It is no secret that the once vaunted Jets defense has been vastly underwhelming this season. The two aspects that they have struggled the most with are two aspects normally considered staples of a Rex Ryan Defense, their run defense and their pass rush.
Throughout Rex Ryan's tenure as the Jets head coach the Jets have become the gold standard for run defense in the NFL. However in two of the three games they have lost this year, the run defense has been the main culprit that led to the loss. Against the Raiders, Darren McFadden gashed the Jets for an astounding 171 yards and two touchdowns. As a whole the Raiders ran for 234 yards and 4 touchdowns against a Jets run defense that was supposed to be one of the best in the league. This was such an number of rushing yards against a Rex Ryan Defense that the last time a defense coached by Rex gave up that many yards on the ground, Rex was teamed up with his twin Rob on their fathers Arizona Cardinals team. The Jets run defense woes also cost them the game against the Patriots. The Jets allowed BenJarvus Green-Ellis to run for 136 yards and 2 touchdowns. More importantly they allowed him to run the Jets out of the game on the Pats last drive. Nothing against Green-Ellis, but he would be found towards the bottom of the list of running backs you would expect to put up these kind of numbers against the Jets.
As for the Jets pass rush, the fear that a Rex Ryan defense used to strike in an opposing quarterback seems to be gone. With the exception of the Jets four sack effort against the Patriots, the Jets have had major struggles putting pressure on the quarterback. One game in particular where this hurt the Jets was against the Raiders. With the exception of one sack, Jason Campbell seemed to have all day in the pocket.
Now enter the potential saviors of the Jets defense, rookie Nose Guard Kenrick Ellis and the so far "bust" Aaron Maybin. Ellis played in his first professional game Monday night against the Dolphins, and he definitely made his presence known. Getting limited playing time, he managed to record three tackles with two of them being solo tackles and one of them going for a loss. In past weeks Rex has talked about potentially using more 4-man fronts to help stop the run and to also offset the loss of Bryan Thomas for the season. Using Ellis as that additional defender on the defensive line may end up being the solution to the Jets horrid run defense so far this year.
As for Maybin, the Jets signed him during training camp after he was but by the Bills and then released him at the end of preseason because of his inability to impress the coaches. The Jets then picked him back up following Bryan Thomas's season ending injury and he has not failed to impress during his second chance with the Jets. So far this season Maybin has recorded two sacks and forced three fumbles despite the fact that he has only seen limited playing time. Two of those forced fumbles came Monday night and they both came on plays where Maybin showed his incredible speed to chase down Reggie Bush and Matt Moore respectively to the sideline.
I am well aware that I am completely ignoring the fact that the Jets defense has been absolutely horrible for the majority of the season. However, the running game is starting two pick up and the offensive line is starting to give Sanchez some time to throw the ball. On top of those improvement's, we also need to be realistic with our expectations of the Jets offense. It is without a doubt the defense and not the offense that has the potential to lead the Jets to the promise land that is Indianapolis. In order for that to happen the run defense and the pass rush are two serious problems that need to be addressed. All the Jet fans must hope that the solution to those problems lie in Ellis and Maybin respectively. Now I am not saying that we can expect them to become pro-bowlers anytime soon, but we can at least hope that they can become consistent enough contributors that they are able to solve these major holes in the Jets defense.
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