EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — It had been almost nine months since the Jets’ last regular-season game at MetLife Stadium, and they celebrated the occasion Sunday by bearing little resemblance to the team that trudged into turmoil that day.
There was the remarkably competent performance at quarterback, a position that has displayed little that was remarkable or competent for some time. There was the defense that accomplished the heretofore alien task of forcing turnovers, not just one but five — yes, five. There was also the victory, by 31-10 over the Cleveland Browns, in which the Jets masked their first-half imperfections with a second-half demolition.