To quote the Boss, everyone responsible for the disaster we watched Sunday should be “handcuffed to the bumper of a state troopers ford.” The so called “battle of New York” was nothing short of a crime against the sport of football. Jets and Giants fans should be compensated for watching the game, let alone attending it. Another rainy Sunday in the swamps of Jersey produced a slog of a game. Time for another therapy session folks, let’s get after it.

Jets

Let’s start with the Jets perspective on this game. Put simply, the only positive for Gang Green is that they won. The Jets came off their bye week completely flat, which led to a sloppy effort. The apparent lack of focus and preparation became an utter lack of discipline with nine penalties taken. Basic things like not jumping offsides on a punt were frighteningly difficult for them. Mistakes like that and others are completely inexcusable, and have to be cut out going forward, given the Jets slim margin for error.

The mess went far deeper than penalties though. The play calling, to no one’s surprise was a disaster, as Nate Hackett called his worst game yet on the sideline. Continually pushing the ball down field in the rain, with a QB that was short on confidence was baffling. Somehow this offense remains allergic to simple check downs and getting players in space. Breece Hall’s first half touchdown was the prime example of what needs to be called as Hall took a simple dump off to the house.

Speaking of the quarterback, Zach Wilson did one hell of a Tim Tebow impression this week. Through three plus quarters number two looked lost as he held onto the ball forever and turned it over twice. When he did eventually throw it, he didn’t complete many passes and seemed unable to cope with the blitz. But, right at the end of the game with no timeouts, he executed a flawless two minute drill and moved the Jets into field goal range. He got just enough done in OT to help the Jets win the ball game and inject more life into this season. Wilson is undoubtedly better when he is on the move and improvising the offense, something everyone but the coaches recognize apparently.

The defense and special teams were terrific in this one aside from the silly penalties. With four sacks recorded and negative passing yards allowed (you read that right) the defense dominated a weak Giants offense. Thomas Morstead and Greg Zuerlein were the heroes of the day as they combined to pin the Giants deep and nail the tying and winning field goals. I will credit Saleh and the coaches for using their punter as a weapon in the adverse conditions. Field position was critical in this game and Morstead flipped it repeatedly. Shockingly in OT Saleh nearly botched the game winning field goal attempt as he was unsure about whether the Jets should kick, until Aaron Rodgers told him to do so with the play clock winding down, or at least it looked that way.

Speaking of the Jets ailing QB, for the first time this year, they are now openly saying they expect Rodgers back. GM Joe Douglas said in his “trade deadline address” (more on that in a moment) that they expect Rodgers back this season. Rumors of a December return are swirling, something that seemed impossible eight weeks ago. Whether this is smart or not is up for debate. Will the Jets even still be in contention by then is even harder to answer. A potential Rodgers return is certainly a ray of hope though.

The bad news from this one was the Jets losing their top two centers as Connor McGovern and Wes Schweitzer were placed on IR. The offensive line actually started to click the last few weeks but these continual losses up front hold them back from making progress. Their answer to these injuries is the signing of veteran lineman Rodger Saffold. Saffold comes in after playing for the Bills last season. The two-time pro bowler’s best days are behind him but the Jets needed a warm body right now to try and address the issues up front.

There was of course another opportunity to address some off the deficiencies on this roster at this weeks trade deadline. I’ll have some thoughts on the other moves made below, but it was frustrating to see the Jets remain inactive. While there are rumors of them trying to acquire Mike Evans and Devante Adams, a player like Raiders wideout Hunter Renfrow would have been a good add as well. While Renfrow didn’t move, the Vikings traded away solid guard Ezra Cleveland to the Browns for a 6th round pick. To not add a player like Cleveland in an area of need at that price feels like a mistake.

Next up for Gang Green is a home game against the Chargers on Monday night. This is an absolutely critical game in the AFC playoff picture, as the Chargers figure to be in the wild card race with the Jets. While the Chargers are very talented, Brandon Staley makes Rob Saleh look like Bill Parcels. A victory would move them to 5-3, pushing the Chargers out of the picture, and set the Jets up for a chance to reach 6-3 with a win the following week against the reeling Raiders. With three games still left against the Bills and the Dolphins, beating teams like LA, Vegas and other “bad teams” remaining on the schedule is critical. If they could go 2-2 in their next four games, the Jets will set themselves up for a stretch run playoff push, that would potentially feature Rodgers under center.

Giants

It took a special kind of bad effort to lose to the performance I just described in the Jets portion of this recap. The Giants turned in exactly that kind of bad effort. What started as an ugly day turned into a nightmare for Big Blue.

The offense that some clowns in the New York media claimed was “fixed” scuffled early with Tyrod Taylor under center. The Jets defense of course slows down many offenses, so there isn’t much shame in the Giants not having a big day. Trialing 7-3, Taylor left the game with an injury, one that sent him to the hospital. Hopefully Taylor makes a full recovery but it’s clear he won’t be back anytime soon.

Taylor’s injury gave way to third string backup Tommy DeVito. No, not Tommy DeVito of Four Seasons fame from Belleville New Jersey. Tommy DeVito of Don Bosco football fame from Livingston New Jersey. DeVito was living out a dream taking the Giants down the field and scoring his first career TD to take a 10-7 lead. There was of course a slight problem with playing DeVito, which seemed to be that he was not trusted to throw the ball. On just seven total attempts, three of which came in overtime, he had two completions for a total of -1 yard. This of course leads one to question why DeVito was on the active roster to begin with, since Jones was hurt and unable to backup Taylor. More on this later though.

Protecting a 10-7 lead after another Jets penalty, Big Blue went on a drive to try and ice the game. With the Jets looking worn out up front, Saquan Barkley attacked on the ground and drove the Giants down to the Jets 17 yard line. Following Barkley foolishly going down to keep the clock running, a decision that denied them a first down, the Giants were unable to move the chains. With 4th and 1 coming Daboll decided to kick a field goal, one that Graham Gano would miss. This miss, the second of the day, set up the eventual game tying drive by the Jets.

This decision, at least in my book, was completely devoid of logic. The field goal only put the Giants up six and brought a blocked field goal or bad snap into play. Barkley was running all over the Jets on the final drive, making it hard to imagine him not picking up the yard they needed. Even if he didn’t, you would have burned a few seconds off the clock and given the Jets the ball ten yards further back than they did on the miss. Yardage that would have proved vital given the Jets moving into field goal range with exactly one second left. This, much like several other decisions this year, backfired spectacularly on Brian Daboll.

The bizarre field goal sequence was compounded by Daboll sharing on Monday that Gano is in fact injured. This not only explains him missing three kicks in the last two games, but begs the question, why would you continue to turn to him? This, along with the aforementioned struggles of the clearly unprepared Tommy DeVito make the Giants look like a clown car. It’s hard to fathom why you would have an injured kicker and a quarterback incapable of running the offense on the active roster. You have to do things every week that give you the best chance to win. That appears to only be earth shattering analysis to the Giants.

There was one major positive from this game, and that was the brilliant play of Kayvon Thibodeaux. Number five had a tough start to his second season but he has put it all together of late. He absolutely wrecked the game Sunday, with three sacks and a forced fumble. Thibodeaux now has 8.5 sacks on the season, putting him amongst the league leaders. This breakout game came after a week where he was attacked by the hacks at WFAN sports radio. Clearly he took the noise to heart and let his play speak for itself.

Unlike the Jets, the Giants were busy at the trade deadline, as they sent star D-lineman Leonard Williams to the Seahawks. This was a deal that made sense for both sides really. Seattle is in first place out west and starting to play well, while the Giants were able to get a second round pick for a pending free agent. Williams has now been traded for the second time in his career, his first was from the Jets to the Giants, so he will finally venture outside of New York City. It was surprising to see the Giants hang onto Saquan Barkley given his contract status, but this perhaps is a sign that they now plan to keep him long term.

Next up for Big Blue is a trip to Las Vegas as they will face the Raiders, who will be coached by Giants legend Antonio Pierce, following the firing of Josh McDaniels. The Raiders will be making a switch to rookie quarterback Aiden O’Connell who will make his first NFL start. This Giants defense needs to feast on the rookie, no excuses. Meanwhile Daniel Jones will make his return under center for the Giants. The Raiders defense is a mess so this is a good opportunity for him to get his game together. This is a “can’t lose” for the Giants, plain and simple.

Around the League

This week we have some thoughts on the trade deadline and some of the big games from this past weekend. There was a flurry of moves and some may prove consequential.

Vikings Go Shopping: Maybe the Vikings really are cursed. After a poor 1-4 start, the Purple People Eaters rallied to win three straight and reach the .500 mark. Unfortunately they lost Kirk Cousins to injury for the season in the process. To cover for this loss, they went out and swung a nice trade for veteran signal caller Josh Dobbs. Dobbs played well for the Cardinals this year and may just be able to keep Minny in the race the rest of the way.

Full House by The Bay: The once unstoppable 49ers have now dropped three straight. With the offense not quite clicking and the defense getting gashed, it was time to make a move. John Lynch, always a savvy trader, went out and brought in mercurial pass rusher Chase Young from Washington. Young hasn’t quite fulfilled his potential in the league yet, but perhaps playing with fellow Buckeye Nick Bosa will help unlock him.

The Gang Gets a New Safety: The Eagles are truly the kings of the deadline, and this year was no different. With Philly starting to get hot, GM Howie Roseman went out and brought in star safety Kevin Byard from the Titans. This move will greatly improve an Eagles secondary in need of help. They’ll be tested this week, as they take on the Cowboys who are hot on their heals in the NFC East.

Detroit Rock City: The Lions were relatively inactive at the trade deadline. They brought in receiver Donavan Peoples Jones from Cleveland, but failed to address their defense. Despite that the team went right back to winning Monday night as they cruised past the Raiders in front of a wild Ford Field crowd. Rookie Jahmyr Gibbs looks to be breaking out, and when they get David Montgomery back this team will be able to control the tempo of a game. The road to the Super Bowl may go through the Motor City.

Welcome BACK to the Jungle: After a sluggish 1-3 start I think it’s safe to say the Bengals are back. Burrow looks to be back at full health and the offense is humming again. The defense also had a strong game this week, as they punished Brock Purdy, picking him off twice. While the Ravens have built a healthy lead in the North, 4-3 Cincy looks to be on the march.

Love Ya Levis: There is making your NFL debut in style and then there is Will Levis. The former second round pick made his Titans debut Sunday against the Falcons and made it a special one. The rookie went 19/29 with 238 yards passing and FOUR touchdown passes, all while rocking the iconic Oilers “Love Ya Blue” throwbacks uniforms. If Levis keeps this up the 3-4 Titans season may not be over, and Levis might be more famous than Carrie Underwood in Nashville.

That does it for this weeks recap. Remember to follow me on Twitter @YNWA9623 and subscribe to the blog by hitting the follow button in the bottom right corner and entering your email address. I’ll be back with more soon. Enjoy the football weekend ahead!