Chiefs hang on to beat Jets on Sunday Night Football with Taylor Swift at MetLife Stadium: Reaction

Posted by Christie Applegate on Saturday, May 25, 2024

New York Jets coach Robert Saleh walked to the lectern on Sunday night and gripped it so hard it should’ve snapped in half. There were moments when Saleh wasn’t speaking much, but his hands were. His right fist was clenched, and he’d knock on the lectern, as if all the things he wanted to say, to scream, were just beneath the surface. He tried to remain calm.

At the end of Sunday’s game to the Kansas City Chiefs, a 23-20 loss, Saleh was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct for ripping into a referee after the Jets were called for a penalty that might’ve altered the outcome of a game that was far closer than anyone could’ve expected. The Jets had picked off Patrick Mahomes for the third time, only it was called back on a questionable defensive holding penalty, against cornerback Sauce Gardner.

“I’m not going to comment on that,” Saleh said.

A few plays earlier, defensive end Jermaine Johnson was held by a Chiefs offensive lineman as Mahomes scrambled for 25 yards on third-and-23, but there was no flag. When reporters approached Johnson in the locker room, he looked ready to burst, staring at the ground, rageful. He was told to shower before answering any questions, to cool off.

Rage.

The Jets are mad. This was a game they could’ve won, should’ve won, against the defending Super Bowl champions. Zach Wilson outplayed Mahomes — yes, he really did. The way Wilson played, especially at the end of the first half, was good enough to inspire some hope for the rest of the season. That, maybe, Wilson could be good enough to keep the Jets afloat while they await Aaron Rodgers’ return, whether that’s this year (a pipe dream) or next. But a season is full of moments that can change its trajectory.

The Jets are 1-3 after four weeks. Any goodwill derived from Wilson’s performance against the Chiefs — and he deserves praise for it — will quickly evaporate if he can’t do it against the Broncos in Denver next week.

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