Arthur Maulet and Marcus Maye
Jet X Graphic, Getty Images

These improvements are what made the New York Jets a 6-2 football team over their final 8 games of the 2019 season.

The Jets’ 2019 season will always be seen as a major disappointment in the eyes of the fanbase, but as we sit here today, the campaign looks like far less of a nightmare than it was on track to be. After a loss to the winless Dolphins in Week 9, the Jets were 1-7 and at rock bottom. The season was an absolute dumpster fire at that point.

Then, everything turned on a dime as Adam Gase’s team closed the season with a 6-2 run, and the 2019 campaign is now considered “underwhelming-but-promising” rather than “utterly embarrassing.”

Momentum does not carry over from one season to the next, but the Jets’ hot finish gave us something else – an idea of this particular team’s formula for winning games.

While the 2020 roster looks a lot different than the 2019 iteration, the team’s strengths and weaknesses should be largely similar, so we can still glean quite a bit from last year’s second half.

Here are five major differences between the Jets team we saw from Weeks 1-9 of last year and the one we saw from Weeks 10-17.

The overhaul at outside cornerback

The Jets’ outside cornerbacks in the first half were abysmal. From Weeks 1-9, the trio of Darryl Roberts, Trumaine Johnson, and Nate Hairston combined to allow 78-of-112 passes to be completed for 953 yards (8.5 per target), six touchdowns, and two interceptions on passes in their direction (106.0 passer rating). They also committed 12 penalties.

In the Week 10 game against the Giants, the cornerback depth chart took a turn for the better. Arthur Maulet got his first start of the season while Bless Austin replaced Nate Hairston early in the game. The young duo started together on the outside for the remainder of the season (save for Austin’s benching in the season finale).

From Weeks 10-17, Austin and Maulet combined to allow 49-of-72 passes to be completed for 496 yards (6.9 per target), one touchdown, and one interception (86.3 passer rating). They only committed three penalties.

Sam Darnold‘s improvement with no uptick in support quality


Jets X-Factor Membership
Sorry, the content stops here if you’re not a Jet X Member, not currently logged-in, or viewing from an outside source such as Google AMP or an RSS Feed where logged-in status is not possible.

Get Started with the button below to access this Jets X-Factor article and the best damn New York Jets content in the world for free (after becoming a member, search for this article near the bottom of the Membership Confirmation page):
Jets X-Factor, Get Started
Log In with the button below if you’re already a member:
Jets X-Factor, Log In
Connect with the button below if you’d like to create a free account first:
Jets X-Factor, Connect

Audio Version available to members only: Learn more here


Want More NY Jets News & Jets X-Factor Content?

Download the free Jet X Mobile App to get customizable notifications directly to your iOS (App Store) or Google/Android (Google Play) device.

Add Jets X-Factor to your Google News feed to stay up to date with the New York Jets.

Follow us on Twitter @jetsxfactor for all the latest New York Jets news, Facebook for even more, Instagram for some of the top NY Jets images, and YouTube for original Jets X-Factor videos.

Join the official Jets Discord community to connect with likeminded fans.

Michael Nania is one of the best analytical New York Jets minds in the world, combining his statistical expertise with game film to add proper context to the data. Nania scrapes every corner, ensuring you know all there is to know about everyone from the QB to the long snapper. Nania's Numbers, Nania's QB Grades, and Nania's All-22 give fans a deeper and more well-rounded dive into the Jets than anyone else can offer. Email: michael.nania[at]jetsxfactor.com - Twitter: @Michael_Nania
0 0 votes
Article Rating
Subscribe
Notify of
0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments