Jeff Ulbrich was mum about a significant defensive change.
The Jets interim head coach benched safety Tony Adams during the team’s 28-27 loss to the Colts on Sunday at MetLife Stadium.
Chuck Clark returned from injury after a four-week absence and Jalen Mills, who had replaced him, remained in the starting lineup at safety while Adams remained on the bench.
Adams didn’t play a single snap, just one week after playing 81 percent of the team’s snaps on defense during the 31-6 loss to the Cardinals.
He had started all previous eight games he was healthy for this season.
“There’s a lot of different things that went into that,” Ulbrich said Monday. “I’d rather not expand on that, but there’s a lot of things that went into that. It was not disciplinary by any means.”
Adams is in his third season with the Jets after signing as an undrafted free agent in 2022.
He emerged as a hidden gem last year, starting 15 games and recording three interceptions.
He has been targeted 30 times in coverage this year, according to Pro Football Reference, with quarterbacks owning a 90.7 passer rating against him.
That’s a sharp increase from the 69.5 passer rating quarterbacks possessed when targeting him last year.
The Jets signed kicker Anders Carlson to their active roster. Carlson made his debut for the team on Sunday, nailing both field goal attempts — including a career-long 58-yarder — as well as all three extra-point attempts. He had originally been signed to the practice squad and elevated to the active roster for the game.
A week prior, the Jets allowed the Chiefs, in need of a kicker after Harrison Butker’s injury, to sign Spencer Shrader off their practice squad after he had hit two field goals in their loss to the Cardinals.
The Jets cut defensive lineman Bruce Hector to make room.
Over the past two games, quarterback Aaron Rodgers has only thrown six passes of 10 or more yards.
Ulbrich acknowledged Monday that the Jets “need to get the ball downfield,” but pointed to Rodgers as a reason why they have not yet been able to.
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“He’s historically one of the best as far as protecting the ball and not putting the ball in jeopardy,” Ulbrich said. “I think a lot of it’s that. For the team, he never wants to put the ball at risk, he never wants to give interceptions, he’s done that his entire career. That’s a big part of it.”
Ulbrich praised rookie first-round pick Olu Fashanu, who made his first career start at left tackle in place of the injured Tyron Smith. Fashanu had previously started two games at right tackle for an injured Morgan Moses.
“Played well,” Ulbrich said. “This kid is exactly what we thought we were getting. He is intelligent, he is athletic, he is big, he’s powerful, he checks all the boxes other than experience. The more he plays, the better he is gonna get.”
Ulbrich said the Jets are still “collecting information” on Smith’s injury and seeing how he responds to treatment. Smith left last week’s loss to the Cardinals with a neck injury.
