These Jets deserve props for setting up the 2 return TDs in victory

The New York Jets won their second consecutive game on Sunday afternoon. It was a rare type of victory that doesn’t come around in the NFL too often: one driven primarily by the special teams.

The forgotten third phase plays a role in every NFL game, but its contribution to the scoreboard is usually minimal compared to the offense-versus-defense battles on each side of the field. In most games, it’s little more than a footnote in the outcome.

However, the special teams units offer highly explosive potential, as a touchdown can happen on any special teams play. That explosive potential isn’t seen often, but every once in a while, a game-tilting play breaks through on special teams. And when they do, it usually goes down as the turning point of the game, as their rarity makes them an extremely valuable bonus in a team’s quest for victory.

Getting one special teams touchdown in a game is rare and valuable enough on its own. Getting two requires a degree of luck and skill that is hardly even fathomable—let alone on back-to-back returns in one quarter.

That’s exactly what Chris Banjo’s special teams unit pulled off in the Jets’ Week 10 win over the Browns. Kene Nwangwu took a kickoff 99 yards to the house to tie the score at 7-7, and when Cleveland punted on the ensuing drive, Isaiah Williams returned it 74 yards to give New York a 14-7 lead.

The Jets needed every one of those 14 points. They wound up winning by seven points, as they had an ugly game on plays from scrimmage. Cleveland’s offense out-gained New York’s offense by 109 yards, picked up 11 more first downs (23-12), and scored seven more points (20-13). The Browns also won the turnover battle (1-0).

Simply put, the credit for this win belongs entirely to the Jets’ special teams.

Nwangwu and Williams receive all the glory for New York’s special teams extravaganza, as they are the men who toted the ball over the goal line. To complete that journey, though, they had to run past 11 Cleveland defenders. Not even Devin Hester could pull that off without 10 of his teammates paving the road for him.

Like rushing plays from scrimmage, returns are just as much about the blocking as they are about the man with the ball. When evaluating a running back, we must also evaluate the blocking in front of him. The same goes for returners and their blockers.

Let’s take a look at New York’s two return touchdowns against Cleveland and shower praise upon the unsung heroes who threw the blocks that cleared the runway for a Jets victory.

Kene Nwangwu’s 99-yard kick return touchdown

The lane used by Kene Nwangwu on his 99-yard kick return touchdown was primarily created by four players: Qwan’tez Stiggers, Stone Smartt, Isaiah Davis, and Andrew Beck.

Moving from left to right in the kick return formation, let’s begin with Stiggers (No. 37), the Jets’ furthest player to the left side. Although he lines up furthest from the eventual return lane, Stiggers’ man eventually gets the best shot at stopping Nwangwu.

Stiggers does an excellent job of staying with his man as he pursues aggressively to the inside. It’s not the flashiest block in the world, but just by sticking with it throughout the entire rep, Stiggers slows his man just enough to prevent him from reaching Nwangwu.

Near the right hash, Smartt (No. 84) engages his defender, riding his momentum to the outside. From a set-back alignment, Beck (No. 47) steps up to double-team Smartt’s man, which kicks him out away from the hash. This block by Beck is what primarily opens up the lane used by Nwangwu. From there, Smartt ensures the lane stays open by taking control of the block and driving his man far out of the gap he was trying to plug.

Adjacent to Smartt and Beck, Davis (No. 32) cleans up the other side of Nwangwu’s lane. Davis, a 220-pound running back, gets matched up one-on-one with a 265-pound defensive end (Cameron Thomas), and he still wins the battle.

Davis rides Thomas’ momentum to the outside, and while the block isn’t dominant, it creates enough movement to open up an inside lane for Nwangwu. With Smartt and Beck kicking their defender out in the opposite direction, that’s how you get a gaping hole like this.

Credit is also due to Isaiah Williams (No. 18), who lined up as the second kick returner on this play. Williams stays active looking for work down the field, and he eventually throws a key block to eliminate the last defender who had a realistic chance of chasing Nwangwu down from behind.

Isaiah Williams’ 74-yard punt return touchdown

Scoring in the return game is as much of a team effort as any action in the sport of football. On Isaiah Williams’ 74-yard punt return touchdown, I counted eight key blocks that directly contributed to paving the way for Williams. If any one of these blocks weren’t made, there’s a good chance that Williams would not have scored.

The most important block is arguably the sideline double-team by undrafted rookie Dean Clark (No. 35) and veteran corner Ja’Sir Taylor (No. 36), whom the Jets recently acquired in a trade with the Chargers. You can see their effort best on the All-22 view (shown at the end of the clip above).

Taylor starts the rep by pushing his man almost all the way into the Jets’ bench. He loses control of the block from there, leaving Clark one-on-one, but Clark does an excellent job of regaining control.

Clark patiently stays out in front of the defender and takes a smart angle to stay between him and the return man. He throws a block, which buys time for Taylor to get back into the play. Taylor joins up with Clark to dominate on the double-team and create a wall to Williams’ right side.

Moving from right-to-left back toward the inside, we see another key double-team from Isaiah Oliver (No. 26) and Andrew Beck (No. 47). Oliver gets the action started, slowing up his man to buy time for Beck to get involved, but he eventually loses the block and cedes a lane to Williams. However, Beck saves the day with a crushing hit, throwing the defender to the ground right before he gets a chance to contact Williams.

Qwan’tez Stiggers (No. 37) provides another strong effort, similar to his rep on the kick return. His block isn’t bone-shattering, but he does a phenomenal job of staying with it throughout the entire rep to prevent his man from getting a clean read of the play. As you can see on the All-22 view, Stiggers was left one-on-one on the outside (bottom of your screen), so he had to stick with his man on an island for over seven seconds until Williams darted by.

Ja’Markis Weston (No. 54) also throws a good block on the left side to seal a defender out of the lane.

Credit for opening the initial lane goes to Taylor, Clark, Oliver, and Beck on Williams’ right side, while Stiggers and Weston sealed off the left side. Once Williams breaks free, Kobe King (No. 45) throws a clutch block to eliminate a trailing defender, while Stone Smartt (No. 84) leads the way in the open field.

The unsung heroes

Nwangwu and Williams each displayed excellent speed and vision on their returns, but neither player was touched on their way to the end zone. These were the types of return touchdowns in which the blocking carried as much responsibility as the returner himself.

For that reason, it isn’t a stretch that the Jets’ return-team blockers—perhaps the least talked-about role in the entire sport—were the MVPs of their latest win.

Here is a full list of Jets players who threw key blocks on the team’s two (essentially game-winning) return touchdowns against the Browns:

• Andrew Beck (2x)
• Stone Smartt (2x)
• Qwan’tez Stiggers (2x)
• Isaiah Davis (Kick)
• Dean Clark (Punt)
• Kobe King (Punt)
• Isaiah Oliver (Punt)
• Ja’Sir Taylor (Punt)
• Ja’Markis Weston (Punt)
• Isaiah Williams (Punt)

Beck, Smartt, and Stiggers are the stars of the afternoon, throwing key blocks on both of the Jets’ return touchdowns. Beck’s blocks were particularly critical.

Williams also deserves credit for assisting Nwangwu’s touchdown on top of scoring his own.

Nobody is talking about these unsung heroes in the media right now, but these guys just won the Jets a football game. Save the praise for New York’s run game and defense for another day—this week’s glory belongs to Beck, Smart, Stiggers, and Williams, with honorary shoutouts to the many other special teamers who pitched into the two touchdowns.

It takes a village to dominate on special teams. First-year coordinator Chris Banjo is building a culture that is… well, special.