NY Jets studs and duds following loss to Bengals in Week 3

The NY Jets didn't have another last-minute comeback in them as they lost to the Cincinnati Bengals 27-12 and fell to 1-2 on the season.

It was a disappointing loss after last week’s thrilling comeback, but there were some players that stood out, as well as some good news to come for the Jets. Let’s take a look at the studs and duds from this week’s game.

Garrett Wilson, WR, NY Jets – STUD

Another great game for Garrett Wilson. Wilson finished with six catches for 60 yards and consistently got open. He finished as the highest-graded offensive player for the Jets with a 77.4 Pro Football Focus grade.

Wilson looks like he could be a future No. 1 wide receiver, something the Jets have been searching years for. He has played great so far and will look to be better with Zach Wilson coming back.

Cornerbacks – STUD

There were a lot of problems with the Jets' defense, but the cornerbacks were not one of them. Sauce Gardner had multiple impressive pass breakups and even had great coverage on the one big gain he allowed. D.J. Reed was impressive yet again and has a 75.2 PFF grade through the first three weeks of the season.

The Jets made a number of moves this offseason that look questionable three weeks into the season, but paying Reed and drafting Gardner with the fourth pick look to be really good moves for general manager Joe Douglas.

Quinnen Williams, DL, NY Jets - STUD

Another player who proved not to be the problem on defense was Quinnen Williams. Williams finished with one sack and one tackle for loss and is consistently grading out well. Williams has an 82.7 PFF grade and an 88.5 pass-rush grade through three weeks.

Williams is extremely underrated by Jets fans and is one of, if not the best player, on this roster.

Joe Flacco, QB, NY Jets – DUD

In what might be his last game starting for the Jets this season, Joe Flacco put together an abysmal performance. Flacco finished the day completing 28 of 55 passes for 285 yards with two interceptions and no touchdowns. Flacco was PFF’s lowest-graded QB in Week 3 with a 27.1 grade.

The Jets offense will look to have more success with Zach Wilson back under center.

Defensive Line – DUD

Besides Quinnen Williams, the Jets' defensive line was not where it needed to be for head coach Robert Saleh’s defense to work. The defensive line only combined for two sacks on the day, with Joe Burrow having all day to throw.

The Jets have one of the most expensive defensive lines in the NFL. For the defense to get on the right track, they must be able to create consistent pressure on the other team.

Coaching - DUD

Up until this point, Jets fans have mostly been on the side of the coaching staff. It seems like things are slowly starting to turn south.

Two weeks ago, Robert Saleh said he was keeping receipts on everyone that doubted them, and to their credit, they went out the next week and got a big win.

Fans were happy and excited at the possibility of having a winning record. They could not follow up on that excitement, however, and lost by double digits.

Multiple boneheaded penalties from veteran players like John Franklin-Myers and Corey Davis, yet another defensive miscommunication that led to a touchdown, and Quinnen Williams getting into an argument on the sideline with defensive line coach Aaron Whitecotton. There are some self-inflicted wounds that the players and coaches have to clean up.

Overall

On paper, the Jets shouldn't be this bad. They are 1-2 through three games against the Ravens, Browns, and Bengals without Zach Wilson. I think a lot of fans would have been happy with that if they were told at the time Wilson went down.

However, Wilson will not fix everything. The offense will hopefully look a lot better as the playmakers are getting open. They just need a QB to get them the ball.

But there are offensive line, defensive, and coaching issues that still stand and need to be fixed if the Jets want to be competitive the rest of the way.