Serenity Now! The Jets have pulled off the biggest upset of the year, defeating the Philadelphia Eagles 20-14. It was the Eagles’ first lost of the year and their first-ever loss to the Jets.
After both teams went back and forth on offensive possessions to start the game, the Eagles found pay dirt first. Jalen Hurts did what he does best and scored on a 3-yard touchdown scamper, putting Philly up 7-0 as the first quarter came to a close.
Zach Wilson and the Jets started to put together a drive but it soon stalled out, resulting in a Greg Zuerlein 43-yard field goal. With New York trailing 7-3, the defense stepped up by intercepting Jalen Hurts and setting the offense up with a chance to take the lead.
Saleh decided to risk it and go for it on a 4th and 5. The Jets came up just shy of converting and turned the ball over on downs back to the Eagles.
Hurts and the Philly offense took advantage of the Jets failure to convert by completing a 49-yard pass to A.J. Brown, putting the Eagles within striking distance once again on the New York 3 yard line. After a loss of six yards on their first play, Hurts connected with DeAndre Swift for a 9-yard touchdown pass, putting the Eagles up 14-3 with about five and a half minutes left in the first half.
A nine play, 51 yard drive by Zach Wilson and the Jets’ offense resulted in another Zuerlein field goal—cutting the deficit to 14-6. Gang Green’s defense forced another Eagles turnover with CJ Mosley jarring the ball loose from Swift. The Jets were once again set up to do some damage to end the half.
Garrett Wilson became the main target for Zach Wilson down the stretch, and a few big plays along with a pass interference penalty gave Zuerlein another chance to cut into the Philadelphia lead. A 35-yard field goal attempt sailed through the Jersey sky and through the uprights to end the half with New York trailing just 14-9.
Aaron Rodgers was spotted throwing passes prior to the Jets' game against Philadelphia. (Photo by Andee Fagan - JSN)
Both offenses looked slow coming out of the half. The Eagles and the Jets traded punts once again and Philly stalled out on their second drive of the half, giving New York another shot to try and take the lead. Wilson and the Jets could not get much going on the offensive end once again, as they drove a total of 16 yards in 10 plays setting up a Zuerlein 38-yard field goal to make it 14-12 Eagles.
Into the 4th quarter the game went and, if the Boys of Fall were going to pull off the upset, their offense needed to get something going after a defensive stop. Hurts threw another interception and, later in the quarter, Jake Elliott missed a field goal to extend the Eagles lead. The Jets' offense, however, still could not move the ball and gained a total of eight yards on two drives.
The Eagles now had the ball with a little of four minutes remaining and a classic “4-minutes offense” would ice the game for them. Just like last week, however, the New York defense stood in the way. On a 3rd and 9 from their own territory, Hurts forced a pass intended for Dallas Goedert, and Tony Adams stepped in to pick the ball off. Adams had a monster return after the interception and the New York Jets were once again set up to take the lead and win the game.
Taking over at the Philadelphia 8-yard line, Breece Hall wasted no time bursting up the middle and sending MetLife Stadium into a frenzy. New York had finally broken through and taken the lead against the undefeated Eagles. Wilson connected with Randall Cobb on the 2-point conversion to make it a 20-14 lead.
The defense did what they did all day long and forced the Eagles to turn the ball over on downs and ice the game. The Jets advanced to 3-3 on the year and are very much alive in the AFC playoff race.
"Says a lot about this team. Fans had enough with the ‘morale victory’ nonsense, this team and Saleh needed a win like this to show everyone how good they can be and rectify the off-season hype," Taylor Isenberg said, a local Jets fan and doctor.
Isenberg is right; this team has shown that they can overcome adversity. While the wins have not been pretty and the offense still needs to get going, they absolutely have what it takes to keep this season alive and march forward towards a playoff berth.
The Jets will have a bye next week and that will setup a date with the Giants for a huge statement game for the New York teams. Buckle up, Jet Nation—this season just got even more interesting.
