GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Aaron Rodgers rolled out to his right before flinging a pass to Malachi Corley a few yards downfield.
The veteran quarterback expected Corley to go one way, the rookie receiver went another, and the ball fell harmlessly to the turf.
It was the final play of a brutal day for the New York Jets’ offense. A heated Rodgers stormed off the field.
Any momentum the Jets had from an impressive win over the Houston Texans 10 days earlier was officially gone.
Rodgers threw for 151 yards and the Jets managed just two field goals in a lopsided 31-6 loss to the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday. The defense wasn’t much better, surrendering four touchdowns on the Cardinals’ first five drives. New York (3-7) has lost six of its past seven, sinking further down the standings in the AFC East.
“I thought after a big win on Thursday night, nice long week, we were going to come out with a lot of energy and win the game,” Rodgers said. “But we didn’t come out with great energy on either side of the ball. Offensively, you’re not going to beat anyone scoring six points.”
Rodgers completed 22 of 35 passes, but only one of those completions was for more than 10 yards. The Jets moved the ball fairly well at times, but bogged down in the red zone. Trailing 24-6 in the third quarter, New York had one more good chance to score a touchdown, but Rodgers fumbled after a sack on fourth-and-3 at the Cardinals 11. That ended any realistic hope for a win.
Rodgers was subdued during the postgame press conference.
“I missed a couple of throws, for sure,” Rodgers said. “And situationally we were just really bad.”
Rodgers didn’t have a great day, but he wasn’t the only one. New York’s defense came in ranked No. 2 against the pass this season, but was picked apart by Kyler Murray and the Cardinals.
Murray completed 22 of 24 passes for 266 yards and a touchdown, connecting on a franchise-record 17 passes in a row during one stretch. Murray also ran for 21 yards and two touchdowns, including a 12-yard touchdown in the third quarter where he tip-toed through three defenders and into the end zone.
Jets interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich said the team’s tackling simply wasn’t good enough. Arizona took a 24-6 lead by halftime and averaged more than 7 yards per play.
“We’ve got to get better at it,” Ulbrich said. “I thought we made a huge emphasis of it this week, but obviously, not enough. We’ve got to take the extra step, we’ve got to wrap, we’ve got to get population to the ball.”
A microcosm of the Jets’ defensive day happened in the second quarter when the Cardinals faced third-and-7 at their own 33. Murray hit Trey McBride on a short pass but cornerback Sauce Gardner was there to stop him well short of the first down.
But McBride broke free, shaking loose of Gardner before hurdling another Jets defense for a 17-yard gain that galvanized the Cardinals sideline and deflated the Jets. Six plays later, Murray found Marvin Harrison Jr. for a 9-yard touchdown on a fade route in the back of the end zone and Arizona had a 21-6 lead.
The day wouldn’t get any better for the Jets. Time is running out to make a postseason push.
“We’ve got to better, I’ve got to be better,” Gardner said. “I’ve got to make that tackle.”
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