Walking around New York City, you occasionally get a whiff of the subway stations and it feels like it’s the worst smell you’ve ever experienced. But if you’ve had the misfortune of watching one of New York City’s football teams this year, you’d know the subway stench isn’t so bad.
Simply put, the New York Jets and Giants stink.
We’ll start with the Jets because this team is putrid. They are 0-6 to start the season and could very well become the third team to go 0-16. The closest the Jets have been in a game was a nine-point loss to the Denver Broncos a few weeks ago.
Watching their offense is like watching paint dry and the statistics are somehow even worse to look at. The Jets, a professional football team, mind you, are averaging less than two touchdowns a game at 12.5 points per game. The Jets average 1.03 points a drive, good for dead last in the entire league.
The worst part about the Jets’ ineptitude is that their defense isn’t at the total bottom of the NFL. Although it is only the 20th-ranked defense in the league in terms of yards per game, it does give up the fourth-most points at 30.8. These certainly aren’t great numbers by any means, but I think it is a symptom of the offense being truly terrible.
The Jets’ opponents start their drives on their own 32.5 yardline on average, the fourth-worst mark in the league. A number like this shows that the Jets are losing the field position battle. When the offense cannot move the ball, the opposing team will have much less distance to the endzone.
The Jets offense is so awful that according to Pro Football Reference’s expected points statistic, the Jets’ offensive unit is expected to contribute -9.37 points per game. Imagine your offense, the part of the team meant to score points, actively giving up the equivalent of a touchdown and a field goal each contest.
I’m not sure what the solution is for the Jets here. It’s astonishing that head coach Adam Gase has not been fired despite having a 7-16 record since joining the Jets last season. There’s clearly a culture problem within the organization with high-profile names like Jamal Adams and Le’Veon Bell leaving the team. But can that be fixed, or will the Jets remain irrelevant for the foreseeable future?
Fortunately for the Jets, their neighbors are almost just as bad. The Giants were able to squeak out a win against the Washington Football Team, but have not looked good in any of their games thus far.
The Giants are averaging 16.8 points per game, better than the Jets, but they are actually averaging a yard less offensively than the Jets with a league-worst 275.3 yards per game. Like many offensive woes around the NFL, it starts with the quarterback for the Giants.
Daniel Jones’ performance this year has been absolutely repugnant. He’s thrown only three touchdowns to six interceptions and is a fumble machine. Jones is ranked 22nd in the league in passing yards, but is 11th in passing attempts. Quite stinky indeed.
The Giants offense, like the Jets, is also expected to contribute negative points per game, but it’s only -3.24 points. Not good by any stretch of the imagination, but it’s better than their neighbor.
It is unfortunate that the Giants and Jets played each other last year. The Jets actually came out victorious and the Associated Press headline of “Eww York” gives you an idea of what it looked like.
It’s too bad we don’t get a rematch this year because this “Dumpster Bowl” would perfectly fit with the running theme of 2020.
