New York Jets veteran kicker Greg Zuerlein proved yet again why he deserves every bit of his nickname “Greg the Leg.”
The Jets defeated the New York Giants on a rainy day at MetLife Stadium on Sunday to earn bragging rights in the battle of New York when Zuerlein made a 33-yard field goal attempt in overtime to solidify the 13-10 victory.
“Over the last 10 years or so, it hasn’t been all peaches and cream around here, but to say that you’re king of New York for at least one more is pretty cool,” head coach Robert Saleh told reporters after the game.
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The win helped the Jets to improve to 4-3 through Week 8 and gave New York their first victory after a bye for the first time since 2015, when they did so against the Washington Commanders.
While a win is a win in the NFL, it certainly wasn’t a pretty one for Nathaniel Hackett’s offense.
The Jets struggled to convert on third down. Zach Wilson had the first third down conversion late in the fourth quarter when he scrambled to the Jets 41-yard line just before the two-minute warning.
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The Jets were 2-15 on third downs, while the Giants were not much better at 2-19.
“As a team, there’s things that we’ve gotta clean up,” Saleh added. “We’ve gotta clean up third downs somehow, some way. We’ve gotta figure out third down. Part of it is being great and first on second down to create manageable situations.”
The Giants defense managed to shut down the Jets for the majority of the contest, but a late-game surge allowed Zuerlein to knock in a 35-yard field goal to tie it up.
Wilson finished 17 for 36 for 240 yards, and star wideout Garrett Wilson had seven catches for 100 yards. Breece Hall had the only touchdown for the Jets with a 50-yard catch and run in the first half.
The Giants dropped to 2-6 this season and suffered another blow to the quarterback position when Tyrod Taylor left the game late in the first half with an apparent rib injury. Undrafted rookie Tommy DeVito stepped in and scored the Giants only touchdown in the opening drive of the second half.
“Every decision that you make, you try to make for the best interest of the team,” head coach Brian Daboll said after the game.
“Sometimes it doesn’t work out. I accept responsibility for that. . . . We still had a few seconds there at the end to try and stop them and give them credit. Disappointing loss.”
