New York Jets defensive star Quincy Williams appears to have had enough of the talk.
In the wake of the Jets’ 23-17 loss to Minnesota — a game where the defense played well enough for New York to win — Williams was asked by SNY about the resilience of the team after falling behind 17-0.
Williams didn’t mince words.
“I’m beyond that,” he said. “People get tired of hearing the same thing every week. People gotta start taking accountability from the top to the bottom. That’s the main thing. That’s all I gotta say, for real.”
He had a great game. Williams finished with six tackles, five of which were solo shots. He also recovered a fumble in the first quarter, one that he could have returned for a touchdown had he been able to keep his feet.
It still set the offense up with good field position. But all that led to was the pick-six thrown by Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers, which gave the Vikings a 10-0 lead.
"People gotta start taking accountability. People get tired of hearing the same thing every week.
— Jets Videos (@snyjets) October 6, 2024
Quincy Williams with @JeaneCoakley after the Jets' loss in London: pic.twitter.com/eta4j5b4OI
Williams wasn’t in much of a mood to break down his great defensive play, either.
“I lost my balance there,” he said. “I gotta get that to the end zone when my number gets called.”
The New York defense held the Vikings (5-0) to 253 yards, with a third of that coming in the first quarter as they built a 17-0 lead. After that, the Jets gave up just two field goals and, up until Minnesota’s final drive, the Vikings were unable to do little against New York.
Minnesota had just 82 yards rushing and missed running back Aaron Jones, who was injured in the first half and did not return. Quarterback Sam Darnold — a former Jets first-round pick — was sacked four times by four different Jets defensive players. Will McDonald IV, Isaiah Oliver, Micheal Clemons and Leonard Taylor each had a sack.
Darnold finished with 179 yards passing and his most inefficient outing since taking over as the starting quarterback this season. He also threw an interception to Brandin Echols, which set up a New York offensive touchdown.
The Jets were not perfect defensively. Sauce Gardner was called for three different penalties in the first half. They were also without cornerback Michael Carter II due to a pre-game hamstring injury. Gardner missed a quarter due to an evaluation for a head injury.
But, for the second straight week, the Jets held their opponent to one offensive touchdown. New York is 0-2 in those games.
It’s enough for a player like Williams to ask for, well, accountability, a statement he repeated at the end of his interview.
“Like I said, people gotta start taking accountability,” Williams said. “People get tired of hearing the same thing every week. I’m tired of saying the same thing every week. For me, I need to start working on being a leader more.”
