Jets' Late-Game Struggles Under Glenn Highlight Vulnerability

The New York Jets are facing a concerning trend of struggling in the final two minutes of both halves, a pattern that has become a hallmark of Head Coach Aaron Glenn's tenure. This recurring issue leaves the team vulnerable to upsets, including a potential divisional meeting with the Miami Dolphins.

Since Glenn took over as head coach last season, the Jets have recorded the NFL's worst point differential in the closing two minutes of halves, being outscored by 119-49. This statistic underscores a broader struggle to close out games and halves effectively.

In the recent 26-19 loss to the New England Patriots, the Jets saw a 7-3 deficit expand to 17-3 within the final 1:46 of the second quarter. After the Patriots kicked a field goal and forced a Jets three-and-out, quarterback Drake Maye connected with DeMario Douglas for a touchdown with just 14 seconds remaining in the half.

"There are some things that we pinpointed that we have to improve on … [including] how we operate in two minutes," Glenn stated. "That’s on both sides of the ball. … We just didn’t end up finishing. That’s something we have to continue to work on is being able to finish. Obviously, we did it [in the Week 5 win] against Cleveland, but we failed this game."

First-Half Collapse

The end of first halves has been particularly detrimental for the Jets under Glenn. This season alone, the team has been outscored 20-0 in the final two minutes of the first half. Over Glenn's 23 games as head coach, the Jets have been outscored 100-6 in these critical periods.

The team has not scored a touchdown in the final two minutes of a first half since the 2024 season finale against the Dolphins. Conversely, opponents have scored 11 touchdowns and eight field goals in such situations since the start of last season.

"I totally understand that [20-0] stat, and I know that on both sides of the ball, we have to get better at that and that’s something we work on quite a bit," Glenn commented. "The thing is we just have to continue to work. Usually when you do that, the work is gonna take care of itself and it’s gonna end up showing up on Sunday. Even though I’m not happy with where it’s at, if we continue to work, those things are gonna get better."

While Braelon Allen's game-winning touchdown against the Browns occurred with 3:01 left in the fourth quarter, and thus isn't included in the final two-minute statistics, the broader picture of late-game performance is also troubling.

In their loss to Chicago, the Jets allowed back-to-back field goals in the final 2:29 of the first half. Against Detroit, the Jets surrendered the lead before halftime on a touchdown and then gave up the game-winning score with 2:25 left in the fourth quarter. Perhaps most notably, in a game that prevented the Jets from starting the season 2-0 for the first time since 2015, the Packers erased a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit, kicking a game-tying field goal with 2:59 remaining. Following a missed short-yardage conversion by the Jets, Green Bay appeared poised to punt, but Glenn's decision not to call a timeout allowed the Packers to retain possession and ultimately attempt a Hail Mary.

"I always talk about the last four minutes of either half belong to the head coach,” Glenn said last year, “and sometimes, it takes time to get those things down.”