By ERIC MOLLO

STAFF WRITER

The Jets’ Monday night performance against the Atlanta Falcons was nothing short of exhilarating. Gang Green looked like it may have the best 3-4 defensive line in all of football and Geno Smith channeled his inner Peyton Manning on his way to a nearly-flawless display of quarterbacking. This all was done on the road, in one of the league’s toughest domes and on a nationally-televised stage. Mighty impressive.

So, with the Patriots losing in ugly fashion and the Dolphins looking like a hit-or-miss team, what’s next for Rex Ryan’s squad? Playoffs? Division title? Super Bowl in New York? Not so fast. It was only five weeks ago that people were talking about how good JaDeveon Clowney would look in green and white, so I’m going to hold off on the playoff chants while we’re still in early October.

A few years ago, it looked like Mark Sanchez might be leading the Jets to their first Super Bowl since the Namath era. Now, he will likely never play another down in green and white. There’s a long road ahead and the Jets still have a lot of holes they need to fill.

Take a deeper look at the Jets offense. It looked mighty good Monday, even without Santonio Holmes, but it still has some gaps on the offensive side of the ball. Just take a look at the running back situation. Rookie general manager John Idzik did a great job of adding talented runners Mike Goodson and Chris Ivory this offseason to help form a potential three-headed monster alongside Bilal Powell, but Izdik has one problem: None of these backs are proven. None of the three have ever carried the ball more than 150 times in a season and Ivory and Goodson have been marred by strings of small injuries throughout their young careers.

Monday night was the first time this season the Jets have had all three backs active for a game. They have potential to make thunder and lightning in an exciting backfield, but they have to prove they can stay healthy and perform on a consistent basis if this team’s going anywhere.

Turning to the receivers, it seems like a similar situation. There’s talent there, but the risk is high. Jeremy Kerley is serviceable and second-year receiver Stephen Hill has taken steps, but he’s far from a proven receiver. Jets fans, be honest: Did you really expect anything out of Santonio Holmes this year, especially with rumors swirling in August that he was “milking” injuries hoping to get released next offseason? Again, not sold on the Jets pass catchers.

And then there’s Geno. I like Geno. He seems to have his head on straight despite offseason rumors that he would turn into a “diva” quarterback, and he looked poised in leading the Jets to an upset thriller in Atlanta. But it’s only been five games. Yes, that’s it. Five games. Aaron Rodgers sat for 41 games before he even started one. It takes time to develop. Mistakes, and costly ones, are bound to happen. We can’t be sure he’s a playoff quarterback just yet.

All this being said, it’s been quite a shocking start to 2013 for Gang Green. Even without Darrelle Revis, Rex Ryan has magically turned the Jets’ defensive unit into one of the top in the league, and Marty Mornhinweg has taken a team that so badly needed an offensive spark, and beautifully implemented the West Coast offense. Now, do I think the Jets will be playing in January? Even five weeks is too early to tell, but I just don’t think they will. The talent is there, but the talent hasn’t proven it can withstand a 16 game season. Although it’s been an exciting season, it’s time to cool the jets until they’re winning games in November and December. Heck, even if the postseason isn’t in the cards for 2013, at least the Jets can say they’re better than New York’s other football team at this point.