GLENDALE, Ariz. — Sauce Gardner has drawn some criticism for his tackling this season. One play on Sunday won't do anything.
Gardner made a costly tackle in the second quarter of the Jets' 31-6 loss to the Cardinals. The Cardinals converted a third-and-7 with 33 points on their own and led 14-6 at this point.
Kyler Murray hit tight end Trey McBride with a mid-range shot that would have put him one play away from a first down, but Gardner was unable to bring McBride down and McBride ran 17 yards for a first down. did.
The Cardinals then made eight plays to take a 21-6 lead.
“I know I missed one today,” Gardner said. “We've got to make the tackle. It was a good coverage. Now we just have to make that tackle. I don't know as a team. I know we do that all the time — D-line, [linebackers] Secondary — we practice it all the time. It starts with me. We have to be better. I have to make a tackle. ”
Poor tackling was also contagious among the Jets. According to Next Gen Stats, they missed 20 tackles in this game. This is tied for the most for any team this season.
“This is just one of many plays we have to improve on,” interim coach Jeff Ulbrich said of Gardner's mistake. “It comes down to technique, fundamental fundamentals, getting out of blocks, fundamentals of defensive football. We just didn't do enough today.”
The Jets lost left tackle Tyron Smith to a neck injury at halftime.
Ulbrich did not discuss the severity of his injuries.
Rookie Olu Fashanu played the second half in Smith's place. Smith, 33, hasn't played a full season since 2015.
In the second quarter, there was a strange play before the two-minute warning. It looked like the Cardinals had botched a snap, had a false start or an offsides penalty. Instead, the referee did nothing, calling it 1-10 again and calling for a replay.
“They said they weren't ready to host the play, so it was a do-over,” Ulbrich said. “They didn't know if it was offside or not. They didn't know if it was a false start or not. They were a little unsure so they just replayed the play.”
Has he ever seen it?
“No, it's not.”
Jets LB Quincy Williams made the highlight sack of Murray in the second quarter. Williams came screaming from the edge unblocked, drilled Murray, and knocked the quarterback's helmet off.
Murray managed to stay in the game and threw a touchdown pass three plays later.
“I was surprised, but I was hoping he would stand up,” Williams said. “I'm not trying to hurt anyone, but it's more like a competition, do you feel me? But when I turned around, he immediately stood up.”
CB Brandin Echols suffered a concussion in the second quarter. …QB Aaron Rodgers temporarily went to the blue medical tent. He said a neurologist asked to be tested for concussion. He returned to the game.
