The New York Jets suffered a 30-10 defeat to the Dallas Cowboys Sunday evening as they struggled without quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
Zach Wilson stepped in for the veteran Monday night after he exited with an Achilles rupture after just four snaps of his Jets debut and managed to lead New York to an overtime win over the Buffalo Bills.
But any hope Jets fans may have had of Wilson transforming into their savior of the season came to a screeching halt Sunday as the 23-year-old threw three interceptions en route to a defeat in Dallas.
Wilson hit on 12 of 27 passes for 170 yards with a touchdown and three interceptions for New York (1-1).
His sole highlight was a 68-yard pass-and-run connection with Garrett Wilson at the 7:12 mark of the second quarter, the first touchdown scored against Dallas in six quarters.
The New York Jets suffered a 30-10 defeat to the Dallas Cowboys Sunday evening
Zach Wilson threw three interceptions and just one touchdown as the Jets struggled
New York was without veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers after his Achilles injury
The Jets’ momentum didn’t last long. New York had just 147 yards outside the long TD, and four second-half turnovers left little doubt for Dallas.
Wilson, who was sacked three times a week after Dallas dropped the Giants’ Daniel Jones seven times, was picked off by Jayron Kearse, Malik Hooker and Trevon Diggs.
Dak Prescott threw two touchdown passes and Brandon Aubrey kicked five field goals as the Dallas Cowboys blew out a New York team for the second straight week.
Prescott hit Luke Schoonmaker on a 1-yard scoring strike to cap a drive of more than five minutes, and Tony Pollard’s 2-point conversion run gave the Cowboys an 18-7 lead.
Austin Seibert’s 34-yard field goal for the Jets with four seconds remaining made it 18-10 at the half.
Dallas pulled away in the second half behind Aubrey, who nailed field goals of 21, 55, 26 and 30 yards to go along with the 35-yarder he made in the second quarter. He became the first Cowboy to make five field goals in a game since Dan Bailey did it in 2013.
Prescott got Dallas off to a fast start by finding Jake Ferguson for a 4-yard touchdown pass at the 9:19 mark of the first quarter, polishing off a 12-play, 75-yard drive. Prescott went 5-for-5 for 41 yards on the march, including a 25-yard connection with CeeDee Lamb. That was the start of a huge day for Lamb, who caught 11 passes on 13 targets for 143 yards.
The Cowboys became the third team since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970 to open a season by scoring at least 70 points in their first two games while holding opponents to 10 or fewer.
Wilson (far left) was sacked three times a week after Dallas dropped ‘ Daniel Jones seven times
Dak Prescott threw two touchdown passes as the Dallas Cowboys blew out New York
It initially appeared that Rodgers would miss the entire year after hurting himself four snaps into his Jets debut on September 11. The injury even cast doubt on his future in the NFL.
But, according to ESPN, it is ‘not out of the question’ that Rodgers comes back before the Super Bowl in February, with the quarterback refusing to put a timeframe on his return.
However, even if Rodgers can make it back in time for the postseason, the Jets must first ensure they make it to the playoffs with Wilson under center.
Sunday’s defeat was a stumbling block against a Dallas team that is already shaping up to be a Super Bowl contender but the Jets will look to bounce back.
Rodgers is believed to have adopted a mentor role with Wilson during the offseason and Robert Saleh will be hoping the veteran can still guide the backup through the season.
The Jets next return to MetLife Stadium – the scene of Rodgers’ injury – to face the Patriots before taking on reigning champions, the Kansas City Chiefs, the following week.
