Jets takeaways, report card from NFL Week 16 loss to Saints

Takeaways from the Jets’ 29-6 loss to the Saints on Sunday:

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Text with Brian Costello all season as he brings Sports+ subscribers the latest Jets intel from on the field and off.

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1. Aaron Glenn has to stop acting like he is playing Brady Cook to give the Jets the best chance to win. If this is about winning, Tyrod Taylor needs to start next week. If this is about evaluating Cook to see if he can be a backup and you’re fine losing games in the process, that’s a different story. But it is clear that Cook is not ready to play right now and the Jets have no shot with him at quarterback. Cook completed one pass that traveled more than 9 yards in the air. How do you win like that? Cook has some potential as a developmental quarterback, but the Jets should not be counting on him as a starter right now. It’s not fair to him or to the other players. He’s not ready.

2. What the heck has happened to Breece Hall? In the past four games he has run for 188 yards, including 54 on Sunday against the Saints. He has averaged 3 yards per carry in that stretch. It could be a case of teams stacking the box to stop the run, especially since Cook is now playing quarterback. But we credited Hall with making plays earlier in the year when defenses had him bottled up and now it’s not happening. The Jets have a big decision to make on Hall, who is scheduled to be a free agent, this offseason. That decision does not seem as easy as it did a month ago.

3. The Jets pass rush was nonexistent again. Will McDonald IV got a sack late in the game after it was already out of reach, but he was quiet for most of the game. Jermaine Johnson II had no sacks again. The Saints have a rookie left tackle and a second-year right tackle but the Jets barely touched Tyler Shough. There are so many issues with this defense but you can start with the lack of pressure they get on quarterbacks.