The New York Jets absolutely fumbled a 17-7 lead in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s game against the Packers, losing 20-17 in overtime, but the real gut punch came after the buzzer. Head coach Aaron Glenn dropped a bombshell at the press conference, admitting he “didn’t think of using a timeout at all” in a critical end-of-regulation situation that could have given his team a shot to win. You read that right. He just… didn’t think of it.
The Clock Management That Haunts the Jets
Picture this: there’s 1:05 left on the clock in regulation, the Packers are near midfield, facing a third down. The Jets’ defense, to their credit, stops wide receiver Christian Watson short of a first down. The momentum is *right there*. You’ve got time, you’ve got a chance to get the ball back and put together a drive to win the game. But what happened? Nothing. Head coach Aaron Glenn just let the clock tick. No timeout. The Packers then took a delay of game penalty, which, with the mandatory 10-second runoff, sucked the clock all the way down to two seconds. All Green Bay could do was heave an unsuccessful Hail Mary, sending the game to overtime where they eventually completed their comeback.
Glenn’s Head-Scratching Explanation
After the heartbreaking 20-17 loss, Glenn was asked the obvious question: why didn’t he call a timeout? His answer was something else. He told reporters he “didn’t think of using a timeout at all” in that entire chaotic sequence. When pressed on why that thought never even crossed his mind, Glenn’s response felt even more bizarre. “I want to go back and really look at it, to be honest with you,” he said, via a transcript from the team. He then offered, “But I think they were in a situation where they were trying a no brainer, and they took the no brainer, or they took the penalty on that. It was down to 11 seconds. At that point, I didn’t want to put ourselves in a position where we want to take a timeout. Let’s let it end.” Trying a “no brainer?” “Let’s let it end?” That’s just not the kind of urgency you want to hear from your head coach when your team is blowing a significant lead and a win is on the line.
This 20-17 overtime loss for the Jets, coming after they blew a 17-7 fourth-quarter lead and a golden opportunity, is a brutal start to the season. Glenn’s candid admission that the thought of a timeout “didn’t cross his mind at all” is going to be talked about for a while. You just can’t let winnable games slip away because of fundamental clock management, especially when the consequences are this severe. The team’s gotta tighten things up, because early season blunders like this can hang over a squad for months.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Pro Football Talk.
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