Thoughts and takeaways after Jets defeat Bills 20-17

These certainly aren’t the same old Jets anymore. The 2022 Jets are for real and just scored their biggest win of the season, defeating the Buffalo Bills, 20-17, to move to 6-3 heading into their bye week. Let’s run through some quick thoughts and hand out some game balls from this win.

Quick Hits

• While he wasn’t great, Zach Wilson certainly played better than he did against the Patriots. He only threw for 154 yards, but did complete 18 of his 25 passes with a 101.1 rating and, for the most part, took care of the football, though he did lose a fumble. You can argue this was his best game since the Steelers game. The Jets didn’t win because of Wilson, but they didn’t completely win in spite of him, either.
• The Jets did, however, absolutely win thanks to their defense. The Jets caused Josh Allen to have one of his worst games in quite some time. It was the first game for Allen in which he did not throw a touchdown pass since Week 17 of last season (though he did rush for two touchdowns). The Jets sacked Allen five times and picked him off twice (and could have had a few more). Allen finished with a QB rating of 46.8, as he went just 18/34 for 205 yards and two interceptions through the air. What’s even wilder is, per ESPN Stats and Info, the Jets only blitz twice. Twice. And they still sacked Allen five times and hit him eight times.
• Not only that, but the Jets held the Bills to just three points in the second half, a huge reason the Jets were able to stay with the run game and overcome what was at one point an 11-point deficit.
• The Jets gashed the Bills in the run game, especially at the end of the game, as the entire final drive that wound up winning the game for the Jets was pretty much all on the ground between James Robinson and Michael Carter, who combined for 124 yards on 25 carries Sunday.
• Also on that drive, Denzel Mims caught his only pass of the game, but it was a big one. A 12-yard catch to get the Jets to the 6-yard line and set them up for the game-winning field goal by Greg Zuerlein.
• This was a huge win for the Jets. They now sit at 6-3 heading into their bye week, remain in the first wild card position and are just a half-game behind the Bills for first place in the AFC East with a 2-1 division record and wins over the Bills and Dolphins, who are also 6-3.
• The AFC East is also the only division with every team boasting a winning record through nine weeks. Besides the Bills, Jets and Dolphins all with six wins, the Patriots…