Late in the first quarter of their Week 1 loss to the 49ers, San Francisco faced a 3rd-and-5 attempt near the halfway line.

In this game, the Jets made an interesting strategic decision: They put their best cover corner, Sauce Gardner, on a tight end, George Kittle from San Francisco.

It’s interesting that Kittle hasn’t been Brock Purdy’s preferred target on third downs the last two years. Brandon Aiyuk has more targets. However, Kittle is such a difficult opponent for most linebackers and safeties that I think putting your best cornerback on him on a pass attempt is a defense.

What I don’t understand is why the Jets didn’t adjust their roster. Giving Gardner a role that would normally go to a linebacker or safety means either putting an extra cornerback on the field or giving a linebacker or safety a role that would normally go to Gardner.

On third-and-5, I think it would be a no-brainer to put that extra cornerback on the field (even considering how the Jets have been trounced in the run game). Since Kyle Shanahan became the 49ers’ head coach in 2017, San Francisco has thrown the ball 86.9% of the time on third-and-5. Stopping the pass should be the highest priority.

Instead, the Jets opted to start safety Tony Adams at cornerback. Adams is one of three defensive backs on the left side of the defensive formation, facing off against a group of 49ers wide receivers.

Adams is originally paired with Jauan Jennings. A wide receiver will never be an easy replacement for a safety.

A difficult task quickly becomes impossible when the Niners send Jennings to the outside. Adams is the inside defender. The inside receiver in the pack is Brandon Aiyuk.

When a reigning second-team All-Pro wide receiver faces a safety, good things happen to the offense and bad things happen to the defense.

Just a note. Adams’ positioning as the inside defender in the cluster doesn’t necessarily mean he automatically gets the inside receiver. He is the deepest positioned of the three defenders, which could mean he takes the receiver who runs a vertical route. In this case, it’s Aiyuk.

The point is that the Jets exposed themselves to a truly terrible matchup on a crucial down. A well-constructed offense like San Francisco will almost always take advantage of something like that.

Instead of leaving the field on the third attempt, the 49ers scored points on this drive.