{"id":399781,"date":"2025-09-27T01:20:11","date_gmt":"2025-09-27T01:20:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/399781\/"},"modified":"2025-09-27T01:20:11","modified_gmt":"2025-09-27T01:20:11","slug":"why-jets-believe-theyre-extremely-close-to-their-breakthrough","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/399781\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Jets believe they&#8217;re &#8216;extremely close&#8217; to their breakthrough"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Have to start better, have to finish better.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s usually a recipe for failure in the NFL, and those are key reasons why the Jets are 0-3 to start the 2025 season heading into the Monday night clash with the also-winless Dolphins in Miami.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>But cornerback Sauce Gardner believes the Jets are \u201cextremely close,\u201d or at least they were in tight losses to the Steelers and the Buccaneers wrapped around a clunker in Week 2 against the Bills.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s so easy to just look at our record and get down,\u201d Gardner said after practice Friday in Florham Park. \u201cThe reality is, we\u2019re a field goal and a stop away from being 2-1.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn this building, mentally we\u2019re here. Mentally, we\u2019re still very confident. And we know what we\u2019re capable of doing.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>First-year coordinator Steve Wilks\u2019 defense has had its moments over the first three games, but the Jets have dropped all three,<a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2025\/09\/21\/sports\/steve-wilks-jets-defense-had-no-baker-mayfield-answers-on-final-drive\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"> including a drive for the game-winning field goal Sunday<\/a> in the final 1:49 after the Jets had taken a lead on a blocked field goal returned for a touchdown by Will McDonald IV.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Sauce Gardner speaks to the media after Jets practice on Sept. 26, 2025.  Bill Kostroun\/New York Post<\/p>\n<p>Wilks said the emphasis ahead of Monday night\u2019s game is clear.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOne of the things we have to do defensively \u2014 as you\u2019ve seen we\u2019ve done a lot of great things throughout these first three weeks \u2014 but we gotta find a way to finish,\u201d Wilks said. \u201cThat\u2019s the key thing for us on defense.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOne touchdown, holding those guys to five field goals, it doesn\u2019t really mean anything when you can\u2019t finish in the end. That\u2019s where we are right now, and that\u2019s our challenge this week.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<p>The Jets, <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2025\/09\/23\/sports\/quincy-williams-lands-on-ir-as-jets-defense-suffers-big-injury-blow\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">who will be without starting linebacker Quincy Williams (shoulder) for at least the next four weeks<\/a>, rank 22nd in yards allowed per game (340.3) during their winless start.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s a lot that comes into play, and that starts with me,\u201d Wilks said. \u201cPutting guys in position to be successful, and then, most importantly, just making the plays when given the opportunity.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Offensively, the Jets appear as if they should be getting back starting quarterback Justin Fields, <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2025\/09\/25\/sports\/justin-fields-back-at-jets-practice-as-he-gets-closer-to-week-4-return\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">who has been listed as a full participant in practice<\/a> the past two days after missing last week\u2019s game with a concussion.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Steve Wilks speaks to the media before Jets practice on Sept. 26, 2025.  Bill Kostroun\/New York Post<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe all in this locker room feel like we\u2019re close, and there\u2019s a few plays that we\u2019re leaving on the field here and there that have us in this hole at 0-3,\u201d receiver Garrett Wilson said. \u201cThe reality of this is, that\u2019s what we are. We\u2019re 0-3, but we\u2019ve gotta find a way to get over that hump this week, find a way to get on the board.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>One way, Wilson stressed, is to get the ball into the end zone early in the game instead of settling for early field goals, to avoid having to attempt to play catch-up.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s been not terrible, but still not what we want,\u201d Wilson said. \u201cWe need to find a way to get seven on that first drive. We don\u2019t want to be a second-half team \u2026 because sometimes you put yourself in too big a hole.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGet the insider\u2019s view on Gang Green\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p class=\"inline-module__cta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSign up for Inside the Jets by Brian Costello, a weekly Sports+ exclusive.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\tThank you\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>The Dolphins also are 0-3 but their offense always is a threat with quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, the speedy receiving tandem of Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle and running back De\u2019Von Achane.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re very aware that they have, like, an Olympic track team over there, [they are] very fast,\u201d Gardner said. \u201cThat\u2019s why I get paid the big bucks.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Gardner and Wilson, who both signed nine-figure contract extensions in the offseason, also liked seeing first-year coach Aaron Glenn celebrating on the sideline after McDonald\u2019s go-ahead play, even though the coach took some criticism for it after the Jets were unable to close out the Bucs.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Garrett Wilson speaks to the media after Jets practice on Sept. 26, 2025.  Bill Kostroun\/New York Post<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI thought it was hilarious, man,\u201d Wilson said of Glenn. \u201cWe\u2019re gonna get on the board and start doing what we\u2019re supposed to do, start winning games and we\u2019re going to see that a little bit more, not just from [Glenn]. That was cool to see that.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe just want to make sure that when he does do it, we\u2019re gonna finish the game so he doesn\u2019t have to deal with some of the B.S. that comes with this. But to see our coach being himself and having fun \u2026 that\u2019s stuff you love to play for.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Have to start better, have to finish better.\u00a0 That\u2019s usually a recipe for failure in the NFL, and&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":399782,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2051],"tags":[5561,7,2310,226,1917,255,2321,2097,6,9],"class_list":{"0":"post-399781","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york-jets","8":"tag-ahmad-sauce-gardner","9":"tag-football","10":"tag-garrett-wilson","11":"tag-jets","12":"tag-new-york","13":"tag-new-york-jets","14":"tag-newyork","15":"tag-newyorkjets","16":"tag-nfl","17":"tag-sports"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/115273637933474097","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/399781","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=399781"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/399781\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/399782"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=399781"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=399781"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=399781"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}