The Jets defense was hopeless in Seattle last week.
But the unit returned with a big statement on Sunday against the Rams.
Safety Marcus Maye put the finishing touches on the strong defensive effort, breaking a pass on the fourth at the end of the fourth quarter to return the ball back to the offense and end in a 23-20 victory over the Rams at SoFi Stadium.
“I can’t say enough about Marcus Maye, what he did in this game,” said coach Adam Gase. “He almost tried to end himself with an interception, but then he played a nice game at the end of the game. I’m glad he was there. “
Maye had caught a pass from Jared Goff earlier in the fourth quarter and nearly made the acrobatic interception – which would have been his second in as many weeks after winning one in a 40-3 loss in the Seahawks face last Sunday. Instead, the ball overturned his hand and ended up in the hands of Gerald Everett for a gain of 13 meters.
At the next drive, after the Rams closed out in the 23-20 range, they faced a fourth and 4th from the Jets’ 37-yard line. Goff went deep to Everett, but Maye was there to get his hands on it and turn the ball down with 3:54.
“We stuck like a defense when they started to come back, to come back, and we just blocked it,” Maye said. “We brought together as a team, as a group, all three stages. I just did a play in fourth place, but it was definitely a group effort, a team effort. “
The Jets’ first game under interim defensive coordinator Frank Bush, after Gregg Williams was fired the day after a heartbreaking loss to the Raiders, had not gone as swim. They gave up 410 yards, including 174 yards on the ground, and 40 points to the Seahawks last Sunday in Seattle.
But Bush’s unit returned on Sunday to drop 303 meters, the second-lowest total of the season. The defense flew from the start, forcing a pair of three and exits to start the game and almost kept the Rams without a score in the first half.
The Jets kept the Rams 2-for-11 at thirty downs and kept their relatively dangerous wide receivers under control, limiting Robert Woods and Cooper Kupp to a total of 11 catches for 95 yards.
“We keep it simple, put our feet on the ground and walk and play,” Maye said. “This is what I have done. I communicated. They played well in front. It was a group effort. The boys go out every week and show up during the week and come on Sunday to try to win. The fact that I got it this week, I’m definitely happy for the boys. “