Tyler Conklin thinks Thursday’s game against the Texans could help Jets ‘flip the script’

It’s not easy being in the green and white these days, especially for vets who have done a few laps on the NFL calendar. The Jets fell to 2-6 after their fifth straight loss in New England on Sunday and must now get back on the horse to face a tough Houston team at MetLife Stadium on Thursday night.

But while Thursday games aren’t usually NFL players’ favorite day to wear pads, TE Tyler Conklin believes the upcoming TNF case could help the Jets beat the Texans and get back to winning ways.

“I think the only bright spot will be that we have a Thursday night game,” Conklin said of the Patriots’ 25-22 loss. “And we have no choice but to flip the script and come back and figure out how we’re going to win this game.

“I figure it’s a good opportunity to go get a really bad taste out of my mouth.”

Maybe Conk was up to something. The Jets’ second and final win of the season came in their solid home opener against the Patriots on Thursday night. And over the years, when the Jets win one game on Thursday, they tend to win the next. They won three straight at TNF from 2008-10 and two straight against the Bills in 2016-17.

Still, the Jets were also struggling Thursday after losing streaks of five and six games in that stretch, so there’s no guarantee of a breach, and the team, Conklin said, is still figuring out the details that led to their recent illness.

“After every game, you look back and think, ‘Damn, what?’ Especially in these close games,” he said. “And I think one thing that comes to mind is just shooting yourself in the foot with little things. Whether it’s penalties, pins, holds, whatever it is. It just seems like we’re making mistakes at a crucial moment that you don’t want to make when you want to win games in this league.”

Conklin doesn’t excuse himself from analyzing his own mistakes and finding answers to fix them, but he’s made some solid contributions to try to bring those Ws. With 26 catches for 240 yards, he’s poised for a 55-catch, 510-yard season that, along with a few more explosive plays, like his 27-yard catch from Aaron Rodgers over deep middle to start the fourth quarter at Gillette Stadium , could put him back in personal-best territory.

Then there is the landing. He went from a 32-game hitting drought that began in his first season with the Jets in 2022 to Rodgers’ second shortstop in two games. One more game against the Texans would put him in select company. Only three Jets tight ends since 2000 have caught TD passes in three straight games: