The Jets' playoff chances are likely over, and not pursuing a QB behind Aaron Rodgers is why

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- You can add the time of death now. It’s over.

The Jets lost to the lifeless Falcons on Sunday, 13-8, dropping their record to 4-8. Any hope of the postseason drifted away as the final seconds ticked off the clock. They’d need to win out and get help.

Both things happening is wildly unlikely.

It’s a shame, really. The culprit as to why stares the Jets back in the mirror.

This is a quarterback-driven league. New York’s decision not to have a competent contingency plan in place in case it lost Aaron Rodgers is why the Jets will be watching the playoffs from home for the 13th straight year.

“It’s like a bad dream again,” said tight end Tyler Conklin of the team’s five-game skid.

The Jets believed that their quarterback misery was a thing of the past. They endured that hell in 2022 -- watching helplessly as those struggles wasted a championship-level defense and good-enough-everywhere-else offense.

So they went out and acquired Rodgers, a four-time MVP the team believed was still at the top of his game. Problem solved.

Well, it would have been if things went according to plan. When do things ever go according to plan for the Jets?

Rodgers, New York’s savior, ruptured his Achilles tendon on the fourth offensive snap of the season. Despite publicly and privately admitting that the only thing that could save Zach Wilson’s career was to have him sit and watch, the former No. 2 overall pick began the season as Rodgers’ unquestioned backup.

Tim Boyle, a journeyman who befriended Rodgers in Green Bay, was a practice squad arm. So when Rodgers went down four plays into the season, the Jets had no other option than to turn to the player who was no different in Year 3 than he was in Year 1 or 2.

It was the worst-case scenario that the Jets never planned for. So, when it did happen, they had no answer.

It didn’t have to be that way.

Hindsight is 20/20, sure. You should never grade a situation based off of that, but anyone who attended a series of Jets practices this summer -- or watched Wilson struggle to find the end zone during his extended preseason looks -- knew that this team was in trouble if Rodgers went down.

That’s why the decision not to add another quarterback is so mind-numbing.

The Jets gave a big-money contract to Allen Lazard (20 catches, 290 yards, one touchdown this season). They gave $7 million to Dalvin Cook during training camp (59 carries, 197 yards, zero touchdowns). They gave just under $5 million to wideout Mecole Hardman (traded to the Chiefs before the deadline). They restructured defensive end Carl Lawson’s deal when they could have cut him for free (a healthy scratch seven times).

For less than they paid any of those underperforming stars, the Jets easily could have added Gardner Minshew or Jameis Winston, retained folk hero Mike White. There were players there, too, when Rodgers went down -- Carson Wentz, Joe Flacco. There were options available at the trade deadline -- Josh Dobbs.

They chose not to.

The lone acquisition came in the form of Trevor Siemian, a practice arm. The Jets didn’t pursue any legitimate options for fear of bruising the ego and confidence of Wilson. They told inquiring quarterbacks that they weren’t interested.

You can’t help but think the Jets’ season is still alive had they made the move.

The Jets have failed to score a touchdown in three of their past five games, including Sunday against Atlanta. They have scored just 10 offensive touchdowns in their 12 games this year -- the first team since the 1993 Bengals to do that, according to ESPN. They entered Sunday ranked 32nd in DVOA, 31st in yards per game (260.2) and 30th in points (14.8).

“I feel like the last two or three weeks we had the best practices we had all year,” said Cook, who had 46 yards on 10 touches. “It’s just not translated to the game.”

New York’s issues aren’t entirely quarterback-related ones. They’ve used 14 different offensive linemen this season and are approaching 20 different combinations. Veteran receiver Corey Davis surprisingly retired during the summer -- his absence compounded by the struggles of Lazard. Few would thrive in conditions like those.

Against the Chargers, Raiders, Dolphins and Falcons, though, the Jets didn’t need a quarterback to thrive. They needed someone to get the ball to the open receiver.

That was especially the case against Atlanta. Wideout Garrett Wilson ran rampant through the secondary in the first half. He had just one catch because, for whatever reason, Boyle didn’t throw his way.

Saleh smiled and bit his tongue when asked how that was the case. He urged fans and pundits to “watch the all-22” for evidence the plays are working.

That’s also unintentional confirmation that the quarterback is not.

There’s nothing the Jets can do at quarterback now. Minshew went to the Colts, who with him under center are in the thick of the playoff picture. Winston stayed in New Orleans and White went home to Miami. Dobbs has the Vikings fighting for the playoffs. Flacco is starting for the Browns. Wentz is backing up Matt Stafford in L.A.

The Jets are forced to choose from bad, really bad and really, really bad in Wilson, Boyle or Siemian the rest of the way.

Saleh confirmed he’s “not there yet” on a quarterback decision. It’s clear that he can’t start Boyle again. He did not rule out returning to Wilson, whom he benched two weeks ago.

The locker room doesn’t appear to be fracturing, to the Jets’ credit. This isn’t like a season ago. That might not be a feather in anyone’s cap, though.

It appears that the defense has succumbed to the fact that they won’t win unless they pitch a shutout. Linebacker C.J. Mosley stopped short of saying it’s exhausting, but he did paint a clear picture of where things stand.

The goal going in to Atlanta was to “control what you can control.” The defense allowed 13 points and 194 yards. The Falcons went 4 of 14 (29 percent) on third downs. Star rookie Bijan Robinson had just 53 yards on 18 carries. Desmond Ridder completed just one pass to a receiver.

And the Jets still lost.

“As a defense and special teams,” Mosley said, “I feel that the guys who were on the field on defense and special teams, did the job that they had to do. The results is what they was.”

The Jets, this past Wednesday, activated the 21-day window for Rodgers to return. He met the media the next day and breathed life into the belief that he could return again this season. Dec. 24 had long been the day the Jets had circled internally, but Rodgers didn’t rule out coming back for the rematch with the Dolphins in three weeks.

That seemed to ignite this team again. The locker room was as jovial as it had been after beating the Eagles and Giants in back-to-back weeks to reach 4-3. They just had to take down the Falcons and then the Texans. Do that, keep their playoff hopes alive, and Rodgers could return to save them.

Not even that could jump-start this broken offense.

The Jets are stuck. It’s clear at this point (entering Week 14) that there is nothing they can do to fix this mess. Their only option is to ride it out and hope a 40-year-old Rodgers coming off an Achilles tear is the same dominant player in 2024.

This year is a wash. It just didn’t have to be this way. The Jets have only themselves to blame as for why.