FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- The Jets are imperfect. They’re trending upward, absolutely.
They have a young nucleus. David Bailey and Kenyon Sadiq look like budding stars. Omar Cooper Jr. broke out versus the Patriots.
But, still, they’re flawed.
It’s why they’ll beat the lowly teams they’re more talented than. It’s why they can’t yet take games from those who are superior.
Because to do that -- negate the player gap -- they need help. They must be put at a tactical advantage.
Right now, they are not. Evident again in Sunday’s 26-19 loss to New England.
“What it came down to is our ability to finish, and our detail when it comes to defensive football,” said Aaron Glenn.
The Jets want to believe they have the infrastructure in place and all that’s holding them back are the players not yet here.
The 2026 season is about treading water. Develop the youth, continue to build a culture, then, after infusing the roster with players drafted (three first-rounders in 2027) and bought ($86.83 million in cap space), they’ll make a jump.
It’s why, after losses, Glenn doesn’t walk into his office fearing a pink slip waits on his desk.
When Woody Johnson fired Robert Saleh during the 2024 season, he had to convince the team’s chairman he deserved to keep his job. He couldn’t.
With Glenn and his staff, it’s the reverse: Provide indisputable evidence you shouldn’t sit in the chair Johnson truly wants him in.
The Patriots are not the team they were a year ago when they found their way to the Super Bowl -- but they’re heating up.
After a 1-2 start, they squeaked past a very good Bills team and then pummeled the Raiders before hosting the Jets at Gillette.
They were favored by seven -- justifiably so.
There’s a compelling argument the Jets win with better coaching.
“I feel like we had the right plays called and we had the right mentality, the right approach,” said Braelon Allen. “Just have to execute.”
The offense is quickly becoming a problem.
Cooper was spectacular (six catches, 103 yards, touchdown). Allen showed signs that Breece Hall’s starting job might not be waiting in the same capacity when he’s healthy, tallying 104 total yards himself.
They accomplished that in spite of offensive coordinator Frank Reich, who, aside from a game against the lowly Lions defense, looks like the team should have left him in Stanford.
Reich’s shotgun run of Allen on fourth-and-2 against a loaded box in the first half gave the ball back to the Patriots.
He failed the next series, too, with a quarterback sneak on fourth and a yard and a half.
All-world wideout Garrett Wilson entered the fourth quarter with just two targets.
Allen, the top weapon in the first half, had five carries the entire second.
Reich’s scheme is archaic, essentially boiling down to a reliance on his players beating those in front of them. There’s no creativity. No scheming up guys. No trying to create mismatches.
It’s as if the Jets are stuck in the 1980s.
“It’s just frustrating because we lost and I want to help the team,” said Wilson, who finished with four catches for 44 yards. “I know that the game can change at any moment. I just try and keep playing my role, waiting for that moment that they want to call on me.”
Injuries decimated the New England offensive line. Will Campbell entered hobbled. The Patriots then lost Morgan Moses, Alijah Vera-Tucker and Ben Brown.
The New York pass rush had zero sacks. Despite rookie David Bailey’s heroics this season (five sacks), the Jets’ rush is a known issue.
Former first-round pick Will McDonald has been a disappointment, Joseph Ossai was inactive and Kingsley Enagbare has been irrelevant.
Still, Glenn described his play-calling ability as his “super power.” If you can’t get home rushing four … unleash unorthodox blitz concepts to torment a quarterback in Drake Maye who entered with a league-leading seven interceptions.
The Jets did nothing of the sort.
The Jets rushed just three, dropping Bailey, on Maye’s 42-yard touchdown to Romeo Doubs in the first quarter. Bailey called it a “miscommunication” after the game.
There was another blunder on Maye’s touchdown to Hunter Henry in the fourth quarter when linebacker Demario Davis and safety Dane Belton weren’t on the same page.
The defense also left Henry wide open on third-and-13 underneath, allowing him to catch a short crosser, turn up the field, and pick up a first down -- thwarting the last real chance to stage a comeback in the fourth.
“I’ve got to a better job defensively getting our guys ready to play,” Glenn said.
Mistakes happen. It’s the same mistakes that are maddening.
The Jets, since Glenn took over, have been outscored 97-6 the final two minutes of regulation.
They added to that on Sunday. The Patriots kicked a field goal with 1:49 to go in the first half. The Jets then got the ball, went three-and-out, burned 17 seconds, and punted back to New England.
The Patriots marched 71 yards in seven plays to score a touchdown -- a 10-point swing.
The Jets were ready to strike back to begin the second half with Glenn telling the CBS broadcast the Jets would get the ball first. One problem: The Jets did not get the ball first … the Patriots did.
“We’ve got to get better at that,” said Glenn of the continued two-minute ineptitude. “I must say as an offense and defense, that we have to get better at that. We have to be able to possess the ball more to go ahead and put stress on their defense to try to score points.
“On defense, you’ve got to make sure we stop them when we get the opportunity.”
The Patriots led 7-3 after the first quarter. The Jets cut the lead to seven, then four, in the third quarter. They were down seven at two different points in the fourth.
There were opportunities there, moments where better decisions, situational awareness and mental toughness could have flipped this game.
The Patriots, in those moments, made the right moves when the Jets did not.
Talent will continue to improve. But for the Jets to truly get where they want to go, the players and Johnson himself need to believe they’re being put in the best possible position to have success.
Reich is far more to blame right now than Glenn, but questions and concerns are warranted.