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FOXBOROUGH — The Jets keep finding ways to stay in games.
Then they find ways to lose them.
A touchdown erased by a penalty. Three red-zone trips without reaching the end zone. Two takeaways that produced just six points.
The opportunities were there Sunday. The Jets squandered enough of them to leave Gillette Stadium with a 26-19 loss to the Patriots and another week of explaining what went wrong.
“I felt like we had the quarterback [Drake Maye] in our grasp a couple of times and we didn’t bring him down,” Jets head coach Aaron Glenn said. “And then on offense, we didn’t finish when we were actually moving the ball.
“You put all that together, that’s exactly what it is. Just missed opportunities and you have to be able to fix that. You have to go through practice, you have to dial in all those things and make sure to continue doing it over and over and over again.”
Through six games, the Jets (2-4) have repeatedly undermined themselves with costly penalties, turnovers, stalled possessions and an inability to capitalize on opponents’ mistakes.
The details change. The damage does not.
Against Green Bay in Week 2, the Jets squandered a 10-point fourth-quarter lead before failing to mount a meaningful drive in overtime. A week later, Geno Smith’s late fumble ended their comeback bid against Detroit.
Against Chicago, the Jets ran fewer offensive plays (32) than the Bears had first downs (34).
Sunday brought another installment at a stadium where the Jets have won just once since 2011.
Gang Green won the turnover battle 2-0 against the Patriots (4-2), recovering two fumbles. But those takeaways produced only two field goals, and the Jets failed to score a touchdown on any of their three red-zone possessions.
An offensive pass interference penalty against Tim Patrick wiped out Smith’s 14-yard touchdown pass to Omar Cooper Jr., costing the Jets a chance at an early 7-0 lead. Instead, they settled for Jason Sanders’ 42-yard field goal.
The defense, which has improved with Glenn calling plays this season, had breakdowns of its own.
Maye threw three touchdown passes, including two on plays that exposed problems with the Jets’ pressure or coverage.
On his 42-yard touchdown pass to Romeo Doubs, Maye had ample time in the pocket to find his receiver. In the fourth quarter, Hunter Henry broke free for a seven-yard touchdown catch that extended New England’s lead.
Demario Davis tried to catch up to Henry and appeared frustrated after the play, though the linebacker said he needed to review the film before determining what happened.
“I believe there was miscommunication that happened,” Davis said. “I’m not sure. I got to go and look at the tape, but I don’t know yet.
“I don’t want to have bad body language, so if I had bad body language, that’s my bad on my part.”
The Jets also failed to sack Maye despite facing a makeshift offensive line that lost center Ben Brown, left guard Alijah Vera-Tucker and right tackle Morgan Moses to injuries.
That came one week after Gang Green sacked Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson eight times in a 17-12 victory.
“It’s tough to explain to be honest with you,” Glenn said. “I have all the confidence in the world in our front and being able to cause havoc.
“I give them credit, they did a good job of chipping and thumping and doing all that they can to our edge guys. We just got to do a better job of now getting some interior pressure.”
At 2-4, the Jets face two home games that could determine whether they climb back into contention or spend November answering familiar questions about their future.
First comes Miami (0-5), which is coming off an early bye. Then comes a Raiders team that has stumbled after a 3-0 start.
The Jets have shown improvement in Glenn’s second season. They have also shown how quickly recurring mistakes can erase it.
They pushed Green Bay into overtime and remained within reach against New England. But competing with playoff teams from last season means little if the Jets keep wasting chances to beat them.
Victories over Miami and Las Vegas would put Gang Green at 4-4 before a trip to Kansas City and a home game against Buffalo. Anything less would leave the Jets below .500 entering that stretch, with questions about Glenn’s future and the 2027 NFL Draft threatening to overtake another season.
The Jets have spent six weeks showing what they can build on. The next two will test whether they can stop tearing it down.
“I don’t think anybody feels good about being 2-4,” Glenn said. “But I do feel good about the effort that we played with. I do feel good about a number of things that we’re doing.
“There are just some things that we have to get ready to fix. Listen, there’s no doubt about it, being 2-4, it does not feel good, but there are some things I know that we can build on.”
