Coming off a rough 30-10 loss to the Dallas Cowboys, the NY Jets aimed to get back on track with quarterback Zach Wilson under center. Despite leaving Dallas with little momentum to build on, the Jets looked to do something that hasn't been done since 2015 — defeat the New England Patriots.
Unfortunately, the Jets fell to the Patriots by a final score of 15-10. Despite a promising showing at the end of the game by the Jets' offense, Zach Wilson was dormant for the first three quarters, which led to the Jets not being able to get anything going.
That said, here are three players to blame for the Jets 15th consecutive loss to New England.
3. Mekhi Becton, LT, NY Jets
Mekhi Becton was a big question mark heading into the season. Becton missed the entirety of the 2022 season when he suffered an avulsion fracture of his right kneecap in late July of last year.
Since coming back, Becton has been looking to prove that he deserves a second contract in New York. Becton won the starting right tackle job in the summer, but in Week 3, he was moved back to his original spot at left tackle due to an injury to Duane Brown.
At the end of the game, Becton made his biggest mistake, allowing Zach Wilson to be sacked for a safety. This ended all of the Jets' momentum and all but officially put the game away.
2. Jordan Whitehead, S, NY Jets
Jordan Whitehead has had a much better season than last year to this point. In the first game against the Buffalo Bills, Whitehead intercepted Josh Allen three times.
Last week against Dallas, Whitehead failed to pick up a turnover but still had himself a decent game. The issue with Whitehead isn't so much his tackling — it's his inconsistencies in coverage.
Perhaps the biggest play of the day came when Mac Jones found his tight end Pharaoh Brown for a 58-yard touchdown in the second quarter. Whitehead misread this play, and the Jets went down 10-0.
1. Zach Wilson, QB, NY Jets
This game was about as bad as it gets for the young quarterback. This feels like something that is becoming all too common for Jets fans. Zach Wilson didn't play too badly in the first game of the season. He came in early and finished the game, completing 14 of his 21 passes for 140 yards.
In Week 2 against the Cowboys, the Wilson of old returned. With three interceptions, and only completing 12 out of his 27 passes, Wilson hindered the entire offense's performance.
However, fans knew Dallas's defense would be tough. This week was a week Wilson had a chance to prove himself again against the Jets' biggest rivals, the New England Patriots.
Spoiler alert: he didn't. Wilson played his worst game in the early going of the season against the 0-2 Patriots, and the fans certainly let him know about it. He completed 18 of his 36 passes for 157 yards. The one silver lining is he didn't turn the ball over.
Despite his age, Wilson makes mistakes that just simply cannot happen at the NFL level. From holding the ball too long to his lack of ability to run an offense and read defenses, Wilson doesn't look improved.