This wasn’t Keyshawn Johnson famously exclaiming on the front cover of his book to “Just Give Me the Damn Ball.”
But it also wasn’t hard to sense the mounting frustration that the Jets’ current star receiver, Garrett Wilson, was feeling after not being able to make much of an impact in Sunday’s 15-10 loss to the Patriots.
“No, I’m frustrated with not winning,” Wilson said after the game when asked if he was frustrated with his usage in the game. “Whatever reason that may be, we’re trying to figure it out. That’s my job. I feel like I’m a player on this team, and everyone knows that about me, I don’t play about [anything but] losing and winning.
“When it’s competition I’m about all that, and we haven’t met the challenge the last two weeks. That’s where the frustration comes from and that’s where the emotion comes from.”
The second-year receiver caught five passes for 48 yards from Zach Wilson, including a key 29-yard grab over the middle on the Jets’ lone touchdown drive of the game in the fourth quarter.
He also was spotted by TV cameras on the sideline earlier in the second half having an animated conversation with offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett, which the 23-year-old Wilson explained as “just frustration that we’re not moving the ball.”
With starting quarterback Aaron Rodgers and starting left tackle Duane Brown on injured reserve, Zach Wilson has not been able to get Wilson and the rest of the receiving corps involved through three games.
Veteran imports Allen Lazard and Randall Cobb combined for four catches Sunday, and Mecole Hardman was barely used again and has one reception for 6 yards on the season.
“I just feel like we could’ve done more. I could’ve done more,” said Wilson, who also called any potential personnel decisions or coaching game plans “above my pay grade.”
“That’s for the upstairs to dissect and make decisions and decide the way to think about it,” he continued. “For me, I gotta make sure I’m ready at any opportunity I get. That’s what it comes down to and what I have to remind myself of, just do your job. I’ve always approached this game with a certain mindset, and the last year and a half I’ve had to maybe peel back a little bit on that, and that’s OK. I’m just hopeful that we’re gonna figure this thing out on the offensive side of the ball here real soon. And I’m just focused on my job.”
Wilson, who has 12 catches for 165 yards and two touchdowns through three games, added that “the worst part” has been the feeling that the offense hasn’t “rewarded” the defense for keeping the Jets in these games.
“I want to make sure they feel the same joy we feel when they get a stop. We haven’t done that this year,” Wilson said. “We could’ve lost this game by two or three touchdowns with the way we played on the offensive side of the ball. That’s reality. And we gotta figure it out.
“I like to think we’re not that far off, but the reality of it is, we gotta go do it. It can’t be during the practice week, it’s gotta be on Sunday when it matters.”
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