New York Jets Defense Has Surprisingly Struggled in Creating Turnovers

The New York Jets defense hasn't lived up to expectations but has fallen woefully short in regards to creating turnovers in 2024.

Dec 1, 2024; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Seattle Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet (26) runs with the ball and avoids a tackle by New York Jets defensive tackle Leonard Taylor III (96) during the third quarter at MetLife Stadium. / Mark Smith-Imagn Images

The list of disappointments for the New York Jets in the 2024 season is a lengthy one.

Not much has gone right for the franchise that had aspirations of not only snapping their playoff drought but contending for a Super Bowl. They have been all-in on that pursuit since acquiring Aaron Rodgers but have fallen woefully short.

With their loss to the Miami Dolphins on Sunday afternoon, the Jets were officially eliminated from the postseason for the 14th consecutive campaign. A ninth consecutive losing season was clinched with last week’s loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

There are a lot of things that can be picked out as the most surprising thing to this point on the field.

Some will point to the level of play that has been provided by quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who has not elevated the team’s offensive production anywhere near as much as expected.

His statistics are better than Zach Wilson’s from the last two seasons, but the team never performed this poorly in the win-loss column. Where he has fallen short is late-game execution.

But, he is dealing with some excruciatingly painful circumstances, battling several injuries.

On five occasions in 2024, New York has held a lead in the fourth quarter and failed to win the game. Had they held on to win just three of those games, their outlook would be entirely different over the final month.

But, in the opinion of Rich Cimini of ESPN, the biggest surprise has come on the defensive side of the ball.

In this week’s NFL power rankings, in which the Jets dropped another spot down to No. 28, each writer shared the most shocking ranking for their respective teams. For New York, it is their lack of takeaways.

Currently in a tie for 28th, the Jets have forced only 10 turnovers this season across 13 games.

“It's hard to believe a defense with three players who earned All-Pro or Pro Bowl status in 2023 (cornerback Sauce Gardner, linebacker Quincy Williams and defensive tackle Quinnen Williams) has only 10 takeaways in 13 games. That includes only two interceptions (both by backup cornerback Brandin Echols). In fact, the Jets have yet to record an interception since Jeff Ulbrich became the interim coach eight games ago.”

Injuries have plagued the team on defense. Defensive end Jermaine Johnson II suffered an Achilles injury in Week 2 and linebacker C.J. Mosley has been in and out of the lineup all season as well. He is now on injured reserve with a neck injury.

Add in the holdout by Haason Reddick and his ineffective play since and nothing has panned out for what was expected to be a championship-caliber defense.

Maybe firing head coach Robert Saleh wasn’t as good of a move as some people thought it would be. The team was struggling even with him on the sideline, but they have taken a one-way trip to rock bottom without him.