NFL Panic Meter: Is Aaron Glenn really the answer for the woebegone Jets?

https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/article/nfl-panic-meter-is-aaron-glenn-really-the-answer-for-the-woebegone-jets-131216322.html

New York Jets coach Aaron Glenn seemed offended that he was asked after Week 6 if he’d bench Justin Fields. In Week 7, he benched Fields at halftime. Then a day after that Glenn said that before making a decision on Fields going forward he was consulting other coaches who had been in the same situation.

The entire sequence was odd and confusing, but that’s nothing new for the 2025 Jets.

The Jets are the last winless team in the NFL. They’re as bad as their 0-7 record would indicate, and they seem to be getting worse every week. Fields has less than 100 passing yards in the Jets’ last two games combined, but he’s only one of the team’s problems.

The Jets don’t execute anything well. They make undisciplined mistakes. There have been game management issues. And a lot of that falls on Glenn.

Glenn came from the Detroit Lions, who started 0-10-1 in Dan Campbell’s first season as a head coach. There were plenty of questions about Campbell then, and he has turned into one of the NFL’s best coaches. Glenn, who was a highly respected defensive coordinator, is a head coach for the first time and there can be an adjustment period for any rookie. There’s still time for him to turn things around.

But after seven games, it’s hard to find any signs that Glenn was the right hire. He could turn into an excellent head coach, like Campbell. There’s just no tangible evidence yet. The quarterback weirdness is just the latest episode.

The Jets offense is 30th in DVOA, which can be blamed on picking the wrong quarterback in Fields this offseason and (with Garrett Wilson out with an injury) a lack of playmakers around him. But defense is supposed to be Glenn’s specialty, the Jets do have talent on that side and they’re only 24th in defensive DVOA. A team that’s bad on both sides of the ball can’t be bad in game management, but in Week 6 against Denver the Jets oddly let the first half run out when it was already clear that there wouldn’t be many points scored in the game. Glenn admitted later he could have managed that differently.

Seven games is rarely enough to make a judgment on a head coach (though it took fewer than seven games to know all about Urban Meyer and Nathaniel Hackett). Nobody should be thinking about Glenn being a one-and-done coach yet. It just hasn’t been good yet. And it’s fair to start wondering when the positive signs are coming.

Panic meter: There are alarms, but let’s try to be patient

Aaron Glenn’s head coaching career is off to an 0-7 start. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

(ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Steelers defense lets Joe Flacco cook

Justin Fields, who might be benched for Week 8, led the Jets to 32 points against the Steelers in Week 1. Carson Wentz had 350 yards against the Steelers in Week 4. Then the coup de grace: Joe Flacco torched the Steelers for 342 yards and three touchdowns in a Bengals win just nine days after Cincinnati acquired him in a trade.

The Steelers have faced some bad quarterbacks and made most of them look good. The Steelers loss last week was startling. Flacco has the ability to make the Bengals offense better than it was with Jake Browning, but he’s not a great quarterback at age 40. He just looked like it against the Steelers defense.

Is the Steelers defense simply terrible? They’re 20th in DVOA, 18th in points allowed and 28th in yards allowed. There’s no evidence the Steelers defense is good this season, which is unusual. Given the limitations of the offense, it’s going to be hard for Pittsburgh to make the playoffs if this is the defense’s true level all season.

Panic meter: They made Joe Flacco look like an MVP; it’s definitely time to panic

OK, that Giants collapse

When you lead 19-0 to start the fourth quarter, and 26-8 with less than six minutes to go, a loss is unfathomable. The Giants pulled it off.

The Broncos’ unbelievable comeback came at the expense of the Giants. Jaxson Dart had a good game but his fourth quarter interception was horrendous and turned the game around. The Giants defense fell apart. Special teams had a say too, with two missed extra points.

Yet, in a season that probably wasn’t resulting in a playoff berth anyway, there were still things to feel good about. Namely, Dart looks fantastic other than one bad mistake. New York has many exciting young players. And don’t forget, a week earlier they beat the Eagles. But yeah, it’ll take a while to get over that one.

Panic meter: That loss wasn’t fun, but it’ll be OK

Mike Evans to miss most of Bucs’ season

You knew Evans’ injury had to be very serious when he let go of the ball. Evans looked like he had a great catch on Monday night at Detroit but it was actually a horrendous moment for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and their star receiver. Evans came down with the catch but suffered a concussion and a broken collarbone when he came down. Evans let the ball go due to the injuries before he completed the catch, then stayed down for a few moments. Buccaneers fans had to know it was bad before the official word came down on the severity of the injury. The broken collarbone will keep him out at least most of the Buccaneers’ season, coach Todd Bowles said.

It’s a rough blow for one of the NFL’s best receivers. The Buccaneers are 6-2 and leading the NFC South, but Evans’ injury clearly lowers their ceiling this season. The offense gets thin without him, especially considering Chris Godwin has struggled to return from an ankle injury that ended his 2024 season. This is bad news for the Buccaneers. They’re not the same team until Evans returns, if he does at all.

Panic meter: Be worried Buccaneers fans, this won’t be the same team without Evans

https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/article/nfl-panic-meter-is-aaron-glenn-really-the-answer-for-the-woebegone-jets-131216322.html