Game day and every day.
Score a jewelry touchdown with Kendra Scott, Shot Fashion and find jewelry fit for another winning season at your local store or at kendrascott dot com. Shine Bright, Do Good with Kendra Scott.
Welcome into the Official Jests podcast.
Eric Allen here in the studio, joined by Bart Scott.
We've missed you of the last couple weeks.
Buddy, likewise, man, but it's good to be back. Man. I think the world needs me today.
They do need you today.
Two and two after four games. That's where the New York Jets stand. Bart, just one game out of the AFC East lead, but obviously no joy in Mudville here this morning after the Jets lose a very winnable game to the Denver Broncos.
Yeah.
I mean, and now you have to hear all the things that people say, you know what I mean, same old Jets and all that stuff, because they opened the door for that. Aaron Rodgers spoke to it earlier this week about handling success. They came out and had a flat game. Nobody cares about the elements, but that was a lacklus to performance and the defense tried to hold them in but you have to hold yourself accountable.
You have to get in there from the one yard line.
Those are things that if you want to be the type of team that people believe you are, you close the door on teams like the Denver Broncos. You find ways to win no matter how tough it is, no matter what the elements are, you just get it done, especially at home.
So what do you think the message jeams should be here at one Jets Drive today when Robert sala is back in the building, probably didn't get much sleep last night, and the players come back and get the regent.
Shut up and come to work like all the stuff that we've been letting get if we've been letting anything get away in practice, zero tolerance like you, because that's what happens. Like this is still relatively a young team and everybody's feeling good about themselves, and they show that they lack the maturity to handle success. So now you got to stay on them all the time, because if you don't stay on them all the time, you have letups.
And you know, I know you hold yourself to a high standard on the defense side of the ball, but there's no you can have a miscommunication when you clearly. You could see Michael Carter clearly complaining to somebody that they didn't get the communication or they didn't execute the call because you had something in the back of the end zone wide open. And that's the difference in the game.
You can play.
Nobody cares that you held you know, bow knicks, you know to sixty yards passing. At the end of the day, you gave up a play that was a big play and you were put in an adverse situation.
But so what, That's what you get paid the big books for.
So when you watch that game, you have a lot of memories of playing similar games yourself right now, where the defense is put in bad position, but they give the offense an opportunity to finally get on track. And I thought there was just multiple times where the Jets could have took advantage of that game. And you mentioned that first half opportunity where Rogers gets out of the pocket Allen Lazards and nine zone draws the pass interference
and then you have three shots. It was going to be four shots, but then I believe afore a start preceded a Greg zerline field goal.
There, right, That's what you talk about the self inflicted wounds. Thirteen penalties that can't be acceptable. You have to be a clean game. You know, first of all, you have to get let a team beat you. You shouldn't beat yourself. And that's a self inflicted wound, and that's something you have to sa accountable with because that's something that you
can control. And you talk about like you need the stars to play at a high level and you can't have those type of penalties from people that you depend on to be the difference between winning and losing, because difference between winning and losing but in a negative way, and momentum is something, right, because you don't get that touchdown in the beginning of the second half, I mean
in the first half. Now in the second half, this allows them to feel like they can still be balanced and run the football because it's only a field goal difference, right, So that's the difference, right, They feel like they can still run the ball.
They were able to run the ball down your throat.
I mean, it was strange to me that last week we were forty percent blitz, but then we would blitz a rookie quarterback. It seems like he was primed to blitz the rookie quarterback when they were blitzing our vetching quarterback and have success.
You know, So they got to go.
Back to the drawing board because guess what, Minnesota is going to play a similar way. They have a more dynamic running game and they have a better pass quarterback behind center. So this is going to give them everything that they that they hope for, which for I mean, because this is going to be a contest that they're going to walk in and be the underdog, and maybe
they can perform being an underdog. But then if that's the case, if you come back and put a dynamic performance, then that just part of the illuminates the bad one that you had, because that means that you played your play with your food, you play up to your competition and down to your competition.
Yeah, they just have to make this want a blip on the radar in terms of the penalties, because globally we talk about the false starts.
You had five, but it's not like that was the only issue.
There were fifteen and all called against the Jets, thirteen marked off, So everybody had a hand in it. And I would imagine if you're down there in the locker room, is that everybody has to own it and then you just gotta play more disciplined football, starting with Sunday in London against the Blankens.
Yeah, I mean you have to play a clean game because the opponent that you playing is arguably the best team in football right now.
So I mean they'll they'll embarrass you.
The team that beat you the first week, they dominated, and they dominated, not when they were injured, they dominated when they still had everybody there except for Christian McCaffrey. The same team that you face, they faced and they destroyed it. They went and destroyed the Green Bay Packers last week. I know the end score made it look like it was closer, but they beat them too. So they're proven against tough competition, right they They they've got.
Good wins on their on their record. You know. The Jets so far don't have a good win on their record. You know this.
So this is a step up in class and they have to show that they can beat teams that are above five hundred with more than average quarterbacks.
Hey, listen, I know you're keeping it real. I gotta keep it real as well.
On the bright side of things, I thought Quincy Williams and DJ Reid defensively, both were outstanding.
Yeah they were. I mean they played at a high level.
But at the end of the day, they can't get pushed around like this defensive line is getting pushed around and making it.
More difficult for the quarterback being for the linebackers.
So they have to figure out, you know, you have to learn how to blow up or if you can't handle the point because you don't have al Woods, you don't have Quentin Jefferson, You're missing a lot of guys. You don't have a lot of size in the middle right like Quinn should be like the second biggest guy.
You need a big fatty there, but you don't have that.
So if you don't have that and teams are doing that to you, you have to be able to add another man in the box and come down and you have to put the pressure on the corners to hold up.
Right. If you're going to do that, you have to allocate more people. That's what they did.
All they did was run blitz us and they put everybody ran to their gaps and they were able to shoot gaps because everybody knew their gaps, knew their responsibilities, and they just run blitzed to death. I mean, Aaron Jones is a dynamic runner, and you're gonna have to stay consistent because you have to be able to stop the run repeatedly. You know they're not going to give up on it, and you know they're not They're gonna be relentless.
We're taping this on Monday.
Bart Robert Salad just talked to the media a little bit ago. He said that Lucky Fotu, the defensive tackle the Jets sign a free agency, might be one of those players who is eligible coming off into a reserve. From what you're saying, this would be right in time to add another body in the middle.
I mean you have to, like, you know, the strength of this team has been his depth. His depth has been been been questioned as far as there has been tested, so to speak. So guys have to step up. You know, we have guys that have been elevated from a practice squad.
Hector came from a practice squad. You know, sometimes it can be the law of diminished returns guys who don't have to mature and come of age really quickly because you have to depend on some young guys and you know, the rotation to be you know deep that means guys have to step up and make the standards of standard.
Can't be any slip off.
Speaking of the standard, Aaron Rodgers and games he started through his career, I think it's five games his team did.
Not score an offensive touchdown.
He's been playing a lot of football, and I believe two of those games he did not finish. What do you make of the stops and starts that you saw against the Broncos because they did have success moving the ball at times, and then how does that project moving forward when you're looking at that Vikings defense that you think awfully high.
Well you talk about you know, Brian Floor as you heard Brock Perry say, Man, that's the hell of a scheme, you know, and that's supposed to be with arguably one of the best play calls. On the other side, they blitzed second most or you know, maybe first, more than anybody in the NFL. So this week the Jet struggle against Van Joseph. So they got to have an answer. You got to be on your details right. You got to be able to know where you when you're hot, you gotta know when you got to know what the
protections are. You got to know where the slide coverage is you got to know how to scan because it's going to be deception and you got to be able to decipher.
And guy's got to be on their details because it's gonna be pivotal.
Because Aaron Rodgers because of it, it seemed like he heard his hamstring or lower body and injury will just say that, right, and you know that can that.
Can make him immobile.
And if he's in mobile and not willing to go out there, then Brian Floora is gonna definitely try and heat him up to see if he can get him on the move or to get him under the rest.
So everybody's unique in terms of the way they have their blitz packages and what Vance Joseph did against the Jets was awfully effective. You're talking about Flores as well, how creative he is with the blitz packages. Right now, what is Rogers gonna be facing when he gets off the bus in London. You said they're gonna bring the pressure packages. But how different is it gonna look to Denver? How similar does it look to the Broncos.
I think it's similar, right, I mean, if it's if somebody shows that they struggle with something in his League. If it wasn't a blitz package that you had, you're gonna throw it in. Now, those business was from the outside overload blitzes simulated cover zeros, and some of them were cover zeros. They were forcing the ball out quickly and saying that, hey, we can hold up on the back end. Now, on the other hand, Bryan Flores doesn't
have a Patrick Chotan. I mean, he has Stefan Gilmour, but that team struggles on the back end a little bit more so. I would say that when you look at the way that they're going to try and go about business, maybe they play a zone behind the number one receiver. I have to see a lot more Mike Williams. Mike Williams has been the most consistent receiver that we've had.
I think he can be the difference. I think it's gonna be opportunities in cover zero when you have to throw up contested balls one on one.
He's shown that he can go up above the defender and make those plays.
Yeah, I'm glad you just mentioned Mike Williams because offensively he stood out. I know the Jets limited the three field goals, but not only did he have the catches in his yards per catch was up there, and that's that's.
What we expect from a guy like Mike Williams.
But he also has a knack for drawing penalties down the field.
Yeah, because you know guys, you know Aaron Rodgers, when he sees the defender above, he throws it back shoulder. If he sees him underneath, he's gonna throw it up and Mike Williams is gonna jump up and guy's gonna run into him.
I mean that's the weapon as well.
Right, he's one of the best vertical receivers in the game, but I think he offers so much more. We saw some horizontal rowles using his speed getting guys on his back with a huge catch rate. Is he's gonna be pivotal for the success of this team, you know, as Garret Wilson's gonna draw the number one. Like I said, this week, Garrett's not facing you know McDuffie. I mean, I'm sorry, sneady, He's not facing Patrick's Artan, So he should have more opportunities this week.
But the more and more Mike Williams gets comfortable, the.
More and more I believe it allows you to be able to put a guy like Gary Wilson in a slot and be able to utilize him in some his abilities. So just imagine how big you are on the outside, but you're still vertical. But then now you have a guy on Garrett who can go vertical as well, but also run in immediate routes.
That's what I was just gonna ask you.
It seems like Allen Wizard is a different player being reunited with Aaron Rodgers, and now we're seeing Williams take steps. So you want to see more G five Garrett Wilson in the slot as we move ahet it.
Yeah, I think that's the best natural position for him right now here to get him away from the number one, number two corner nless they're matching. If they're matching, you know, it gives them two way goals and also the ability to go across the field as well behind the linebackers. And like I said, I see Garrett Wilson as a very similar skill set to Ceedee Lamp.
So I think you should utilize them in all those ways. I don't mind.
Putting them in the backfield and allow him to run his route from the backfield as well.
Small sample size, but four games. Now, after the Jets play against the Vikings in London, they're going to be done with more than twenty five percent of their season. That's their fifth game already. What have you seen from Rogers big pitcher, not just this game, but now through four games.
I mean, I saw a guy that's the commandity offense.
Now, I would like to see the offense be more creative for some shift motions and you see some of these themes going on in the league, Like every year it's a theme where it's a new package, a new type of formation. I mean, we saw yesterday the Baltimore Ravens with two tight ends like a diamond set, you know, with a like a wing t type of set.
We've seen that with the Kansas City Chiefs as well, doing the same thing.
We've seen like some of the inverted, you know, tight ends across the board. We saw how that run was blocked with Derek Hemery yesterday on an eighty seventh yard run.
You got to you gotta stay with the times and stay.
With the motions and the shifts and motions, you know what I mean, Because you have to hit the refresh button because the defenses are so good offenses down this year, and you have to make sure that you are just because the defenses adjusted and found way to shut down certain concepts olo fashion.
You know, the first round pick out of Penn State made his first career start. I know the line had some issues with the pressure. Rogers the sack five times in all fourteen quarterback kids.
Without you going back.
And watching every rap, what did you make of all those first start No.
I thought it started as well good.
I mean, I mean, he made some staints like everybody made, but I thought he was on his details, understanding when there was some line stunts, some mind games, and for him to do it on the right side is you know, impressive.
I mean I think, you know, when when Morgan Moses comes back, I think it'd be opportunities to kind of give tyron a break at times, you know what I mean during the game, so that you know, we saw last year with Ronnie Staley, the Ravens kind of rotated them in and out, kind of keep him fresh because you don't want the miles to add up on him.
You want him to stay healthy. So I think, you know, fashions going in and showing that he can do that gives the sugar the Jets confidence that you know, he going forward, he can be able to you know, fill in and swing on both sides, to kind of come in and even be that extra tight end as well.
I think the Jets have to get into that extra linement type of package as well to be able to handle some of these overhang blitzes and give like the three receivers, you know, opportunities to be able to stay in and also be.
Able to go out and run the deep routes to the long concepts.
All right, what's happening with the run game right now?
I thought that we have a pregame show and I said one of my tomorrow's headlines was gonna be killer Bees stinging the Broncos because I thought Breese Hall and Braylan Allen, we're gonna have a big game against the Broncos that didn't actually come to fruition as we all know.
And then another side of the coin.
I mean, I guess, let's handle offense and then we'll get to defense and what they're gonna see from Aaron Jones this week.
But why is the run game? It's not consistent yet.
You haven't seen it, and especially in a game where the rain was coming down yesterday in clement weather. Sometimes the quarterbacks were off with the throws. Why were they Jets not able to get that push?
I mean they were trying to run latterly, and that's not the recipe to run lotterly and that type of conditions. That's why Braylyn Allen had more success. You I would have liked to see them go to more of a.
Power running game. Doubles. You know John Simpson last year, that's all he ran with Baltimore.
I would have liked to see him being a pulling guard and getting on the other side and adding to the strong side and running downhill. If you look at the success that the Broncos had, it was running the ball through the A and B gaps because it's too slippery to try and get to the edges and run latterly. The weather conditions didn't allow that. So I would have liked to see Breese run more up the field inside
the tackles with the shoulder square. I mean you got to understand, listen, this is a team that's been embarrassed twice by Bree Hall. They made sure that when he was in there, they blitzed everybody and saying, hey, we're not gonna get beat by him having an explosive run game, because that was more important to giving up a big bomb because he has had it supposed to six runs and sixty yards I believe twice.
Yep.
Can you get the teams out of the blitz?
What's the best way of getting teams out of the because the Jets are gonna see it again against Minnesota and that's part of their DNA, and that's part of Denver's DNA.
I think Denver was leading the NFL.
Second second every second in the league in Blitzer percentage.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, So I'm understand why the Jets was surprised.
So okay, but moving ahead to Minnesota, you know it's coming.
Yep, you know it's coming. Give me some blitz beaters.
And also, how can you get to a point where, hey, Brian Flores, I know you want to come, but if you come, we're gonna hurt you and you're gonna want to get out of the blitz.
Yeah, I mean you have you have screens, you have routes, right, you have you know, if you're keeping the running back in like you you free swing him and run traffic, so somebody gets picked. The linebacker from the inside gets picked. You know, you you thought you throw vertical shots. You know, we saw that with Jaydon Daias the week before. You know, when you come with cover zero, you throw it up there.
You know, guys panic cover zero. You know, the quarterback has a retreat and by time to be able to get the ball up. You know, because guys are cover zero with no help. You have to be able to do things like that. You have to have a plan for it because if you don't, they're gonna get explosives every time because you can't block them all.
Is it reassuring to you that you do have a full time NFL MVP at quarterback, meaning that, hey, if anybody's gonna panic in the locker room, it's not gonna be him.
No, I don't expect Aaron Rodgers to panic. I mean you still listen only one game behind. I mean, like like I said before, I said on get up, and nobody. You know, everybody thought I was being a homer when I said that. You know, Buffalo's paper chaps, like they don't have the horse power. They have to play a certain way. So I believe, like you know, if you set yourself up, you have to earn the right to be able to play for first place.
And you play for first place by.
Beating Minnesota and then on Monday Night football beating you know, beating another world class opponent. If you want to be considered that, if you want people to take you seriously, if you're going to take yourself seriously, you got to find a way to beat these guys. And it's going to be a dogfight, but you got to be mentally tough. You got to make the players. I mean, it's enough stars on this on this team, they have to start acting.
Like it interesting.
What a landscape the next two weeks, not only for the Jets, but the Bills, the team they're chasing. Because Buffalo's got a tough road game ahead against the Houston Texans. That's probably one of those fifty to fifty games. The Jets are gonna be viewed as the underdog heading into this game against the Vikings, but when you look at the personnel, I'd say this is a fifty to fifty
game as well. So listen, if the Jets come home, get a victory and maybe the Bills lose to Houston, I mean then you're both sitting there at three and two and you got them coming to your building. So a lot could change here over the next fourteen days.
Yeah, that's why.
But that's why once again, it's such a disappointment that you lost to a team that you shouldn't have lost to.
Because if the Bills, if the Bills.
Beat the beat you know, Denver, or beat the teams they're supposed to beat, and then you know they split with the good teams and you split with them, then you know they win the division.
This division is wide open, man, Like you gotta quit playing it.
And sometimes young kids because it's a relatively a bunch of young guys. You know, they don't have a sense of urgency that veterans do. This is Tyrone's last rodeo. Probably this is almost Aaron Rodgers last rodeo. Like, you gotta take that type of stuff seriously, man, that you yeah,
you have time, but maybe your teammate don't. So let's be on our details and let's let's make sure that we step our game up and play with the level of desperation because one day you're gonna be the veteran and it's gonna you don't want young kids saying my bad and making mistakes when it's your time to exit this league.
Do you think you played in a different era. I'm not calling you all, bro, but you did play it a different era. Is it tough you think for the young guys? Maybe at certain times too, you know, hunker down and get off social media, don't worry about what the outside world is saying, and just say, you know, come to work and take care of business.
Now.
Well that's you know, I mean, they'll still check it out. I'm sure they're they're avoiding the TV. They don't want to watch get up and get up and first take. And you know the Fox shows are on TV, and the and and the see everybody want to sit down and watch those. When you win, inside inside the lunch room, everybody watching TV. Then nobody wants to watch it when
you lose. And you know they're gonna hear it. They're gonna hear from here because you know, they they've been a team that you know, people had high expectations for them, and that's and that and that comes with responsibility. And like, listen, if i'm these veterans, man, I'm putting these young guys aside, man and hold them accounta But the thing is, the young guys are the leaders on your team. Yeah, so
your team goes as they go. You know, it's like, who's gonna put them guys aside and say we we we deserve more, we demand more. Like the time is now, this may be your best opportunity to win a championship.
What you're gonna do with it?
Sam Donald?
Pair it up with Kevin O'Connell there with the Minnesota Vikings. Got a great receiver in Justin Jefferson. We know that you mentioned Aaron Jones before.
Why is its Addison's back too?
Yeah, Jordan Addison. I like him as receiver. I mean, what do you Why is it clicking so well for Sam? And also how does O'Connell put so much pressure on opposing defenses?
Because one, it starts with a great offensive line, right, So if you can't get pressure on Sam Donald, he feels confident, right, he feels secure, he's not getting hit. And then you know that same offensive line. Remember they don't even have t. J. Hockinson yet, right, the same offensive line. It's just all the schemes. You know, it's like going against San Francisco. It's like going against Miami.
The run game. It puts pressure on you, It gets guys, It puts guys in situations where they have to make one on one tackles. And you know, when you have a violent runner like Aaron Jones who still has a lot of gas left them tank, right, Like, when you still have a guy like that, he's able to break things because he has great vision. Right, So everybody's gonna have to be on their details. No arm tackles. Guy's
gotta get knocked them back. You can't be getting blown off the ball, right, They're gonna have to the Jets this This is gonna be a tough game. I mean, because like I said that, you're saying at DE tack you're small at D tackles. So if I'm any team, I'm just I'm running double teams working up to the linebackers because I'm saying, hey, they have fast, athletic linebackers, but they're still under two thirty.
Yeah.
Hey, you never played Overseas, did you? Now if you might have played in Canada?
Yah? Yeah, yeah I played Canada. I'm so thankful I never had to do that crap.
Yeah, So how would you approach this if you were a player.
Coming off of loss. I'll tell my family don't call me.
No, no, no, not just that, but I'm saying playing in London, I think the Jets have practiced, this is Thursday, gonna fly overnight. I'm going with the team. I think we get there Friday morning. They'll get a couple of hours and then they have a practice. Is it different you think than going to the West Coast.
Not not, but it's just about a six hour flight the same. Yeah.
I think the difference is instead of losing time, you're gaining time. So that's weird, right because now you get there and no matter what, depending if they leave after that, it's gonna be it's gonna be morning time.
Yeah right, yeah, you know what I mean.
So it's weird because like you, if you if you're leaving at the practice on Thursday, you're flying out at six, it's already six o'clock, it's already twelve o'clock midnight, yo, and in your destination. So as you get there, you're watching the sunrise and you're like, holdo, what.
Yo? But how cool of an opportunity is that for the players?
So to I know, you just want to win a football game, but big picture, going to another country, and I think the fans really gonna embrace NFL product.
And this is a big game over there. Man, it's a big game for the Jets.
Yeah.
I mean to me, it's only great if you win, right Like at the day, like it's cool because your family wants to come and they want to have fun. But when you're coming off a loss, it's a business trip and I'm not in the mood to talk to anybody. I'm not in the mood to go hang out. I don't want to go see London. I'll go see London in March's February, March, April, May or something like that.
So these are one of those tough games.
You have to make sure that you're able to handle distractions and say, hey, listen, listen, you love your family and all that stuff, but you know, you guys need to go ahead and do what you need to do. But like, we might be able to eat lunch once, but I'm here on the business trip.
All right.
Lastly, let's un here. What do you think about the storyline? Your take on it that Aaron Rodgers here in his first full year starting for the New York Jets leading the Green and White against Sam Darnold, a former first round pick of course with the Jets, who's really rejuvenated and he's revitalized his career so far with the Bikes.
I think it's a great story.
But I don't think you know, Sam is coming here saying, oh man, they gave up on me, anything like that. I think Sam Donald's is focused because he knows he's not the long term solution here, so he's auditioning for probably about.
Fifteen teams, you know.
And I wouldn't be surprised if Sam Donald, like I said before, ends up back in this division with the Miami Dolphins, because they're a team that's probably going to be looking for a quarterback. But Sam Donald's found something in this type of system. They run the same system,
coming from the same coaching tree. So Sam Donald's focused on having the best single season that he can have so that he can have the opportunity, like Geno Smith, like Baker Mayfield, to find a place that he can call home again, because Minnesota isn't a home.
He's just leasing his apartment. He's just leasing right now.
Well, we know you're not leasing with your multiple properties out there, all right, Matt Backer, good stuff, great sing you, and we promised to get the pod up earlier in the week as we move ahead.
Absolutely probably m h m
Hm hmm