Jets have problems to fix on defense
Bears wide receiver Johnny Knox (13) makes a touchdown reception past Jets cornerback Antonio Cromartie in the second half. (Dec. 26, 2010) Credit: AP
CHICAGO - Precisely what happened to the Jets' defense in the second half of yesterday's 38-34 loss to the Bears at Soldier Field?
The architect of their supposedly vaunted scheme asked himself the same thing.
"That's a great question," Jets coach Rex Ryan said. "I was asking myself that same question in the third quarter. We couldn't stop a nosebleed then. Everybody has to step up. It would've been easy if it was just one guy's mistakes or whatever, but you have to give them credit. When [quarterback Jay] Cutler is hot, he's as good as there is."
Perhaps, but the Jets certainly didn't make things all that difficult for the Bears' gunslinger in the second half. Cutler completed 6 of 7 passes for 117 yards and three touchdowns in the third quarter, engineering three quick-scoring drives and carving up the Jets with relative ease.
Overall, the Jets yielded 322 yards and allowed running back Matt Forte to top triple digits on the ground; he ran for 113 yards and a touchdown on 19 attempts.
"It's tough," linebacker Bart Scott said. "That third quarter was a whirlwind. I don't even know what happened. It was so fast, just shot after shot. We've got to get better in those situations, knowing how disappointing it is. A lot of things are on us - techniques . . . Teams are good enough to win in this league, and you can't help them out like that."
The Jets had several breakdowns in the second half and didn't look very good schematically. They also were caught with only 10 men on the field on Devin Hester's 25-yard touchdown reception in the third quarter.
"We just didn't come up with the plays that we needed to come up with," cornerback Antonio Cromartie said, "and that's something that when we have an opportunity, we have to make sure we capitalize on it."
Two plays in particular didn't seem to make much sense in the way they were drawn up; both led to linebacker Jason Taylor getting beaten in coverage.
Taylor was covering wideout Earl Bennett on a third-down play in the second quarter and surrendered a 14-yard gain for a first down. Soon after, he was left one-on-one with Forte, who picked up 24 yards on a reception to set up Cutler's 2-yard touchdown run.
"That's how the play unfolded and Forte beat me down the sideline and caught the ball on the [2]," Taylor said. "That's my coverage. I've got to do a better job of getting my hands on him and cut him off on the sideline, but he made a good play. The other one, it was a zone and the guy came in my zone and he made the catch. That's not my man in man-to-man, but I'm there and need to make a better play on the ball."
That's something nearly every member of the Jets' defense probably is thinking about right now. It's a unit that likely feels fortunate that the Jets cemented a playoff berth Sunday despite the way they served it up in the second half.
"Like sweet and sour chicken, man," defensive tackle Sione Pouha said. "You don't know whether to savor the sweetness or cringe to the sourness of this chicken. But we'll take it."
