EAST RUTHERFORD — For the first time in 10 months, the Jets had something to feel good about after a game.

The Jets defeated the Dallas Cowboys, 24-22, on Sunday, earning their first win since last December and their first victory at MetLife Stadium in 364 days.

It was a surprising win — few expected the Jets to keep things competitive with the Cowboys, even with Sam Darnold back after missing three games with mono.

And the way the Jets took command in the first half was even more unexpected, grabbing a 21-3 lead before holding on late.

Here’s how the Jets reacted to a much-needed win:

Adam Gase

On finally getting his first win after a rough start to the season: “Anytime you win, it’s a lot better feeling than losing.”

On trusting Sam Darnold to throw late in the game instead of trying to run out the clock: “I think it was more, we were finding some soft spots the zone coverages. They had a couple of guys go out and we felt like our guys were winning on their routes. We thought we were going to have some bigger plays on a few of our runs, but we didn’t get as much yardage as we initially thought. They were doing a good job of getting to the football fast. They weren’t [giving us] a lot of breathing room. That’s what most teams are going to try to stop right off the bus.”

Sam Darnold

On the 92-yard touchdown to Robby Anderson: “It was awesome. The way the safety bit down on the run, I just knew I had to put it out there. Robby’s one of the best — if not the best — at tracking the ball in the air in the NFL and I knew that I just had to put it out there in his vicinity and he would go out and catch it.”

On the interception: “It was just a bad read on my part. Even if Jamison (Crowder) did get his eyes around, which, he was doing the right thing in the first place, I just made a really, really bad throw and a really bad read.”

On playing with extra padding to protect his spleen: “I took a few shots but it didn’t affect me at all and the pads worked great, super light but also protected me well. It was good out there.”

Jamal Adams

On how much of a help it was to get Sam Darnold back: “What you think. Yeah, I mean, [shoot], he did a damn good job. Obviously we have a lot of faith in Sam. … Sam came in and did a hell of a job, led the group.”

On his message to the team when the lead evaporated late: “Just keep going, keep going, do not stop. They have to get two points and even if they get two points you are going to OT and we are going to go again, it's just another round. Everybody was just calm and it was really a beautiful sight to see, because usually we kind of panic, guys panic, guys are not sure about what's going on or are we going to stop it. Everybody believes and we made it happen.”

Le’Veon Bell

On the offense: “We still have a lot of things to clean up, for real. We still played nowhere near a perfect game. … We played well enough to win today, obviously not perfect, not nearly perfect, and we’re going to try to get better.”

On the difference with Darnold back: “You all tell me, you’ve seen it. Sam’s a special player. … He’s a special player and we’ve been missing that the last couple of weeks. It felt good having him out there.”

Andy Vasquez is the Jets beat writer for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to all Jets analysis, news, trades and more, please subscribe today and download our app.

Email: vasqueza@northjersey.com Twitter: @andy_vasquez