Dan Leberfeld | NY Jets Insider, Publisher of Jets Confidential Magazine

We all know cats are intelligent. Felix Cat Insurance was able to secretly record two cats on a hidden microphone.

Let's listen in. Did you hear the one about the three dogs at the park? That's old.

Like four lives ago. But did you hear about the new pet insurance just for cats from felixcatinsurance.com? Of course! What do I look like, a dog? When you're coughing up a furball.

Yes. Listen, Felix Cat Insurance plans start at under $1 per day and are as unique as you and me. They call it whisker to tail protection. Even furballs?

Even that. Remember the last time you had a furball? I made a TikTok. It went viral. Oh, that's good.

Wait, you're on social media? There you have it. Felix Cat Insurance. Customizable coverage exclusively for felines. Sorry, no dogs allowed. felixcatinsurance.com.

Get it? Meow! Insurance is underwritten by Independence American Insurance Company and produced by Independence Pet Group.

Consisting conditions are not covered. For all terms and limitations, visit felixcatinsurance.com slash terms. Walk the dogs, school drop-off, meetings from 10 to 3, take kids to soccer, then no time left for a jog. When everyone else is relying on you, it's easy to put your needs last. BetterHelp connects you with a licensed therapist online, so you can show up for yourself the way you do for others. Visit betterhelp.com slash positive to get 10% off your first month.

That's betterhelp.com slash positive. We are pleased to welcome Dan Leberfeld. Fresh off a trip a Monday night at MetLife Stadium covers the Jets for Jets Confidential magazine. Let's start with where the Jets are right now. They're at 500.

We're at the midway point. So how would you describe where they are right now in the season? Well clearly they have a top shelf defense that's quite apparent. Since the Dallas game where their defense struggled and C.D.

Lamb really dominated them and Dak Prescott. They've really come together on defense and their defense has kept them in all the games since then. But their offense is starting to become a big problem now. It's been a long time since they've had a wide receiver touchdown pass. They had a touchdown pass to Breece Hall.

It was a one yard pass that he took 49 yards a few weeks ago. But the receivers are not getting in the end zone. They've got a lot of work to do offensively. They can't waste this 4-4 start with their offense dragging them down the way they are. What can they do at this point though with the trade deadline passed?

What changes or adjustments can they make? Well they have Trevor Simien on the practice squad. And I'm not putting Trevor Simien in Canton but he's won games. He had a good season in Denver a few years ago. All they need is somebody to manage the game and get them in the end zone a little more. Zach Wilson, people say well he was sacked eight times tonight and he's not getting a lot of help.

That's true. The offensive line could play better. The offensive line does have a lot of injuries.

But two things can be true at the same time. He might not have the best supporting cast as far as pass protection. But he's also not seeing the field very well and he's holding the ball too long.

His internal clock in his head has got to speed up. So if I were the Jets, if they don't trust Tim Boyle to go in to a game that Zach Wilson is struggling, make Trevor Simien the backup and if they're losing to the Raiders next week out in Las Vegas and the defense is playing well again and the offense is not doing their part, put Trevor Simien in the game. Change it up a little bit. So that's what I would do. I wouldn't bench Zach Wilson immediately. But I would call up Trevor Simien and have him in the bullpen active on game day ready to go in if there's another game like we saw tonight where the offense just is not producing. Is there any indication at all that they are considering a change at quarterback?

No, I don't see any. You know, sometimes when you pick a player this high in the draft, confirmation bias sets in. It happens in all sports where you just keep chasing your decision because you want it to be right. So I think there's a little confirmation bias going on with Zach Wilson. And there's other things going on, like we just brought up where the offensive line isn't great.

Maybe there's a few drops here and there. And that can give the decision makers the out, the alibi to say, you know what, it's not all his fault. Let's stay with him. But like I said, I think the problem is twofold. Yes, the line is struggling, but Zach Wilson on plays when the line is fine, he's not going through his progressions very smoothly and he's not getting rid of the ball fast enough.

So I think both things can exist at the same time. But I think they're not ready to make that move yet. Dan Leberfeld is with us after Monday Night Football and a game in which the Jets manage just six points. It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence here on CBS Sports Radio. Dan, Aaron Rodgers on the field. You took a photo of him on the field with Troy Aikman and Joe Buck. What realistically is the plan for Aaron Rodgers moving forward through the rest of this year?

Well, I'll say this. I've seen him now leave the locker room. You've been there, you know, you wait after the game, the 20 minutes to half hour before they let you in the locker room for interviews.

So you see players come out, especially players that were inactive. So with the third straight game waiting outside the locker room, I saw Aaron Rodgers, you know, leave the locker room. And this is the first time I saw him where he wasn't limping. You know, he was limping the previous two times I saw him leave the Jets locker room.

This game he wasn't limping. So clearly there is progress. I think the realistic goal would be the playoffs. That's why they can't blow, you know, 4-4 is not perfect, but you're still in the hunt if you're the Jets.

So don't waste it. And that means make a quarterback change if you have to just to stay afloat, stay in the wildcard hunt. Because I think the realistic goal for Aaron Rodgers would be the playoffs. I don't think it will be late in the season. I think it will be the playoffs, which would be in the middle of January when the wildcard round starts.

So I think they've got to figure out a way to get into the playoffs and then maybe there's a chance he can come back. Some things have been blown out of proportion, like that first game when he was throwing the ball around the Chiefs game. I thought that whole thing was blown away out of proportion. Let's be honest. Fathers and grandfathers toss the ball. Your grandmothers and grandsons toss the ball.

Short tosses in the parking lot before games. The fact that you can stand stationary and throw a ball, you know, 10 yards or whatever to sauce Gardner. I think that's who he was having to catch with.

Once again, it doesn't mean anything. It's can he put weight on it? He's not going to be a scrambler when he comes back, but he's got to be able to move back there. Can he move to get out of harm's way?

Can he plant his leg on the Achilles, all that stuff? That toss after the Chiefs game, before the Chiefs game meant absolutely nothing. If there's a Trevor Simeon in there knowing personnel or behind that offensive line, why would it be better? Remember last year when the Arizona Cardinals started Colt McCoy in a few games and they won those games?

That's kind of what I'm talking about. It's not that the guy's a great quarterback, but he's a smart guy, he's a Northwestern graduate. He knows what he's doing out there.

He's not the most physically gifted guy. They just need someone to manage the game and get them a few more points on the board than they're getting now. This is the best pass rush I've seen from the Jets in a really long time. Justin Herbert threw for 136 yards tonight. He had a 65 quarterback rating. Justin Herbert really struggled, and that pass rush had a lot to do with it. I think an underrated reason why the Jets came up short in this game, and no one's going to talk about it, is I think they made a mistake on their offensive line. A lot of these teams will tell you, we're going to start our best five. So they moved Max Mitchell from right tackle to right guard, and they started Billy Turner at right tackle. It just didn't work out.

I don't understand, Amy, the concept of best five. What if the guy's not a guard? Max Mitchell never played guard before, and Billy Turner... A lot of older linemen lose weight to take the stress off their ligaments and tendons. Billy Turner is a great guy, and he's a good player, but he must be 290 pounds now.

He's lifted 310. He looks like a tight end when you see him in the locker room. The reason I bring that up is he was one of the guys that the Chargers were really dominating tonight in terms of the pass rush. So I thought the Jets made a strategic error going with, we're going to start our five best linemen, because that right side of that line, new starters tonight, it didn't work out very well for the Jets. And we know the Chargers have guys who are determined to pass rush and can get into the backfield. We're spending a few minutes with Dan Leberfeld of Jets Confidential Magazine.

It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence here on CBS Sports Radio. There have been whispers of frustration in the locker room among the players. You're not going to hear it from the coaches, of course, but any indication that there are guys who are maybe themselves thinking they'd be better off with someone else behind the center? You know, it's funny you say that, because I was saying to someone, and there's been a few locker rooms after the game that I felt this way. It's like the only way this locker room is going to be worthwhile after this game is if you give the players truth serum and say, OK, what happened tonight?

And they say, well, I'll pass. The game is terrible or something like that. Meaning that meaning that you're not the problem in these post games. And I don't blame the players. You don't want to throw your teammates under the bus, but they can't really say what they want to say.

It's all it's going to be like, you know, there's a lot of blame to go around and we all got to play better and all that. Garrett Wilson last year was frustrated. Garrett Wilson this year is frustrated. Garrett Wilson's a very smart guy, and he's not going to say anything. He's terrible as far as ripping anybody, but he's smart. He sends out smoke signals, if you will.

He gives you messages. And Garrett Wilson, you're going to see some quotes from him tomorrow where he's not necessarily throwing anyone under the bus, but he's kind of, if you read the tea leaves, saying this has to change. So I think there are players in there that realize that change is necessary. They just can't come out and say it.

But if you read through the lines, you get the sense that's where they're coming from. Are you surprised that they are at 4-4 given that they lost Aaron Rodgers? They're even treading water? Yeah, I think one of the reasons is, let's be honest, Amy, the league is down this year. You know, there's not enough top shelf quarterbacks. There's a lot of bad teams in the NFL this year.

I think that's helped them. You know, when they beat the Giants and they beat Denver, I was saying, you know, the biggest reasons they won those games is to this Joe Douglas, who's done a great job as GM. I know the Zach Wilson pick, you know, hasn't worked out that well.

But a lot of good GMs with a quarterback because it's so hard to project whether the college guys can do it on the NFL level. But when you look at the roster, the Jets are loaded. The Jets have so much talent in the secondary, on the D line, you know, but skill positions, Breece Hall, Garrett Wilson, they have so much talent. So to me, when they beat Denver, they beat the Giants. I called them roster wins. They beat them because they had from one to fifty three, they had more talent.

It wasn't even about the quarterback. These games where they they won with all field goals. It's just it's a formula that helped them get to four and four in a bad league. But as you saw tonight, it's not sustainable. You can't win by kicking four or five field goals every week. You've got to get in the end zone a little more. So it is pretty amazing therefore for considering how many times they have to settle for field goals.

How many times they bogged down in the red zone. The Jets have the Bills and Dolphins on the schedule before the end of November. So that could be a bit of a reality check, even though the Bills are one of those teams that are down this season and not playing as well.

You know, it's funny you say that. I was in the press box and something came on the scoreboard. It said next home game, Jets, Dolphins at that stadium. And I said, I think to two different people, I go, do you think this offensive formula, the Jets currently have is going to work against the Dolphins as far as keeping up with Tua and Tyreke on the scoreboard? I mean, think about that.

That's kind of what you were getting at. You know, Buffalo, Miami coming up. You know, I don't know if this formula offensively, you know, of kind of taking the ball out of the quarterback's hand. And, you know, when you're in the red zone, you know, set up a field goals because you don't want to take any chances.

Not sure that's going to work against Miami and Buffalo as far as keeping up with the Joneses on the scoreboard. I know it's not fair at this point, really, to project into the future. But if the Jets miss the playoffs with all these young pieces, how many changes would you expect in the offseason?

Well, it all depends. You know, if Aaron Rodgers is cleared, you know, maybe if it's not for the playoffs or if they don't make the playoffs. They feel he's going to be the guy next year.

We all know he's got a seat at the table when it comes to personnel moves. So that's something you always got to consider as far as changes. I mean, I don't see a ton of changes. I think, you know, they felt they had a contender this year with Aaron Rodgers on the center. The big question is, why would you if you went out and traded all that draft capital and then paid Aaron Rodgers, you know, that rework deal, he gave some money back, but still a lot of money because you wanted to replace Zach Wilson to take the next step. Why would you have Zach Wilson as the primary backup?

I think that's the question that a lot of people have asked and will continue to ask. If you didn't have faith in him to be the guy this year, why would you have faith in him to be the emergency quarterback behind Aaron Rodgers this season? I mean, I was surprised they kept him last offseason. I was expecting him to get the boot anyway. Yeah, I think that goes back to the confirmation bias.

They don't want to give up on the dream. So they figured, let him sit behind Aaron Rodgers for a year and learn, but like they say, one snap away. So if you truly wanted to have a redshirt year for Zach Wilson to let him learn, go out and get a Trevor Simeon or whatever in the summer and say, this veteran is going to be the backup. We are taking a step back with Zach this year to fix his mechanics, to fix his footwork, to fix his decision-making.

He is not going to be one snap away if we truly want to fix those things. Man, so many questions that don't really have answers. You can find Dan Leberfeld on Twitter at JetsWhisperers.

He's the publisher of Jets Confidential Magazine, JetsConfidential.com. It's always good to catch up with you. Thank you so much for a couple of minutes. Anytime, Amy.

Have a good night. Maybe you're still new to this whole EV thing, but those range fears? Turns out your all-electric Hyundai IONIQ 5 gets you to work and back all week on a single charge. And now every IONIQ 5 comes with a complimentary EV charger and up to $600 installation credit. When it comes to embracing change, we're thinking of every mile. Hyundai, it's your journey. Call 562-314-4603 for complete details. 2023 IONIQ 5 rear-wheel drive has an EPA estimated driving range of up to 303 miles.

Actual range will vary with options, driving conditions and habits, vehicle and batteries condition and other factors. Available in limited quantities and select states only. This holiday season, ask for concert and comedy tickets. Create your wish list at LiveNation.com. Choose from thousands of the hottest shows, including Chelsea Handler, Belja Cat, Jonas Brothers, New Kids on the Block, Niall Horan, Tim McGraw, and more. Just sign in, add your favorite shows, and send a helpful hint to family and friends. It's never been easier to get what you want, an unforgettable night out with your favorite artists.

Create your wish list today at LiveNation.com slash wish list. Ew, gotta get rid of this old Backstreet Boys t-shirt. Tell me why. Because it stinks, boys. Tell me why. I've washed it so many times, but the odor won't come out.

Tell me why. No, you tell me why I can't get rid of this odor. Have you tried Downy Rinse and Refresh? It doesn't just cover up odors. It helps remove them. Wow, it worked, guys.

Yeah. Downy Rinse and Refresh removes more odor in one wash than the leading value detergent in three washes. Find it wherever you buy laundry products.