Grading the Jets

By RODERICK BOONEroderick.boone@newsday.comSeptember 14, 2010

OFFENSE

Where do we begin? This unit totaled a modest 176 yards and converted only 1 of 11 third-down opportunities, never getting into any sustained kind of rhythm. Mark Sanchez struggled badly, completing 10 of 21 attempts for 74 yards. Shonn Greene fumbled twice, losing one, and didn't carry the ball in the second half. The lone bright spot: LaDainian Tomlinson, who ran 11 times for 62 yards.

Grade: F

DEFENSE

Looking at the 10 points they surrendered, you'd think the defense played pretty well. Take a deeper look, however, and you'll notice the 20 first downs allowed - six via penalties. They surrendered 282 total yards and got beat deep too many times. They yielded more third-and-longs than they should, with Baltimore converting 11 of 19 third downs. Antonio Cromartie had a shaky debut, getting flagged four times, and rookie Kyle Wilson drew a pair of bad penalties as well. Linebacker Bryan Thomas had a nice game, leading the team with seven solo tackles and 11/2 sacks.

Grade: C

SPECIAL TEAMS

Nick Folk was steady in his first regular-season game as a Jet, drilling all three field-goal attempts with a long of 48 yards. Jim Leonhard had a nifty 32-yard punt return, and Brad Smith averaged 24.5 yards on his two kickoff returns. Some of Steve Weatherford's punts weren't pretty, but they were effective. He averaged 45.7 yards on his six punts, pinning four inside the 20.

Grade: B

COACHING

Yes, it's only one game, but despite all the bold talk from their coach, the Jets did nothing to remotely live up to the hype and give their frenzied crowd something to get excited about. That falls squarely on the shoulders of the coaching staff. Defensively, they could've decided to have Darrelle Revis defend Anquan Boldin more after he kept torching them deep, but they never adjusted their game plan because they didn't want to have Revis running all around the field. Overall, the Jets looked undisciplined and the coaches must do a better job of making sure such a lethargic performance doesn't happen again.

Grade: D