As one of the veteran leaders on a very young defense, C.J. Mosley could be looked at as one of the men who has to step up and take the brunt of lumps from that group’s growing pains.
To his credit, he did just that after Sunday’s 33-18 loss to the Eagles, one he took the blame for not being 23-18 in a way.
“I’ll take 10 points, including the extra point; I gave up a touchdown in the first quarter, and had a very ill-advised encroachment that luckily was only three, but could’ve knocked them out of range,” Mosley said. “Execution, that’s it. It’s frustrating, but they executed better than we did.”
The former play Mosley referred to is one of those that happens; he simply lost tight end Dallas Goedert on a route and was the “coverage” on the first of Goedert’s two scores. It happens, but what Mosley was perhaps more upset about is that the Jets had just scored on a quick drive to take an early lead, and the Jets defense as a whole coughed it right up.
“Our offense came out hot and did a great job moving the ball, so as a defense, we have to step up when the time is needed,” Mosley said. “When the team is rolling like that, the defense has to step up and make plays.”
Probably doesn’t make Mosley feel any better that his zone was empty on Goedert’s second touchdown, as traffic in the middle while Goedert lined up outside left the tight end wide open – but it wasn’t for a lack of effort.
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“At the end of the day I don’t care about the scoreboard – win or lose, up or down by 40, I give 100 percent and I want to try to knock your head off,” he said.
The encroachment, however, was a bit of a killer, as Mosley jumped offsides on a fourth-and-4 at the Jets’ 48, a situation where it was almost certain the Eagles were not going to snap the ball. However, even if Eagles center Jason Kelce gave enough movement that went unseen (even if Robert Saleh went ape on the refs about it), Mosley knows that’s a situation where anticipation must take a back seat to reaction.
“Just a bad play by me. Fourth down, that was a position where we knew that could be a hard count. I have to do better,” Mosley said.
“Doing better” seems to be the Jets’ mantra as a whole, at least trying to get incrementally better every play, every series, every game as a young team learns how to win. On that series of Mosley’s penalty, the Eagles converted another fourth down later, and while it only led to three points (which put the Eagles up 12 instead of 9), it could’ve been a big series.
Great, but for a veteran like Mosley who is not used to losing, it can be frustrating. Only once in seven seasons in Baltimore did he see a losing season – the Ravens were 5-11 his second year, but as he noted, “we did beat the Steelers twice so there was that” – but his three years as a Jet have a collective record of 12-32 with five games left this season.
That is what it is, but as Mosley noted elsewhere, it’s less about the result right now, and more about the lack of respect teams are showing the Jets because of it.
“Wins and losses happen, but it’s all about respect. Right now, teams are not respecting us, and that’s well-deserved,” Mosley said. “Whether it’s self-inflicted wounds or not, none of that matters. When you handle your business, teams don’t have time to laugh because you’re punching them in the mouth. Nothing will come easy for us, we just have to go take it.”
Going and taking it, he says, is part of building for the future, which is where eyes always have to be looking even in the aftermath of the present.
“Today we didn’t do our job and the results are the results, but the guys that are here can affect right now and the future, and we have the chance to make a difference tomorrow. That’s my mindset,” Mosley said. “Some narratives are different based on the game, but it’s going to take all of us to turn this thing around. We can’t focus on the past, all we can worry about is what we’re doing today to get better for tomorrow.”
And as for blaming it on being young, or perhaps an overall lack of talent on the defensive end? Rome wasn’t built in a day, but then again, that’s partially because no building block is every fully conditioned the minute it’s laid.
“Everybody, Hall of Famer or not, starts at the same level. At one point, I didn’t have any experience, and I had to learn on the fly through my mistakes, through the leadership and coaches I had,” Mosley said. “Some get it quicker than others, some shine more than others, but we all hold ourselves accountable and to the same standard. We’ve been on the same page and seen what that looks like, and we’ve seen what it looks like when we don’t. We have to make sure we communicate and stay on the same page, and that’ll take care of itself.”
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