More Doom and Gloom for Jets on Black Friday

Offense falters again as playoff hopes evaporate in blowout loss to AFC East-leading Dolphins

Author:
Ralph Ventre
Publish date:
Nov 24, 2023 8:20 PM EST

In this story:

The third-string quarterback and a patchwork offensive line couldn't do nearly enough to save the New York Jets from a fourth consecutive loss.

With the offense's ineptitude continuing, the Jets suffered a 34-13 setback to the Miami Dolphins at home in the first-ever NFL Black Friday Game on November 24. The lop-sided loss doesn't mathematically eliminate the Jets (4-7) from postseason contention, but that appears to be an inevitable formality waiting to happen.

The Green & White netted 159 yards of offense, four more yards more than their Week 11 total against Buffalo, and only 12 first downs. After replacing Zach Wilson as the starting quarterback, veteran Tim Boyle accounted for a dismal 4.7 yards per pass attempt and was picked off twice.

"I thought he battled. I thought he did some good things. Some things he needs to be better at obviously," said New York head coach Robert Saleh of Boyle after his first start as a Jet.

Boyle, who finished 27-of-38 passing for 179 yards and one touchdown, was playing behind a makeshift front five that has been repeatedly hit hard by injuries. Left tackle Mekhi Becton missed his first game of the season, forcing fourth-round rookie Carter Warren to start on Boyle's blindside.

Two second-year players manned the right side of the line. Freshly signed to the 53-man roster of the Practice Squad, Xavier Newman earned his second career start at guard. Max Mitchell, a 2022 fourth-round draft pick, was back at tackle.

The Jets' rag-tag offense never seemed to shift out of neutral. The unit netted only 40 yards and two first downs through the first three quarters.

"We’ve got to keep digging. Have to keep preparing. We have to keep coaching. We have to keep playing. We just have to keep trying to find ways to move the ball and score," said Saleh.

The Green & White could not muster up a touchdown drive until the final quarter. Taking advantage of a short field after the defense recovered a fumble, Boyle capped a six-play possession by hitting Garrett Wilson on a 1-yard scoring strike.

"I think we kind of caught rhythm a little bit in that fourth quarter when we went no-huddle. They kind of simplified some of their stuff and I was able to see it and get the ball out," said Boyle.

Meanwhile, the Dolphins' high-octane offense wound up with 395 net yards and moved the chains 22 times despite a slow start that was amplified by two first-half interceptions and a failed fourth-down red zone attempt.

Averaging 8.1 yards per pass, Tua Tagovailoa accounted for a 70.0 completion percentage. Receivers Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle were responsible for nearly 90 percent of Miami's receiving output. The former went for 102 yards and one touchdown while the latter caught eight balls for a game-high 114 yards receiving.