Jets Look Flat vs. Bengals
BENGALS 27 – JETS 12
So much for all that momentum from last week’s historically bizarre victory at Cleveland. The Jets fell back to their script from Week 1 as they struggled on both sides of the ball as the Cincinnati Bengals blew them away 27-12 in a game that wasn’t even that close.
The Jets struggled to establish anything upfront. Defensively they struggled to get enough pressure on Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow who picked them apart for 275 yards and three touchdowns.
On the flip side, Joe Flacco was under siege all day.
The Jets couldn’t run the football, and couldn’t pass protect for Flacco, who was sacked four times and tossed two interceptions. New York turned the ball over four times against the Bengals.
Cincinnati sent a huge message on the opening drive when Burrow tore up the Jets on an 11-play, 75-yard drive that included three third-down conversions. In fact, the final play of the drive was on third down and goal when Burrow rolled out of a potential sack and hit Samaje Perine for the touchdown to put the Bengals up 7-0.
The Jets showed signs of life early. Flacco had the Jets moving on their opening drive; a 23-yard completion to Garrett Wilson set the Jets up at the Bengals’ 33. However the drive quickly stalled, and New York had to settle for three.
Even when the Jets got a break when Cincinnati fumbled on its ensuing possession, the Jets couldn’t cash in. They had the ball at the Bengals’ 43, and could only move 21-yards before settling for a field goal to cut the deficit to 7-6.
That was as close as the Jets would get.
The Bengals quickly answered when Burrow, again, scrambled out of pressure on third down, hit Taj Boyd in the flat, and the big tight end did the rest chugging past Jets defenders to the end zone for a 56-yard touchdown to put the Bengals up 14-6.
The Jets would never get close again as the offense managed only two more field goals the rest of the afternoon.
With the loss, the Jets drop to 1-2. Now the attention turns to next Sunday when the Jets visit Pittsburgh in what should be Zach Wilson’s return under center after missing nearly two months with a knee injury.
