The Jets made a game of it, but 0% conversion rate in the red zone and mistakes on both sides of the ball meant a 30-24 loss to the Minnesota Vikings in overtime.
It was an interesting start to the afternoon. The Jets opened the game on offense, and quarterback Geno Smith promptly threw a pick-6. The Jets came back down the field on a great play between Smith and Percy Harvin, but were unable to score and were taken out of field goal range after poor blocking resulted in Smith being crushed for a loss.
After the punt, defensive Sheldon Richardson sacked Minnesota Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater for a safety in the endzone.
In a near miracle, the Jets scored a touchdown on the next drive. After being helped by a pass interference call that gained them 21 yards – to be fair, it was the most blatant of penalties, not a borderline one – Smith completed a 35 yard pass to Percy Harvin in the endzone, who made a great adjustment to come back to the ball. The Jets led 9-7.
On the next drive, Minnesota took the lead. Bridgewater threw a long, impressive pass to Charles Johnson, who beat Darrin Walls badly for the touchdown. The Jets had a short field on their next drive, thanks to some more magic created by Percy Harvin, who muffed the kick but picked it up and ran 47 yards, well into Vikings territory, anyway. The Jets came away with a field goal.
Minnesota added to their lead with another touchdown. The Jets came back down the field and were in the red zone, but Chris Ivory fumbled the ball and Minnesota took possession. The Jets managed another field goal later in the half, and after intercepting a Hail Mary pass on the last play, the ended 23-15 Vikings.
The Jets forced a fumble to open the half. Another drive stalled in the red zone when Jeff Cumberland didn’t catch a pass that hit him in the hands, so Nick Folk made another appearance. The score was 21-18 after the field goal. The drive after that stalled in the end zone as well, and Folk tied the game, 21-21.
After a terrible punt by Ryan Quigley that gave the Vikings good field position, Minnesota took the lead 24-21 after a goal line stop by the Jets defense, which struggled on the Vikings’ drive. Richardson saved the touchdown on second down. He had three sacks on the day.
The Jets tied the score at 24-24 with under 30 seconds left in the game with another Nick Folk field goal. Minnesota was unable to convert the field goal attempt, and the game went to overtime. The Jets won the toss and took the ball first, but they stalled at midfield and punted. The defense had the Vikings pinned in their own end on third down, but then, the Vikings executed a screen pass.
For anyone who is new to the Jets, defending and executing a screen pass is something the Jets have been terrible at for years now. Vikings wide receiver Jarius Wright ran 87 yards for a touchdown. The only New York player even in the picture with Wright was Sheldon Richardson. Richardson gave a good effort, but a defensive lineman was not catching a wide receiver.
Geno Smith’s final line on the day was 18/29 for 254 yards, with one touchdown, one interception, and a quarterback rating of 87.4. Percy Harvin led the Jets in receiving yards with 124, and Chris Ivory led the Jets in rushing yards with 73 yards on 16 carries. It’s worth noting that Harvin left the game late in the fourth quarter with an ankle injury and didn’t return for the overtime period. There was a scary moment in the second half where Richardson limped off the field, but he returned to the game.
The Jets play the Titans next Sunday in Tennessee. Kickoff is at 4:05.