'Pretty damn dark' - Jets lose 5th straight to lowly Patriots - ESPN

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — New York Jets interim coach Jeff Ulbrich, who inherited the team three weeks ago after the abrupt firing of Robert Saleh, stood at the podium, eyes glazed, voice shaking at times. He was trying to make sense of a once-promising season that appears all but lost.

«I'm pissed, they're pissed,» he said of the players. «I'm hurt, they're hurt.»

The Jets (2-6) dropped their fifth straight game, a demoralizing 25-22 loss to the New England Patriots on Sunday at Gillette Stadium — one of the franchise's lowest points in recent memory. Ulbrich, sharing his postgame message to the team, called it «a moment of darkness.»

Three weeks ago, the Jets were playing for a share of first place in the AFC East. Now they're tied for last with the Patriots, who, despite losing quarterback Drake Maye (concussion) in the second quarter, outscored the Jets in the second half, 18-9.

The Jets are a star-laden team with a future Hall of Fame quarterback, and they have collapsed in spectacular fashion.

«I mean, five losses in a row is pretty damn dark,» said tight end Tyler Conklin, amplifying Ulbrich's words. «S---, one or two losses in a row can get dark. This sucks.»

Aaron Rodgers deadpanned: «I've been in the darkness. You have to go in there and make peace with it.»

Unlike one of Rodgers' retreats, there's no guarantee this will end anytime soon, based on the way the Jets played against the struggling Patriots, who snapped a six-game losing streak.

In a virtual must-win game, the Jets lost a game that seemed impossible to lose. They became the first team since 2012 to lose with zero giveaways and less than 250 yards allowed, according to ESPN Research. It happened to Rodgers in 2012, in the Green Bay Packers' loss to the