Smith Saves the Day and Comes of Age

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The Falcons' Jacquizz Rodgers being stopped near the goal line by Jets players including Demario Davis (56) and Sheldon Richardson (91).

ATLANTA — It was all there for the Jets, and then it almost wasn't. Their lead, which had grown to 13 points almost midway through the fourth quarter. Their discipline, which had improved after penalty-filled disasters the previous two weeks. Their sense of accomplishment, which comes from watching a rookie quarterback recover from the worst game of his brief career by delivering the best one.

That is what Geno Smith did Monday night, throwing three touchdown passes and leading the Jets to a third fourth-quarter comeback in five games. None sweeter than their 30-28 escape act at a raucous Georgia Dome, where Nick Folk's 43-yard field goal deflated the Atlanta Falcons as time expired.

The crowd reacted as if muzzled. The Jets (3-2) dashed onto the field. They whooped and they hollered and they celebrated a game that was lost until they won it again.

"You know what? I'm glad we won this way," Coach Rex Ryan said. "I am glad we won this way because it took every one of us."

Eight players caught passes from Smith. Antonio Allen blocked a punt. Muhammad Wilkerson and Sheldon Richardson and David Harris sparkled on defense. And then there was Smith. Challenged all week by the coaching staff after his miserable performance in Tennessee, he emerged from the Jets' laboratory as a decisive, accurate, poised quarterback.

His statistics — 16 of 20 passing for 199 yards and 3 touchdowns with no turnovers — obscure his brilliance on the final drive, when he led the Jets 55 yards, to the Atlanta 25, after the Falcons scored the go-ahead touchdown with 1 minute 54 seconds remaining. The highlight came on third-and-3 from the 31, when Smith, after reading the Falcons' defense, called an audible and switched to a running play. Bilal Powell bulled for 6 critical yards.

Using a different term, Willie Colon lauded Smith's fortitude in that situation. Smith was just applying orders given on Sunday night. The buzzword for this week, as Ryan explained at the team meeting, was fearless. He told players not to worry about penalties or turnovers or mistakes. He told them to "hang loose," as Colon called it.

Ryan also used that time to reinforce the Jets' underdog status. He said that the popular perception was that the underperforming Falcons, now 1-4, would use Monday's game as a springboard to a playoff run. Ryan told them, "Hey, we don't have to be that team."

The Jets pummeled Atlanta for three quarters, taking a 27-13 lead when Kellen Winslow grabbed a nifty 1-yard toss by Smith with 12 minutes left. Then came a 19-yard run by Jacquizz Rodgers. Then a 3-yard pass by Matt Ryan to Levine Toilolo, aided by a holding call on Demario Davis on fourth-and-goal, with 1:54 left.

When Smith took command of the huddle at the Jets' 20, Colon said: "There was no Disney pep talk. We didn't have enough time for that. Good offenses get it done."

Whether the Jets have a good offense is debatable. Certainly it is improved, capable of long gains, quick strikes and dynamic plays. Receivers get open, and it is Smith's job to find them. He completed three straight passes — including two to Stephen Hill — then ran for 8 yards to get the Jets into field-goal range.

Said Colon: "People aren't talking about the New York Jets, people don't care about the New York Jets. We've got to start coming through the front door on a lot of people and knocking down their doors."

That is the Jets' rallying cry, empowered by negativity, emboldened by their overwhelming faith in one another. Their first four games unfolded in almost predictable fashion, with two wins at home, two losses on the road. Having lost their last six games on prime-time television, they viewed Monday as a pivotal moment in shifting the national opinion of them.

At the beginning of the week, Ryan detailed the Jets' priorities: protecting the ball and reducing penalties. The coordinator Marty Mornhinweg held what he called a "put it on the table" meeting with the offense. He showed his players clips of all of their 31 penalties, all 14 sacks they allowed, all 12 turnovers they committed.

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