Even for long-suffering New York Jets fans, Sunday’s 28-25 loss to the miserable Miami Dolphins felt like a new low.
Winless entering the game at New Jersey‘s MetLife Stadium, the Dolphins held off the Jets’ comeback effort in the fourth quarter after outscoring New York 21-7 in the first half as home fans repeatedly booed their team’s performance.
Jets quarterback Geno Smith wasn’t terrible, completing 23 of 30 passes for 287 yards and three touchdowns. And while he did toss an interception, the Dolphins failed to capitalize on the turnover. Truthfully, Jets offensive coordinator Frank Reich’s unit wasn’t terrible, gaining 108 yards on the ground on just 21 carries, while allowing young targets like Omar Cooper Jr and Mason Taylor to combine for 10 catches, 177 yards and three touchdowns.
The problem, as Jets fans are all too aware, was on defense, where head coach Aaron Glenn and coordinator Brian Duker failed to come up with any answers on Sunday. Miami gained 156 yards on the ground, won the possession battle by ten minutes, and even allowed up-and-down quarterback Malik Willis to toss for two scores.
Miami was a perfect 3 for 3 on fourth down, which helped to seal the Dolphins’ first victory of the season. But the worst moment may have come at the end of the first half, when New York allowed Willis to scramble in for a touchdown with six seconds left in the second quarter. Glenn had timeouts but effectively denied his team a final possession in the first half by not using them.
‘It’s just a matter of when, not if, they fire the coach,’ ESPN host and long-time Jets fan Mike Greenberg wrote on X. ‘They absolutely should.’
Glenn said he understands the fans’ frustration, but defended the direction of the team
Dolphins QB Malik Willis (2) gets outside ofJets linebacker David Bailey (31) on a TD run
Glenn was once a beloved Jets cornerback during a time when the team ranked among the best defenses in the NFL under head coach Bill Parcells and coordinator Bill Belichick.
This season, the Jets defense has enjoyed some success, but after Sunday’s loss, fans seemed ready to turn the page on Glenn, who is now 0-8 against the AFC East and just 5-19 overall.
‘Dear New York Jets,’ wrote one angry fan. ‘Do not let Aaron Glenn in the building tomorrow. Loved him as a player, but he cannot coach his way out of a paper bag.’
A few rival fans chimed in with their own sarcastic replies: ‘Lock up Aaron Glenn long term that guy is tremendous!’
Afterwards, Glenn said he understands the fans’ frustration, but defended the direction of the team.
Willis (2) scrambles under pressure from New York Jets’ Kingsley Enagbare, center,
He also appeared to have a misstep at the end of the first half when he neglected to use any of the Jets’ timeouts to give his offense another possession: ‘Maybe we should’ve called our timeouts to get it back, but at that point, we just felt like we were going to stop them and be able to get the ball back.’
Greenberg wasn’t satisfied with that response.
‘This answer is inexcusable,’ the veteran ESPN host wrote on X. ‘Game management is the most important part of this job and he is as bad at it as any coach I’ve ever seen. There may not be any point in making the change now, but it’s over, it’s just a matter of when.’
While some fans attacked Glenn, others turned their frustrations towards owner Woody Johnson.
‘Woody Johnson has held #Jets fans hostage for too long,’ podcaster Kyle Becker wrote on X. ‘This #Jets will never be an actual NFL team until he sells it. Time for [Johnson to] do the right thing and put the team up for sale.’
Many other calls to ‘sell the team’ surfaced on X in the hours after the Jets fell to 2-5.
New York is back at home next week when the Las Vegas Raiders visit MetLife Stadium.
