It wasn’t pretty by any means, but the first win for Jets head coach Robert Saleh was a sweet one.
The Jets earned a much-needed victory this week with their 27-24 overtime win over the Tennessee Titans on Sunday.
Matt Ammendola kicked a 22-yard field goal in overtime to give the Jets the lead. Tennessee’s Randy Bullock had his opportunity to tie the game. But Bullock went wide left on a 49-yard attempt with 15 seconds left.
It was the first win of the season for the Jets (1-3). For Saleh, the first-year head coach, maybe the fun can officially begin.
His rookie quarterback showed the home crowd at MetLife Stadium what he brings to the table.
Zach Wilson completed 21 of 34 pass attempts for 297 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception.
Wilson played well in the second half of this game, he connected on a handful of big plays with his receivers, specifically ex-Titan Corey Davis (four catches, 111 yards, one touchdown).
The defense continues to impress for the Jets
This unit continues to open eyes throughout the league.
The Jets had seven sacks, including two by Quinnen Williams. Linebacker Quincy Williams, brother of Quinnen, also recorded a sack and finished with 12 tackles. Quincy, along with C.J. Mosley (team-high 13 tackles, one sack), are emerging as a solid pair at linebacker.
Their defense held Tennessee in check for most of the first half. This was key because Wilson and the offense started off slowly again.
Tennessee was without injured wide receivers Julio Jones and A.J. Brown, but still had their home run-hitter Derrick Henry pounding his way to 157 yards on 33 carries.
Despite Henry’s efforts, a gritty performance on both sides of the ball earned the Jets the victory.
The Jets came into Week 4 with the 10th-ranked defense in the NFL. Saleh and defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich must be pleased with the early-season performance of their unit.
When the Jets hired Saleh as their head coach, I thought to his days as defensive coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers. After every big play by the defense, there’s this bald-head guy with a headset on pumping his fist as if he just came off the field himself.
Saleh’s intensity on the sidelines was greatly talked about when he was introduced as head coach. Throughout the first three games, all losses, we didn’t see much in emotion from him. But this week, it was there – especially after a big play by the defense. The smiles, the fist pump, some swagger.
The Jets grinded their way to a victory this week. It wasn’t pretty, it likely won’t be going forward.
With his rookie quarterback continuing to learn on the job, Saleh likely already knows he needs more of these types of performances in order to keep the process moving forward.
