A few minutes after 7:30 p.m. Sunday in the raw, rainy and freezing January weather of Western New York, the scholarship period for Robert Saleh and Zach Wilson came to an end.
While the Jets took a bright-look-at-the-future vibe into Sunday’s game against the Bills despite entering the day with the same 4-12 record the Giants had before their season-finale loss to Washington at moribund MetLife Stadium, the sky is falling for the Giants in the Meadowlands.
“There were some close games. We beat two division winners . We had the Super Bowl champs on the ropes. We were a one-score game here with Buffalo.’’ The arrow, indeed, appears pointed up for the Jets, who for the second consecutive Sunday played a current Super Bowl contender like they belonged on the same field.
Considering how poorly the Jets’ offense played, it was a miracle the Bills didn’t beat them by 30-something again. The Jets’ offense finished with 53 net yards, setting a dubious franchise record for futility, which had been 72 yards against the Bengals in 1972. “Our ceiling is really high,’’ linebacker and team captain C.J. Mosley said. “We’ve laid the foundation and we’ve seen the things that need to be done in order for us to be great.’’