Rex Ryan had several options with which to open Monday’s press conference. The Jets coach could have praised the impressive work in the face of pressure by rookie quarterback Geno Smith in his NFL debut. He could have gloated about proving his team’s many detractors wrong for a week. Or begin hyping or playing down Thursday’s clash with the rival Patriots.
Instead, Ryan showed the media video of the play that set up the Buccaneers go-ahead field goal in the final minute, but also in a roundabout way prevented defeat, and led to the Jets’ 18-17, come-from-behind victory at MetLife Stadium on Sunday.
On third-and-10 from the Tampa Bay 37, Bucs quarterback Josh Freeman connected with Vincent Jackson on a 37-yard pitch and catch with 1:51 remaining, a play Ryan faulted himself for because of poor communication with his defense. Jackson was left wide open and spun out of safety Dawan Landry’s tackle attempt at the first-down marker, leaving the speedy Jackson free in open field.
Yet, instead of sprinting into the end zone, the star wide receiver was taken down from behind at the Jets 26 by linebacker Demario Davis, who came from the far side at the line of scrimmage all the way to the secondary to make the stop.
“That’ll tell you the kind of speed that this kid [Davis] has,” Ryan said. “I’m not sure there are many linebackers with his speed in the league.”
A lack of speed killed the Jets defense last year, but it saved them on Sunday. Moving Davis into the starting lineup to replace retired veteran Bart Scott was one move that significantly improved the unit’s foot-speed.
Ryan raved about Davis in the preseason, lauding his coverage skills and instincts in particular, and the youngster lived up to the hype in Sunday’s victory. In addition to the touchdown-saving tackle, Davis made a team-high eight tackles —- three solo — as the Jets defense bottled up Buccaneers star running back Doug Martin.
“He knows the game, never gets rattled,” Landry said. “He’s a veteran in my eyes.”
A 1,454-yard back a year ago, Martin managed just 65 yards on 24 carries, and 17 of those came on one carry, when Tampa Bay caught the Jets defense off-guard with a draw play on third and long.
“It’s important to build off every game,” Davis said. “I think that was a great foundation for us to start the season with, for us as a defense as a whole.”
It was a credit to the improved defensive line, but also to the linebacking core, a slow-footed uneven unit a year ago. The Jets feel they have upgraded with Davis, the team’s third-round pick in the 2012 draft out of Arkansas State.
That decision may have been the difference between starting 1-0 and 0-1.
“I kind of said before the game, I felt God was going to make us faster on some plays,” said Davis, a devout Christian. “A lot of [guys] said, ‘Maybe God gave you a boost there.’ ”