EAST RUTHERFORD — Sunday was a good day for the Jets. They may look back on it as a momentous day.

They gutted out a 42-34 victory over Andrew Luck and the Colts, winning consecutive games for the first time in more than a year. At 3-3, they’ve pulled themselves back into the middle of the playoff hunt in the AFC. And their dreadful three-game losing streak is now just a bad memory.

“We’re right back in the thick of things,” Jets coach Todd Bowles said.

Sam Darnold continued to show massive promise and make winning plays. Kicker Jason Myers set a new franchise record with seven field goals. And the defense had four takeaways.

But in the locker room after the game, there was no great sense of joy or accomplishment.

Instead, the Jets were more focused on what they could have done better.

“We should have won by a lot more,” linebacker Avery Williamson said. “We could have played better. We’ll definitely celebrate the win, but it’s just knowing that we’ve got stuff to work on.”

The Jets aren’t happy being at .500. They aren’t satisfied with gutting out an ugly win when the opportunity was there for an easy one. And those are just some of the many signs we saw Sunday that the Jets are finally figuring out how to win.

Story continues after gallery.

Finding a way

The Jets started the game with a pick-6. It was a fortunate play, really. Andrew Luck’s screen pass went through running back Marlon Mack’s hands. Jets safety Jamal Adams tried to catch it, but tipped it in the air. But Morris Claiborne was there to intercept it and return it for a touchdown.

“It was great,” Claiborne said. “It gave us a boost.”

But it wasn’t as if everything went the Jets’ way on Sunday. The defense responded by immediately surrendering an easy touchdown drive to the Colts. On back-to-back drives in the second quarter, the Jets offense turned the ball over in their own territory— Darnold threw a bad interception and Quincy Enunwa fumbled.

But when things went badly, the Jets always had a response.

After those two-second quarter turnovers, the Jets‘ defense held the Colts to field goals on both occasions.

When the the built a 17-point lead early in the second half, and then allowed the Colts to get within six early in the fourth quarter, there was no panic. They scored on the next drive and then Darron Lee had a pivotal interception.

“By no means was the game perfect,” Bowles said. “But the growth of the team, we probably would have lost this [game] one year ago or a couple games ago. For us to win ugly is a pretty good thing. It shows signs of maturity. We just have to keep working.”

Darnold’s progress

The Jets’ rookie quarterback continued to show massive progress, completing 24 of 30 passes for 280 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Most impressive was his patience against the Colts defense, a cover-2 zone that makes it dangerous to throw the deep ball.

Darnold made an early mistake, forcing a deep ball to Robby Anderson in the second quarter. It as badly under-thrown and easily intercepted by safety Malik Hooker.

But outside of that, Darnold really didn’t make any mistakes. Darnold got everyone involved in the offense, completing multiple passes to six different receivers. (Led by Jermaine Kearse who had nine catches for 94 yards.)

“They know on every single play, any receiver can get the ball,” Darnold said. “That’s just kind of how I play. And I’m going to continue to do that."

And he ran the two-minute drill before halftime to perfection, moving the ball 58 yards in only 42 seconds to set up an easy field goal.

Most importantly, under the direction of Darnold the Jets scored on their final eight drives of the game before taking a knee at the end.

“He did a good job,” Bowles said of Darnold. “I thought he hurried on the one turnover, but on everything else he took what they gave him. He understood what was going on. The game slowed for him. For the most part, he played a heck of a ballgame.”

One for the ages

But no one had a better game than Myers. He set the franchise record for field goals made by going 7 for 7. And these weren’t chip shots; three of the field goals were from at least 45 yards or more.

According to ESPN Stats & Info, Myers’ 274 yards of field goals made was the most in NFL history, surpassing Greg Zuerlein (271 in 2017) and Chris Boniol (271 in 1996), who both also made seven field goals. His 24 points were the second-most ever in an NFL game by a kicker, behind only Rod Bironas' 26.

Myers downplayed his historic game.

“It’s more important that we got the win,” he said. “Being able to help out and do what I can that way, that’s what is most important to me.”

But Myers’ teammates know how big his contribution was.

“Awesome. Huge,” Jamal Adams said. “People don’t understand, that’s what wins ballgames. For him to do that and put points on the board when we needed it — it helped the defense out, because the defense as a whole we just didn’t play well.”

But in the end, the Jets, especially Myers, made the big plays when it mattered most. They showed they are making progress.

“It was very ugly,” Adams said. “But we figured out a way to win.

Email: vasqueza@northjersey.com

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