6 studs and duds from NY Jets ugly Week 12 win over the Texans

The NY Jets found a way to win ugly on Sunday defeating the Houston Texans by a final score of 24-14 to pick up their third victory of the season.

It wasn't always pretty. At times it was downright ugly. But the Jets won — and that's always a positive for a young team.

Zach Wilson returned from a month-long absence and had his fair share of struggles. But a standout performance from the Jets' defense carried them to victory.

Let's take a look at a few studs and duds from this week's game.

STUD: John Franklin-Myers, DE, NY Jets

On a day in which the offense struggled to put together consistent drives, the Jets' defense stepped up in a huge way. And no player did more than John Franklin-Myers.

Franklin-Myers put together a strong case for Defensive Player of the Week recording an interception on his own batted pass early in the first quarter to go along with two sacks, two tackles for loss, and two QB hits.

He became the first Jets player in 36 years to record two sacks and an interception in a game. The flashy plays haven't been there for Franklin-Myers over the last few weeks.

But on Sunday, he reminded everyone why the Jets handed him the four-year, $55 million extension they did. He earned every penny of it in Week 12.

DUD: Zach Wilson, QB, NY Jets

Let's call a spade a spade — Zach Wilson was really bad on Sunday. Wilson finished 14-of-24 for 145 yards, a rushing touchdown, an interception, and a fumble and looked wholly incompetent for much of the game.

The fact that the Jets were still able to score 21 points is a testament to the offensive gameplan of offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur (more on that in a moment).

Sure, Wilson avoided a complete meltdown and settled down at points in the second half. But the Jets won entirely in spite of their rookie quarterback on Sunday.

Of course, this isn't a big-picture statement. Perspective is important when it comes to analyzing Wilson's performances.

But it's hard to argue that Wilson wasn't the worst player on the field for the Jets this week. That's just the reality of the situation.

STUD: Mike LaFleur, OC, NY Jets

Offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur did everything in his power to gameplan around his struggling quarterback on Sunday. He kept the ball on the ground, tried to give Wilson as many easy throws as possible.

And when all else failed, he dived into his bag of tricks and pressed all the right buttons. Whether it was the Josh Johnson two-point conversion or the Elijah Moore 4th-and-1 end around, LaFleur coached circles around the Texans defensive staff this week.

Again, it should be considered a miracle that the Jets scored 21 points and won this game with the quarterback play they received.

Give LaFleur a ton of credit for this win. He earned it more than most.

STUD: NY Jets running game

On that same note, Mike LaFleur was able to call the game he did because the Jets absolutely controlled the line of scrimmage on the offensive side of the ball, at least when it came to the running game.

The Jets were able to run the ball pretty much at will for most of Sunday's game. They finished with 157 yards on 34 attempts for a highly-efficient 4.6 yards per carry. All of this without their top running back in Michael Carter.

Tevin Coleman was very effective. Ty Johnson added a long run and averaged 7.0 yards per carry as a result. And Austin Walter, freshly elevated from the practice squad, totaled 38 yards and his first career NFL touchdown.

The offensive line and running backs deserve just as much credit for the Jets' offensive success.

DUD: Matt Ammendola, K, NY Jets

The Jets signed a kicker to their practice squad last week following yet another miss from Matt Ammendola in the team's Week 11 loss to the Miami Dolphins.

Ammendola went into Sunday's game needing perhaps a perfect game to quiet down his critics and maybe even save his job. That did not happen.

Ammendola made two of his three field-goal attempts, but missed from 42 yards in the fourth quarter on a kick that would have given the Jets a seven-point cushion at the time.

It's gotten to the point where the Jets clearly don't trust Ammendola from any kick longer than 40 yards, and it's hard to blame them. A change might be coming sooner rather than later.

STUDS: Quinnen Williams and Quincy Williams, DT/LB, NY Jets

It just feels right to list these two players together after the success both have found in recent weeks. Both Quinnen and Quincy Williams were major standouts in Sunday's game.

Quinnen picked up his sixth sack of the season as he continued his dominant form. Meanwhile, his brother recorded a sack of his own to go along with seven tackles, a tackle for loss, and a QB hit.

The Jets made the decision to bench Jarrad Davis for his younger counterpart, and Quincy Williams has made that decision look incredibly smart over the last two weeks. He might just be a part of their long-term plans.

As for Quinnen Williams, you can very easily argue that he's the best player on this team. And he proved why once again on Sunday.

STUD/DUD: Bryce Hall, CB, NY Jets

Bryce Hall had perhaps his worst game of the season on Sunday, but when it mattered most, he came away with a crucial pass breakup that sealed the game for the Jets. That's why he falls under both categories on this list.

Hall struggled in the early part of the game failing to defend a Rex Burkhead crosser over the middle of the field before getting burnt deep on a 40-yard bomb to Brandin Cooks.

Cooks got the better of Hall for most of the game, but with the game on the line late in the fourth quarter, Hall knocked the ball away from rookie wide receiver Nico Collins to force the turnover on downs and essentially win the game for his team.

Sunday's game wasn't always pretty for Hall, and the Jets as a whole. But he managed to pull through and win the game in the end, much like his team did.