New York Jets quarterback Justin Fields (7) scores a touchdown in the fourth quarter and celebrates with New York Jets tight end Mason Taylor (85), Sunday, September 7, 2025, in East Rutherford. Kevin R. Wexler-NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

What We Learned From Jets 34-32 Loss Vs. Steelers

Originally posted on New York Jets on SI
By Patrick McAvoy | Last updated Sep 8, 2025 8:13 AM ET

The New York Jets lost against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday afternoon. Before we move on to the team’s upcoming Week 2 matchup against the Buffalo Bills, let’s evaluate what led to the 34-32 loss.

New York’s offense was cooking. Justin Fields was dynamic. He was good in the passing game. Fields went 16-of-22 passing for 218 yards and a touchdown. On the ground, he racked up 48 rushing yards and two touchdowns.

Beyond this, the running game in general was good. Breece Hall had 107 rushing yards on 19 carries. Braelon Allen got six carries for nine yards and a touchdown and Isaiah Davis got two carries for 18 yards.

There was a lot of good, but also some things to work on before the upcoming matchup with Buffalo.

Here are the two biggest weaknesses for the Jets on Sunday against the Steelers:

The New York Jets fell to 0-1 against the Pittsburgh Steelers

Penalties:
The Jets had seven penalties accepted for 74 yards on the day against Pittsburgh. Throughout the game, especially as it got closer to the end, the penalties were a killer. This is a topic that has been talked about going to back to last season and beyond. Seven penalties aren't terrible in regards to some numbers across the league, but still, the quickest thing to work on.

Special Teams:
On the afternoon, the special teams was actually solid for the most part. But, Xavier Gipson's fumble on the kick off to begin the fourth quarter was a turning point for the Steelers' offense. There's an argument that the secondary could've been listed here. There was a lot of noise about Brandon Stephens after the game. But, without the fumble, it's a completely different conversation for the Jets.

Here's a positive takeaway:

Big-Name players had big days
It's easy to point to Fields as having a big day. But, it wasn't just him. He impressed in his Jets regular season debut. Beyond him, Hall was great. Garrett WIlson had seven catches for 95 yards and a touchdown. Sauce Gardner looked like a superstar out there shadowing Pittsburgh's receivers. Quincy Williams and Quinnen Williams both had a sack in the game. Will McDonald IV had two of his own.

All in all, there were some things that need to be worked on, obviously. But, the Jets showed some grit and got some big-time performances. Coaching was also clearly improved over last year.

This article first appeared on New York Jets on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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