Jets Q&A: Rookie WR Devin Smith continues to struggle

What's going on with Devin Smith?

The rookie sat in front of his locker, hunched over with a towel wrapped around his waist. To his right was Jets receivers coach Karl Dorrell. After another poor performance by Smith in a 24-17 loss to the Texans, Dorrell felt it necessary to offer encouraging words.

The former Ohio State standout dropped a potential touchdown pass and was the intended receiver on Ryan Fitzpatrick's first of two fourth-quarter interceptions.

"Just didn't catch it. Gotta come down with it," Smith said of dropping a deep ball down the left sideline with the Jets trailing 24-10.

Todd Bowles wasn't in the mood for excuses.

"Our rookies have got to stop being rookies. They need to grow up," he said when asked about the drops. "They get paid like everybody else and they've got to start acting like they're not in college anymore."

Smith, who also received postgame encouragement from Brandon Marshall, said it's been "tough" keeping his spirits up during his difficult rookie season.

"But I know my time is coming," said Smith, who missed most of training camp with a rib injury. "So I'm just going to keep working hard, and when that day comes, everybody will know."

Any update on Darrelle Revis?

The cornerback is going through the concussion protocol after suffering a head injury in the third quarter, Bowles said. Before his exit, Revis had a subpar performance against DeAndre Hopkins, who finished with five catches (on 12 targets) for 118 yards, including a 61-yard TD against Revis.

"He gave up a touchdown," Bowles said. Does he worry about Revis getting beat deep? "No, I don't."

What happened to Nick Mangold?

The center said he doesn't know how he got a "deep gash" between his right pinkie and ring finger, but on the sideline after the Jets' second offensive series, he "saw some blood."

Mangold, who did not practice this past week because of his sore neck and an unrelated hand injury, did not return to the game because he couldn't get "a firm grip" on snaps. Although the laceration needed stitches, he didn't suffer any broken bones, Bowles said. But Mangold said he'll get an MRI to determine if there's ligament damage.

He has missed two games this season because of lingering neck pain but hopes to play against the Dolphins. "I'm optimistic every week," he said.

Can anyone stop J.J. Watt?

Apparently, not anyone on the Jets' offensive line. After giving up only seven sacks coming into the game, it had no answer for Watt, who had two of Houston's three sacks.

"Obviously, he's a good player, and he proved it," said tackle Breno Giacomini, who gave up one of those sacks and was flagged for holding Watt. "Technique wins every time, and he had a little bit better technique than I did today. Back to the drawing board tomorrow."

So why didn't the Jets use more double-teams against Watt?

"We used it a lot on him," Bowles said. " . . . We understand in these one-on-one situations where the ball's got to go and they've got to hold him up a little bit and then the quarterback's got to get rid of it a little bit [quicker].''