Jets Week 15 Anti-Game Ball: Run Defense

The Jets lost to the Ravens last night. That means it is our sad duty to hand out an anti-game ball.

I struggled to come up with a single player whose culpability in this defeat deserved to be singled out. A lot of Jets who were responsible for key failures in the game also had positive moments. Marcus Maye had some struggles, but his worst moments came after the game was already out of reach.

With this in mind I am handing out a collective anti-game ball, which has become sort of a tradition this year. It goes to the run defense.

The Ravens rushed for 218 yards on this game and averaged 6.4 yards per attempt on the ground. This dominant rushing attack was the primary reason they scored three early touchdowns that gave them a lead they would never relinquish.

The Jets’ poor run defense also sticks out because this was the one area of the game on paper that did not look like a mismatch going in. The Ravens matched up favorably across the board against the Jets with one exception. It seemed like an elite Jets run defense had a shot to at least hold its own against Baltimore. The Jets had neutralized some really good runners in recent weeks.

It was not to be, though. Baltimore dominated on the ground.

With that in mind, the Jets run defense gets my anti-game ball.

Who gets yours?