Jets star pass rusher struggling as defense sinks to new lows

The New York Jets suffered another embarrassing loss on Sunday afternoon against the Dallas Cowboys at MetLife Stadium. Still in search of his first win, Aaron Glenn became the first Jets head coach to start his first season 0-5.

Sunday was another repeat performance for the Jets on both sides of the football, which included another bad day on defense. Five weeks in, the Jets are the only team in NFL history to start 0-5 and have zero takeaways through the first five games.

Despite Dallas missing four of its five starting offensive linemen, New York's lack of pressure continued to be a glaring problem. The Jets generated just one sack on Dak Prescott, which came in garbage time when Prescott gave himself up.

After an impressive four-sack performance in week one against Aaron Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Jets have tallied just three sacks in the last four games combined. New York's seven total sacks in five games this season are tied for the third fewest in the NFL.

Unfortunately, after a dominant performance for Will McDonald against the Pittsburgh Steelers, his production in the last four games has also been on the decline.

Will McDonald is not helping a struggling Jets defense

After posting a big 10.5 sack and 61 pressure season in 2024, Will McDonald entered this season with monster expectations. In week one, McDonald looked every bit like the dominant pass rusher Jets fans expected to see, but since that game, he's been far from it.

Against Rodgers and the Steelers, McDonald tallied two sacks, three pressures, and three QB hits. The 26-year-old pass rusher also finished the game with a strong 85.9 Pro Football Focus pass rush grade.

Since that game, though, the drop-off in McDonald's play has been alarming. The Iowa State product has produced just one QB hit and zero sacks over the last four games.

Entering the season, the expectations for the 2023 15th overall pick were sky high and rightfully so. However, McDonald's struggles getting to the quarterback and his continued weakness against the run are becoming a serious concern.

Right now, the former first-round pick has tallied a 57.8 PFF grade, which is the lowest of his career. His 39.5 run defense grade and 29.5 tackling grade further show the major issues he has in stopping the run. The poor run defense is also evident in his 40% missed tackle rate.

The next step for McDonald entering this season was to improve his run defense. Head coach Aaron Glenn even vowed in the offseason that McDonald would improve in that area.

Five games in, and it's been everything but improvement, and add on the struggles getting to the quarterback, McDonald's concerning start needs to turn around fast.

With Jermaine Johnson expected to be back in the lineup on Sunday in London, McDonald has no reason not to get back to his regular form.