Adonai Mitchell led Jets to clutch Week 13 victory with breakout game

Adonai Mitchell's New York Jets tenure started on a sour note. The former second-round pick hauled in just one of his six targets for 10 yards in his Green and White debut against the New England Patriots. The most frustrating part was the three drops. It certainly looked like there was a reason the Indianapolis Colts were so eager to give him away.

His second appearance with the Jets was better, but still rather nondescript. Third time's a charm, they say, and Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons, Mitchell showed exactly why he was so highly thought of coming out of the University of Texas ahead of the 2024 draft.

Mitchell finished his day by catching eight of his 11 targets for 102 yards and his first career touchdown. The breakout was special, for sure, but the way he did it is what made all the difference for the Jets.

Adonai Mitchell's breakout game was a key to the Jets' victory over the Falcons

Early on, the matchup looked to be a defensive struggle. With both teams missing their top pass catcher, it looked like it was going to be tough sledding, and whichever defense broke first was going to decide the game.

Tied at seven at the half, it looked like the Falcons were going to pull away and ride Bijan Robinson's legs to victory. Atlanta scored their first touchdown right before the clock ran out in the first half, and then began the second half by forcing a quick Jets' three-and-out before driving 95 yards down the field for its second consecutive touchdown.

Normally, that's the cue for the Jets to unravel, but instead it took just 38 seconds for Gang Green to respond, with Tyrod Taylor connecting with Mitchell for a thrilling 52-yard touchdown strike. Mitchell showed off everything that makes him special on the play,

Mitchell steaked down the left side of the field, gaining a step on cornerback Mike Hughes and then showing off some savvy to downshift for a split second as Hughes tried to close, causing the Atlanta corner to fall down. From there, Mitchell was wide open, but Taylor's throw hung up in the air, forcing Mitchell to make a nice adjustment to haul the pass in as he fell to the ground.

Separation skills, explosion, and deep ball tracking were all skills he supposedly excelled at coming into the NFL, and he put all of them to use on that play.

It wasn't just the deep balls, though, where Mitchell made an impact. The big-bodied wideout was also a reliable safety valve underneath and showed a knack for getting down and snagging balls right before they hit the dirt, with a prime example being his five-yard third-down reception to move the chains on New York's game-winning drive.

Mitchell was one of the main catalysts for the Jets' offense coming alive in the second half, with four of his six receptions and 84 of his 102 yards coming after halftime. Mitchell's 74.9 PFF receiving grade ranked 19th among all wide receivers in Week 13.

If he can continue and build on this performance over the last five games of the season, he and John Metchie III might be able to change the perception of the wide receiver room outside of Garrett Wilson heading into the offseason.