much] as I possibly can. Today, [Darnold] was able to find me a few times. I just want to be one of those guys that can move the sticks, so that’s just my mentality.”

Next week, the Jets wide receivers have a big test against a very solid Cleveland Browns secondary that features second-year stand out, Denzel Ward and veteran Terrance Mitchell alongside veteran safeties Damarious Randall and Morgan Burnett.

Next: Offensive Line

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ – SEPTEMBER 8: Sam Darnold #14 of the New York Jets celebrates a touchdown against the Buffalo Bills during a game at MetLife Stadium on September 8, 2019 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. New York Jets (Photo by Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images) /

Offensive line

Grade: D

The offensive line gets the lowest grade because it was obvious they flat out stunk up the joint on Sunday. The Jets were outmatched by the Bills defense who was the second-ranked unit in the NFL last year. The offensive line could not give the protection Darnold needed to succeed.