Time for Jets’ to trade Le’Veon Bell | 5 takeaways, observations from ref-gifted win over Dolphins

What a weird, weird win. Perfectly fitting for a season that grows ever-more-bizarre by the week.

The Jets barely beat the Dolphins, 22-21, on Sunday at MetLife Stadium, despite the fact that they did not allow a single touchdown.

Quarterback Sam Darnold appeared to grab defeat from the jaws of victory by taking a sack and pulling the Jets off the edge of field-goal range with about one minute remaining.

Then the Jets’ comeback was turned back on by a defensive pass interference call by the replay booth – about the rarest thing in the NFL these days – on the next play. There was no flag on an incomplete pass but a review turned into a pass interference on Nik Needham, leaving Dolphins coach Brian Flores incensed on the sideline.

Oh, and then head coach Adam Gase elected to trust his kicker, Sam Ficken, from 44 yards, by running down the clock for about 20 seconds, instead of trying to get closer or take a shot at the end zone.

It somehow all worked out. Ficken converted as time expired.

The Jets (5-8) have won four of five games, with a historically ugly loss to the Bengals in the middle. And the Jets narrowly avoided another epically crushing defeat in this one, too. (More on that later).

Here are five quick thoughts and takeaways on the Jets’ strange victory:

1. It’s official: Trade Le’Veon Bell

Darnold handed the ball to running back Bilal Powell 19 times for 74 yards on Sunday.

He’s rarely given it to Bell that often.

Bell missed Sunday’s game, but in the 12 games prior, he hadn’t carried the ball more than 21 times. He has averaged 15.25 attempts per week and hasn’t topped 70 yards in a game. He’s averaging 49.08 yards per game and 3.22 per carry.

Powell put all of those numbers to shame on Sunday, his first day as the feature back this year. Yes, game situations played some role in Powell’s stats; he undoubtedly ran the ball more because the Jets were protecting a lead.

But even in the Jets’ four previous victories, Bell’s role has been more limited than Powell’s was. Here are Bell’s rushing numbers from those four wins: 14 carries, 50 yards, one TD; 18 carries, 34 yards, one TD; 18 carries, 59 yards, one TD; 12 carries, 49 yards.

Powell also had the benefit of running against the league’s 31st-ranked run defense. Then again, Bell only got 10 rushes for 32 yards against the Bengals last week – who rank 32nd.

This all points to one of a few things:

A) Bell has lost a step and can no longer produce at a high level

B) Bell does not fit Adam Gase’s system

C) Gase has been reluctant to feed Bell, either for the reasons above or other unrelated ones

D) Gase was sending a message to the higher-ups by successfully pounding Powell

Regardless of which statement is true – or if it’s a mix of a few of them – it’s now very clear that the shoddy offensive line in front of Bell hasn’t the only issue holding him back. The Jets cannot afford to keep chewing up massive salary-cap space and a roster spot on a guy who isn’t producing anything next season.

And, we already know that Gase isn’t going anywhere, thanks to acting owner Christopher Johnson’s November proclamation. So, if it comes down to keeping either Gase or Bell, odds are Gase is going to win the battle (assuming Johnson doesn’t change his mind).

That said, after last week’s debacle it started to feel like general manager Joe Douglas should try to trade him this offseason.

Now it’s obviously that Douglas ought to get to work and start finding a new running back for Gase’s offense next year.

2. Hat tip to Gregg Williams

No, the Dolphins’ offense isn’t exactly the Chiefs’ with peak Patrick Mahomes or the Patriots’ in their heyday under Tom Brady. But it’s still frankly incredible that the Jets’ defense fared as well as it did against Ryan Fitzpatrick and Co., considering what defensive coordinator Gregg Williams had to work with. Remember: This unit played without linebackers C.J. Mosley and Avery Williamson. It was missing safety Jamal Adams. It was without cornerbacks Trumaine Johnson, Arthur Maulet and Brian Poole. It lost cornerback Kyron Brown in the fourth quarter. It traded away Leonard Williams weeks ago. This defense is a shell of itself from a few weeks ago, let alone what we all expected to see back in training camp.

Sure, Fitzpatrick moved the ball – but he was never able to get into the end zone. Gregg Williams’ players managed to force three field goals of less than 30 yards in the first half. They forced a 31-yard kick right after halftime. They forced another chip shot (that was missed) after Darnold’s third-quarter interception. They made Jason Sanders make two kicks of 40-plus in the second half, plus a 37-yarder to put the Dolphins ahead with 1:33 left. Sanders set a franchise record with eight field-goal tries. He also set a team record with seven makes.

The Jets consistently bent, but never broke. Entering Sunday, it seemed near impossible to envision this depleted secondary stopping just about anyone. Instead, they held strong. They got a pick from cornerback Nate Hairston. They nearly came up with a pair of others.

The credit for that success and resolve all goes squarely to Williams. He had some problems last week in Cincinnati, but this was a fantastic bounce-back effort.

3. (Gulp) Lamar comes next

OK, now that we’ve given Williams his due, time for the bad news ...

This defense looks like it’s going to get obliterated by Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson on Thursday night.

The leading MVP candidate is a menace running the ball. So, the fact that the Jets just gave up 65 rushing yards on seven carries to 37-year-old Ryan Fitzpatrick – who had 121 yards on the ground before Sunday – does not bode well for the Jets’ defense next week. The fact that this is a trend for the Jets is even more concerning.

Mobile quarterbacks – like the Bills’ Josh Allen and Jaguars’ Gardner Minshew – have given this defense problems all season, picking up critical first downs and the occasional chunk play, too. With that in mind, it’s tough to see how this team will slow down Jackson.

That said, it was also nearly impossible to envision Sunday’s performance, so perhaps Williams can pull another rabbit out of his ... hat.

4. Is this the real Robby Anderson?

The Jets’ fourth-year wide receiver backed up his best two-game stretch of the season with another sparkling performance, racking up seven catches for 116 yards and one touchdown.

This all comes just days after Anderson said he still considers himself one of the NFL’s best wide receivers. That sounded ridiculous at the time. It still does. Anderson is simply not on the level of the league’s elite. But he’s undoubtedly been playing much, much better the past few weeks.

The most encouraging part? Anderson has been more physical, coming down with contested catches and battling for 50-50 balls. The best example came with about five minutes remaining Sunday, when Darnold under threw a pass toward the sideline, but Anderson doubled back to break it up and avoid a crippling interception.

Now, the question is whether Douglas will buy into these few performances and start believing that this is truly Anderson’s potential and baseline under Gase’s tutelage – or just another of the hot streaks he’s been posting his whole career.

For now, our vote is still to shrug off the sparkly new numbers and hype. Unless Anderson can keep proving it for three more weeks, it’s still not worth the money he’ll undoubtedly want from the Jets in free agency.

But, at the very least, he’s cracked the door open slightly by shining with Darnold of late.

5. Gase avoids further infamy

Gase is obviously thrilled the Jets beat the Dolphins on multiple levels; it’s good for the team and it’s also good for his own ego, beating the team that tossed him aside after last season. But, perhaps more importantly, Sunday’s win saved Gase from historic embarrassment. With a loss, he would have become the first-ever coach to go 0-2 against the team he coached the previous year, per the Elias Sports Bureau.

That would have been a brutal bit of infamy, especially because Gase and the Jets already became the first-ever team to lose to a pair of 0-7 or worse teams last week, when they were beaten by the Bengals.

Matt Stypulkoski may be reached at mstypulkoski@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @M_Stypulkoski. Find NJ.com Jets on Facebook.

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