A mist sat over MetLife Stadium for most of Sunday afternoon, and for three quarters it looked like the kind of weather the Jets wanted — low-scoring, defense-first, a game they could squeeze. They led 17–7 early in the fourth quarter. They lost 20–17 in overtime.
The Jets led the Packers 17–7 early in the fourth quarter on September 20, 2026, and lost 20–17 in overtime at MetLife Stadium. Green Bay scored the game’s final 13 points and won it on a 26-yard field goal with 5:23 left in the extra period. New York falls to 1–1.
It is the second week of a season that opened with a controlled road win in Nashville, and the contrast is instructive. The Week 1 win over the Titans was built on finishing drives. This one was not. The rest of the 2026 Jets schedule now runs through Detroit.
How did the Jets lose a 10-point lead to the Packers?
Green Bay scored the last 13 points of the game, and field position started it. Skyy Moore’s 63-yard punt return set up the Packers deep in Jets territory, WR Christian Watson scored on the possession that followed, and a 34-yard field goal tied the game at 17. The Jets got the ball back with three minutes and two timeouts and turned it over on downs when Braelon Allen’s fourth-and-1 run came up short.
The defense still had one more stop in it. Kingsley Enagbare sacked Jordan Love as the regulation clock expired, which is how a game that had slipped away went to overtime at all.
What did the Jets defense actually do against Jordan Love?
It played well enough to win by two scores. Green Bay finished with 199 total yards and converted 1 of 9 third downs — the kind of line that usually ends with a comfortable margin. The Jets forced four fumbles and recovered one of them, DT Harrison Phillips coming out of a pile three minutes into the fourth quarter with a ball Enagbare had punched loose. That takeaway produced the 32-yard field goal that made it 17–7.
The other three fumbles stayed with Green Bay. On an afternoon decided by three points, that is not a footnote.
Was the Jets offense good enough to close it out?
Not in the fourth quarter, no. Geno Smith finished 27-of-41 for 247 yards and threw a 5-yard touchdown to Garrett Wilson midway through the third — his first passing touchdown as a Jet since 2016 — to put New York ahead 14–7. Adonai Mitchell had a career-best 43 receiving yards in the first half, and Breece Hall broke a 43-yard catch-and-run. The tools were there.
Braelon Allen had already tied the game at 7 with a first-half touchdown run, becoming the first Jets running back to rush for a score in back-to-back home openers since Chris Ivory in 2014–15. But the offense produced three points after the Wilson touchdown, and penalties were costly on both sides — the club’s own recap notes each team finished with well over 100 penalty yards.
What happened on the overtime possession?
The Jets won the coin toss, elected to receive, and lost 15 yards. Smith was sacked on back-to-back plays, Austin McNamara punted 56 yards, and the Packers took over at their own 34. Love found RB Chris Brooks for 15, an unnecessary roughness call on the defense moved Green Bay another 15, and Trey Smack ended it from 26 yards with 5:23 still on the clock.
What does 1–1 mean heading to Detroit?
It means the margin for error narrows immediately. The Jets travel to face the Lions on Sunday, September 27, at 1:00 p.m. ET — a homecoming for head coach Aaron Glenn, who spent four seasons as Detroit’s defensive coordinator. New York also left MetLife with a handful of new injuries from the game, which are tracked on the Jets injury report.
The Week 2 matchup was previewed here as a game against a team that had beaten itself in the opener. Read the Jets-Packers Week 2 preview for what the Jets were trying to do, and judge how much of it they actually got.
Frequently asked questions
What was the final score of Jets vs. Packers in Week 2?
The Packers beat the Jets 20–17 in overtime at MetLife Stadium on Sunday, September 20, 2026. The Jets are 1–1.
Who kicked the game-winning field goal?
Packers kicker Trey Smack, from 26 yards, with 5:23 remaining in overtime.
How many yards did the Jets defense allow?
Green Bay was held to 199 total yards and converted 1 of 9 third downs. The Jets forced four fumbles and recovered one.
Did Geno Smith throw a touchdown pass?
Yes. Smith threw a 5-yard touchdown to Garrett Wilson in the third quarter, his first passing touchdown as a Jet since 2016, and finished 27-of-41 for 247 yards.
Why did the Jets turn the ball over on downs late in regulation?
Braelon Allen was stopped short on fourth-and-1 with about three minutes left, ending the Jets’ last possession of regulation.
Who do the Jets play next?
The Jets are at the Detroit Lions on Sunday, September 27, 2026, at 1:00 p.m. ET.