“Only five more weeks… Only five more weeks… Only five more weeks.”

Down 13-3 early in the fourth quarter, the Jets lined up to try to covert a fourth-and-one. Sam Darnold handed the ball to Frank Gore to run up the middle only to get stuffed for what felt like the 100th time. And that’s the play finally broke me, leaving me repeatedly muttering to myself, “only five more weeks.”

It broke me.

I’m broken.

I have completely lost my sanity. 2020 has done enough of this to all of humanity. But to force us to suffer through the Adam Gase era, it’s impossible to accept that this is reality. It’s just so needlessly cruel.

How did this happen? Who thought this was a good idea? Why would they think that? How could they think that? How is this still happening? Why is this still happening? Is it, in fact, still happening? Is this any of this real? What even is real?

The ramblings of a madman? Or just a sportswriter struggling to cope with covering an Adam Gase coached team? Are those two things actually any different? This can’t be life. This can’t be love. This can’t be right. There’s gotta be more.

*Deep breath*

*Exhales*

Okay, that’s better… Wait, no it’s not. What the hell?

How many times does Frank Gore up the gut have to fail before Gase tries something different? Also, what the hell? Where was Ty Johnson? Why did he only get two carries? But 17 carries for the octogenarian running back? I mean, I get he had 4.1 yards per carry but it got you all of three points. Why would you put all your stock in 37-year-old Frank Gore to save you from 0-16?

That’s how you want to go down fighting? Your f*#! it moment? Your if I go down, I go down in a blaze of glory… by leaning on a 37-year-old running back?

I’ve covered the Jets for a decent amount of time. The Jets have been awful for the vast majority of that time. I have seen some bad football, I am used to watching bad football. This isn’t just bad football though. This is what in the holy hell is happening, makes you question reality, bad football. For the love everything, why wouldn’t you just try to run behind your planet-sized left tackle? Just let Mekhi Becton clear a path and let your back follow for a single yard?

Further destroying my sanity is the reality (at least I think it’s reality) that losing is exactly what the Jets need to be doing. So all of this horrendously poor coaching is actually good and necessary to secure the tank, but Gase is actually trying. He’s not doing any of this to secure the first overall pick. He did it because he thought it was the smart football move and……… Yup, I’m broken again. Bleep, boop… Does not compute.

Gase is trying to win, pulling out all the stops and yet everything he tries only further secures the tank. Gase needs to be fired now because I don’t know if my brain can take five more weeks of this. But Gase can’t be fired because the Jets as an organization desperately need five more weeks of this. Locking up the first overall pick is a necessity. It’s not just about the rights to draft Trevor Lawerence, it’s about having your pick of the next head coach because every available coach will want to coach Trevor Lawerence.

But can I last five more weeks? Will I make it through the season with a functioning psyche? Is that the sacrifice that has to be made for the Jets to become decent? Must my brain suffer? I didn’t sign up for this? I didn’t ask for any of this. But it’s arrived just the same.

“Only five more weeks….”