JACKSONVILLE — In a season fraught with unexpected turns, the New York Jets’ defense has emerged as one of the most startling disappointments. What was anticipated to be a formidable unit has instead become a glaring liability.
Under the leadership of new head coach Aaron Glenn and defensive coordinator Steve Wilks, the Jets entered the 2025 season with high hopes for their defense, especially after consistently ranking among the top five in the league over the past three years. However, rather than maintaining or enhancing their prowess, the defense has alarmingly declined as the season winds down.
The recent 48-20 thrashing by the Jacksonville Jaguars highlighted these issues starkly. The Jets’ defense seemed powerless against Trevor Lawrence, failing to apply any pressure as evidenced by their inability to record a single sack and managing just two quarterback hits throughout the entire game.
Lawrence capitalized on this lack of resistance, completing 20 of 32 passes for 330 yards and contributing six touchdowns—five through the air and one on the ground. He achieved the highest passer rating of his career at 136.7, underscoring the Jets’ defensive failings.
In the wake of this crushing defeat, Jets coach Aaron Glenn expressed his frustration candidly. “You just don’t give up that many points and lose by that,” he stated. “I’m not going to sugarcoat it for anyone. We need to ensure we can address these issues.”
Glenn emphasized a thorough evaluation process, scrutinizing everything from strategy and execution to player performance and team character. “We just have to get better,” he insisted. “Losing games in this manner is simply unacceptable.”
After winning three of five games to end November, it appeared the Jets were on the upswing. But that has not been the case the past two weeks.
The Jets’ defense has reverted to the unit it was at the beginning of the season, when players left receivers wide open on passing downs. They missed several tackles against the Jaguars, including Lawrence’s 15-yard touchdown run in the first quarter after Will McDonald missed a potential sack. Travis Etienne Jr. also scored a touchdown in the third quarter after Brandon Stephens whiffed on a tackle and Quincy Williams couldn’t catch him before the running back reached the end zone.
It also didn’t help matters that undrafted rookie free agent Brady Cook started the first game of his NFL career on Sunday. Cook didn’t play well after throwing for 163 yards with a touchdown and three interceptions, but it’s hard to win when your defense gives up over 40 points against any team.
In just their past two games, losses to the Dolphins and Jaguars, the Jets defense has allowed a combined 82 points. They have also given up a total of 796 yards. Entering Sunday’s game, the Jets are 21st in yards (337.4) and 30th in points allowed (28.4).
“I don’t know,” Jets safety Tony Adams said when asked why the team has gotten off to slow starts the previous two weeks. “We gotta go back and watch the film and correct what’s going on.
“No excuses. I’ve been here going on my fourth year. What the offense doesn’t matter, you know what I mean. We gotta be better defensively to give Brady a chance.”
Wilks has been under fire all season long because of how horrific the Jets’ defense has been. But when asked whether he would consider taking over the defensive play-calling duties, Glenn remained committed to Wilks.
“I brought Wilks in for a reason,” Glenn said. “I want him to run his system. We have three games left for our guys to go out there and play. Right now, it is not about the X’s and O’s, it’s about the character of the men on this team. That’s what I’m evaluating.
“I thought some of our guys really gave it up on that field today. We really pushed it and really continued playing no matter what the situation was. I want to make sure I look at the tape and see if everybody did that and evaluate the coaches like I always do.”
Glenn might as well play the string out with Wilks with three games remaining. But something has to change because the Jets aren’t showing enough defensive progress, especially since players feel they are prepared throughout the week leading up to games.
Feeling the pressure is something Wilks is used to. After one season as coach in 2018, the Cardinals fired Wilks following a 3-13 record. 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan also fired Wilks after their Super Bowl loss to the Chiefs in 2023, following a defensive dip in production.
After Sunday’s game, many players had very few answers on what went wrong against the Jaguars and even declined to speak to the media. Pass rusher Jermaine Johnson told reporters, “Nah, not today,” when he was approached to talk. Williams, who was charged with four missed tackles according to Next Gen Stats, also didn’t take questions from the media but said, “I have nothing positive to say, so I’m not doing any media.”
Jets linebacker Jamien Sherwood knows what he wants to see from the defense during their last three games (at Saints, vs. Patriots, at Bills).
“The previous two weeks weren’t up to par,” Sherwood said. “Obviously, not the standard that we set for ourselves and not the standard that we have going forward. So I wanna see the guys fight, finish, have pride about playing for the New York Jets.”
