Riding high on a two-game winning streak, the New York Jets came back down to Earth on Sunday in a 10-9 loss to the Denver Broncos marked by mistakes and unnecessary penalties.
Not only did the Jets fail to score a touchdown for the first time this season, but they committed 13 penalties, including five false starts that completely derailed the offense. Everything culminated with a missed field goal with 51 seconds left that could have won the game for New York.
Afterward, frustrations were front and center during press conference appearances by everyone, including head coach Robert Saleh, who seemed to suggest that quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ hard cadence pre-snap was presenting issues.
Robert Saleh talks about the cadence on offense and how that has been a problem in regards to penalties for the Jets pre-snap pic.twitter.com/WQJCLHGi3Z
— Jets Videos (@snyjets) September 29, 2024
“We gotta figure it out, whether or not we’re good enough… or ready to handle all of the cadence,” he said. “Cadence had not been an issue all camp. Felt like our operation had been operating pretty good. Obviously, today took a major step back.”
When asked about the penalties on Sunday, Saleh noted a lot of them were pre-snap.
Robert Saleh calls the Jets having 13 penalties for 90 yards today “unacceptable”
“We’ve got to figure it out” pic.twitter.com/eKWBDKjatS
— Jets Videos (@snyjets) September 29, 2024
“Just a lot of pre-snap penalties, which is unacceptable. That’s the stuff that we have to get that cleaned up… The pre-snap and post-snap penalties, those are the ones that are unacceptable.”
When it was Rodgers‘ turn to speak with the media, he was asked about Saleh’s implication that the Jets might need to rethink their cadence strategy and did appear to be aligned with how to handle it.
Aaron Rodgers seems to get annoyed when asked about Robert Saleh’s comments about dialing back the cadence on offense. “That’s one way to do it. The other way is to hold them accountable.” 😳#Jets pic.twitter.com/PUbM2WvCsK
— Optimistic Jets (@OptimisticJets) September 29, 2024
“That’s one way to do it. The other way is hold them accountable,” said Rodgers. “It’s been a weapon. We use it every day in practice. We rarely have a false start. And to have five today… It seems like an outlier. I don’t know if we need to make mass changes based on kind of an outlier game.”
It does seem like Rodgers makes a good point and Saleh might be overreacting to an issue that has yet to be proven as an ongoing problem.
The relationship between Saleh and Rodgers has been under a microscope since the four-time NFL MVP joined the Jets, with some assuming that they didn’t quite mesh based on hearsay and off-hand comments. Last week, the two had an awkward exchange on the sidelines that seemed to imply Rodgers didn’t want a hug from his coach, though another video confirmed that the two were indeed on hugging terms in the locker room.
The Jets get the chance to put this putrid game behind them when they take on the Vikings next weekend. If the false starts and other issues follow them there, we might get a good glimpse into just how strong, or flimsy, the relationship between player and coach truly is.
