Interim New York Jets head coach Jeff Ulbrich and quarterback Aaron Rodgers said the team is in “darkness” after suffering a fifth consecutive NFL loss in last-gasp style at the New England Patriots on Sunday.
Facing opponents on a run of six defeats, the Jets made it six losses in eight matches this season after Rhamondre Stevenson touched down with 22 seconds remaining.
“We’ve all got to take a hard look at ourselves, starting with me,” said Ulbrich, who replaced Robert Saleh on October 8. “We’ve got to be better from an operations standpoint, overall. Aaron’s got to be better, the coaches have to be better. All of us have to be better.
The #Patriots have taken the lead over the #Jets with 22 seconds remaining. This is stunning. pic.twitter.com/icz5C93wUw
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) October 27, 2024
“This is a moment of darkness and we understand that the outside world is going to get really loud right now, but the only thing I know in life is that when it gets dark and hard, you work and point the finger at yourself and look inward and work out ‘what can I do better?’ from an individual standpoint.
“I’m p******, [the players are] p******; I’m hurt, they’re hurt. We had opportunities to win this game. We should have won this game and didn’t. Give credit to the Patriots – they took advantage of a team who didn’t execute as well as they can.”
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Jets vs Patriots: Rodgers reflects
Rodgers, who returned from a long-term knee injury at the start of the campaign, accused a reporter of being “dramatic” when he was asked whether he had underestimated his task with the team.
“The energy was great today,” said the 41-year-old. “The guys were engaged, we played with some passion. Just execution-wise, we didn’t score.
Beat the Jets. pic.twitter.com/FhWDdZoSmp
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) October 27, 2024
“We set our sights on scoring 30 and it was right there for us. We’re not playing complementary. We haven’t really put it together since the last time we won a game.
“I’ve been in the darkness; you’ve got to go in there and make peace with it. We have trust in our defense and teams but, if we’re not scoring 30, we’re underachieving. This offense can do that every week.”
Thursday Night Football: Jets ‘have to execute’
The Jets host the Houston Texans, who are top of the AFC South and have a 6-2 record, on Thursday Night Football next.
“We talked about being at our best when our best was required and that was not it,” Ulbrich said of their latest setback. “That’s on coaching, first of all.
“Then we’ve got to execute, and we did not execute in critical moments. We say that’s not who we are but it’s who we are until we demonstrate otherwise.
“The character of this locker room, they’re going to demonstrate who they are. It’s going to take every single human being in there… to get this thing turned around.”
