LONDON — The Jets are a bloody mess. They’re now winless on two continents.
Aaron Glenn’s team couldn’t overcome a poor performance by the offense and some head-scratching coaching decisions in a 13-11 loss to the Broncos on Sunday at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
The Jets fell to 0-6 for the third time in franchise history, but their first win was within their reach if their offense could have done anything, especially protect Justin Fields. He was sacked nine times for a loss of 55 yards, including the Jets’ last offensive snap of the game.
The Jets finished with minus-10 net yards passing, the fewest in any game since the Chargers had minus-19 against Kansas City in 1998.
“Our passing game was non-existent,” Glenn said.
Despite the offense’s game-long ineptitute, the Jets had a chance for a game-winning drive. They had the ball with 2:23 left at their own 43 and no timeouts. The Jets botched the snap on first down, but Breece Hall picked it up and ran 7 yards. Hall ran for 4 yards on second down and got the first down at the Broncos’ 46.
Fields was then sacked on first down for a 5-yard loss. Garrett Wilson made a 7-yard catch on second-and-15. On third down Wilson had the ball knocked out of his hands right at the first-down marker. Fields was sacked on fourth down, ending any hope for the Jets.
Glenn made his first puzzling decision at the end of the first half. Showing no faith in the offense, Glenn chose not to run a play on fourth-and-1 from the Jets’ 41f. They let the clock run out instead.
Fields completed 9 of 17 passes for 45 yards. Hall had 59 yards rushing on 22 carries. Wilson (3 catches for 13 yards) had a quiet day with last year’s Defensive Player of the Year Patrick Surtain covering him.
The Jets’ underperforming defense, which held a players’-only meeting before the trip to London, played its best game of the season. The Jets registered their first takeaway of the season and also caused a safety.
Broncos quarterback Bo Nix was 19-for-30 for 174 yards and a touchdown.
The Jets were leading 11-10 in the fourth quarter and faced a fourth-and-1 at their own 30-yard line with 10:23 left. Glenn initially lined up the offense to go for it. He then called timeout and sent the punt team out. The Broncos took the lead on the ensuing possession.
Denver drove to the Jets’ 9, but the Jets’ defense kept them out of the end zone. Will Lutz kicked a 27-yard field goal with 5:06 left to make it 13-11.
The Jets did nothing on the next possession. Fields missed Wilson on second down. He twisted his body to try and make the catch and came up in pain and went to the sideline. Fields was sacked on third down.
The defense gave the offense another opportunity by forcing a three-and-out when Jermaine Johnson sacked Nix on third down. It gave the offense the ball at their 43 with 2:23 left, but the Jets failed to move the ball deep enough into Denver territory to bring in Nick Folk for a go-ahead field-goal attempt.
How atrocious was the Jets’ offense. These numbers tell the story:
-10
Net yards passing
82
Total net yards
1.4
Net yards per play
0
Touchdowns
8
First downs
9
Sacks
11
Yardage of longest pass play
Al Iannazzone covers the Jets for Newsday after spending nearly two decades on the NBA beat with Knicks and Nets.