Three takeaways from Jets’ Week 18 victory over Dolphins

1. Keeping Garrett Wilson happy should be a priority

As bad as a year that it was for the Jets, Garrett Wilson had one of the best seasons for a wide receiver in Jets’ history.

He caught four passes for 51 yards in the Jets’ season-ending 32-20 victory over Miami. Wilson set career highs with 101 receptions for 1,104 yards and seven touchdowns.

Wilson is just the second Jet with 100 catches in a season, joining Brandon Marshall (109 in 2015).

An impressive year, but Wilson was neither satisfied nor happy.

“I’m sure it will be [meaningful] down the road when I finish up playing and all,” Wilson said. “I had 100. I needed about 130, 120 or so if we were going to do what we wanted. I didn’t play my best ball. I’m sure down the road I’ll look back on it and be like maybe it wasn’t that bad.”

Wilson was so excited to be able to play with Aaron Rodgers. As the season progressed, Wilson’s frustration with losing and not getting targeted in key moments was very apparent. Rodgers looked more Davante Adams’ way than Wilson’s.

Adams was targeted 12 times Sunday, Wilson just five.

There has been speculation that Wilson could ask to be relocated to a better situation. He’s only 24 and eligible for an extension.

One of the first things the new Jets general manager and head coach should do is work on repairing the relationship with Wilson and try to lock him up long term.

2. Sherwood and McDonald were major surprises

The Jets’ biggest surprise — other than how badly this season went overall — was the performance of two defensive players.

Linebacker Jamien Sherwood led the Jets with 158 tackles, tied for the third most in franchise history.

Will McDonald, the second-year edge rusher, had a team-high 10.5 sacks.

Injuries and one lengthy holdout contributed to their breakout seasons.

Losing Jermaine Johnson (torn Achilles tendon) in Week 2 and Haason Reddick’s seven-game holdout gave McDonald more opportunities and he produced. McDonald and Johnson give the Jets two athletic, versatile edge rushers who could continue to improve.

Sherwood’s expanded role came because of multiple injuries to captain C.J. Mosley. Sherwood’s teammates voted him the Jets’ MVP. He’s going to be a free agent. The Jets shouldn’t let this homegrown player leave their building.

3. So many disappointments The biggest disappointment was how badly the Jets underachieved. Here are some other big disappointments:

• Rodgers wasn’t able to impact winning the way most expected. The Jets finished with two fewer wins than the last two seasons when Zach Wilson was their starting quarterback.
• Reddick’s holdout and not having an impact on defense. He finished with one sack in 10 games
• The defense overall. From points allowed (23.8) to blown fourth-quarter leads (six) to the lack of pressure the Jets got on quarterbacks, this unit regressed in a major way after Robert Saleh was fired in October.
• Breece Hall’s numbers: He was sure he would get 1,000 rushing yards and flirt with 1,000 yards receiving. Hall fell short on both. It’s not all his doing.

The Jets’ run blocking wasn’t effective. They also deserted the run quickly. Hall never had more than 20 carries in a game. The Jets became a pass-heavy offense under Rodgers. Hall was targeted less than last season, but he also had eight drops.