The Jets' fifth straight loss exposed weakness of entire team

As has become the norm this season, the New York Jets are leaving a week disappointed and confused. On Sunday, the Jets lost 25-22 to the lowly New England Patriots. Years ago, a close loss to the Patriots may have energized the Jets, but this latest loss simply shows they are a long way from where they expected to be this year.

New York has now lost five straight, with a Sept. 19 victory over the Patriots as its last win. While some of its losses during this steak have been to contending teams like the Steelers and Vikings, its sixth overall loss of the season came to a New England team forced to turn to career backup Jacoby Brissett after starter Drake Maye left the game with an injury.

Not only did the Jets lose once again, it's how they lost. After throwing an uncharacteristic amount of interceptions through the first seven games — seven to be exact — the man Jets fans believed was their savior, Aaron Rodgers, had one of his better games of the entire season against New England. Unfortunately for long-suffering Jets fans, it didn't matter.

Rodgers completed 17-of-28 passes for 233 yards with a pair of touchdown passes and no picks. He also averaged 8.3 yards per completion (his second-highest total for a single game in 2024) and a quarterback rating of 111.2. By any metric, Rodgers played well enough for a good team to win.

The issue is, and they may even be realizing this themselves, the Jets are just not a good team. New York's once stellar defense, a unit that was ranked No. 2 in the NFL when head coach and defensive guru Robert Saleh was fired on Oct. 8, allowed the Patriots to win the time of possession battle and gave up 18 second-half points as the Jets blew another lead.

Beyond the defense, especially the run defense that gave up three rushing touchdowns on the day, falling off, the weapons around Rodgers haven't been stripping up either. Breece Hall averaged 5.0 yards per carry but only finished with 80 yards and coughed up a fumble. And for the most disappointing problem, reuniting Davante Adams with Rodgers has only resulted in seven receptions for 84 yards in two games.

To be fair, it's also not just about who's not doing enough or making mistakes around Rodgers either. While Rodgers was fine in Week 8, he was coming off a "Sunday Night Football" loss in Pittsburgh that saw undrafted rookie Beanie Bishop pick him off twice in a 37-15 loss to the Steelers. In fact, six of Rodgers' seven interceptions so far during the 2024 season were thrown in the three weeks leading up to Sunday.

Rodgers' 2024 quarterback rating sits at a pedestrian 49.7, placing him at 23rd across the league. His 12 touchdown passes don't balance out his interceptions nearly enough.

Simply put, the Jets have endured 99 problems, and Rodgers has been one of them this year. And if the Adams trade didn't spark the offense and breathe new life into a sinking ship, it's unlikely anything will at this point.

Some may believe the Jets still have a chance because they are led by a four-time MVP and the Bills are the only team with a winning record in the AFC East, but it's becoming clear they can lose to anybody.

Math is also against the Jets. Now, at 2-6, the Jets are falling too far behind to even get back in the wild-card race. With two hot teams in the Texans and Cardinals on deck, the odds are just stacked against the Jets figuring anything out in time to make a playoff push, let alone make a run at a championship.