Eric Decker’s trek east from Denver to the doldrums of the AFC included wooing by Jets coach Rex Ryan, a pay raise and opportunity for his wife, country singer Jessie James Decker, to enjoy a larger stage.
On Sunday at MetLife Stadium, she sang the national anthem and Eric hauled in a touchdown pass. It was partly what they envisioned, but also included new realities, some of them brought upon Decker by himself (two drops) and some by new teammates. In short, he knew that rhythm was lacking in the 24-17 loss to the Lions.
“I gotta play better, too,” he said.
Decker, coming off a Monday night performance cut short due to a nagging hamstring injury, caught four balls for 48 yards, but there were six more quarterback Geno Smith threw his way that did not wind up in his gloves. Theirs is a quarterback-receiver relationship somewhat slowed by his ailing hamstring in recent weeks, but it was the inability of the offense to sustain early gains that grounded the Jets. Decker mentioned that he will be able to help out more with better conditioning and timing. He also noted the need to surround Smith with options whether on short or long routes.
“It’s hard to see him take all the criticism because it’s not just him,” said Decker, who has hauled in two touchdowns this season. “We’ve got to make some plays for him, take some pressure off him. We gotta be better than that. We need to find momentum.”
Wideout Jeremy Kerley, who was limited to one catch for three yards, believed the unit needed to find its stride by weaving together a number of series, quarters and halves.
“It’s been difficult,” Kerley said. “No matter what, you just have to keep running. Once we can put it together, we’ll see the team we’re supposed to be.”
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Smith overthrew some receivers and was indecisive releasing the ball at other times. Still, his wideouts and tight ends, tailbacks and linemen maintained that they stood behind him. From Decker to Kerley to rookie tight end Jace Amaro (five catches, 58 yards), they insisted that they can catch on. In assessing his team’s play, Decker, the Jets’ biggest free agent catch in the offseason, looked around his new locker room.
“We’re gonna learn a lot about each other when we show up for practice,” Decker said.
