Blowing a 14-point lead will frustrate any NFL coach.
Such was the case with Todd Bowles Sunday after his Jets handed the Dolphins a 31-28 win in Miami. With the loss, New York is now 3-4 on the season.
The Jets hit a new low on the season, committing 12 penalties for 124 yards while also giving up a handful of sizeable gains late in the game. There was also a Josh McCown interception in the fourth quarter that helped lock up the Dolphins comeback.
Afterward, Bowles voiced his displeasure with his team’s inability to play a full four quarters. It’s not the first time he’s done so this year.
“It’s frustrating,” Bowles told reporters. “We didn’t finish. At some point, we’ve got to develop some killer instinct to finish ball games. You’ve just got to finish ball games.”
Bowles added the game should not have come down to McCown’s interception. The quarterback repeatedly said the game left him with a “sick feeling” after.
The Jets have made it a habit of not finishing games. That was the case in last week’s loss to New England as well.
“We’re not executing down the stretch like we should,” McCown said. “It’s frustrating.”
With the Jets being a rather inexperienced team, such losses are to be expected. However, Bowles has known this has been a problem since the early weeks of the season — it’s up to him and his coaches to develop the mindset needed to close out a close contest.
“Until we win a game like that, we’ll [lack] killer instinct,” Bowles said. “We haven’t. We’ve got to learn to finish.”