In what has been one of the worst seasons in the Jets’ long history of bad seasons, New York has been poor on both sides of the ball. The defense, at least on paper, has looked better than the offense. Regardless, when linebacker Quincy Williams was asked what it would take to finally close games, he pointed to the defensive issues first.

“I’m always going to put it on the defense just because I’m a defensive captain. It’s going to be us getting the ball back to the offense, then closing out those games. So, I’m going to go turnovers because I’m a defensive player,” he said.

Accountability is admirable. But the truth is, the Jets are historically bad at taking the football away. ESPN’s Rich Cimini pointed it out before the Baltimore game: if the Jets went another week without an interception, they’d become the first team in NFL history to go 11 straight games without one. And sure enough, that’s exactly what happened.

This isn’t a defense that’s been shredded through the air every week, either. Far from it. They’re actually pretty solid against the pass. They’re 10th in the league with 193.7 yards allowed. But turnovers are the lifeblood of great defenses, and the Jets can’t generate any. Not a tipped ball. Not an errant throw. Nothing.

Against the run, it’s a different story. They’re 23rd, giving up 127.9 yards per game, and that’s where teams have leaned in. Even with the pass defense stabilizing under constant strain, the lack of takeaways wipes out whatever momentum they build.

Yes, the defense has played better lately, but let’s not kid ourselves, they struggled against a banged-up Lamar Jackson.

Jets’ defense struggled against the injured Lamar Jackson

It never really feels like a Lamar Jackson game unless he’s lighting up the box score with three touchdowns and a chunk of rushing yards. Against the Jets, he didn’t do any of that. No touchdowns, no real highlight runs. But considering all the hits that he’s taken lately, conceding 23 points to a banged-up-Jackson offense isn’t a good look.

Jackson is once again hobbling into another week. Baltimore listed him as a non-participant on Monday with a toe injury. That’s three straight weeks with something new nagging him. Two weeks ago, it was knee soreness; last week, it was his ankle. Now, it’s the toe. He’s hurting everywhere, and the workload isn’t getting any lighter.

And with all of that working in their favor, the Jets still sacked him just once. That’s the part that stings. This is a Baltimore offensive line that’s been leaking pressure all season. Jackson’s already been sacked 24 times. If there were ever a week to get home and make his life miserable, this was it. Jermaine Johnson’s “no sugary drinks” plan didn’t really work.

There just isn’t much optimism left for this team, not for this year. The season has turned into a long evaluation period with one real purpose: figure out what to fix first when the offseason arrives. With all the first-round picks they’ve stockpiled over the next two years, the foundation for the rebuild is technically sitting there.

Quarterback is obviously the headline item, but the pass rush can’t be far behind. For all the talk about this defense being the “better unit,” and for as much improvement as they’ve shown lately, they’re still nowhere near disruptive enough.