Minkah Fitzpatrick clears air on Jets being Jets controversy during losing streak

There hasn’t been much good news around the Jets this season, and their misery was amplified after Sunday’s loss to the Raiders when veteran safety Minkah Fitzpatrick appeared to have said the team’s defensive mistakes were “Jets being Jets.”  Text with Brian Costello all season as he brings Sports+ subscribers the latest Jets intel from on the field and off.But Fitzpatrick reiterated Thursday he instead said it was the “Jets beating Jets,” referring to self-inflicted wounds due to penalties and miscues. For a team that entered the season with playoff aspirations and enters Sunday’s game in Kansas City just 2-6, having lost six of seven and three in a row, it was an unwanted distraction that Fitzpatrick said didn’t impact the mood of the locker room. “It hasn’t really caused any stir within this locker room,’’ Fitzpatrick said.

“That’s the most important thing.Everyone in this locker room knew what I was talking about.

If you look at the context of what I said, if you look at what I’ve been saying all season, we’ve been addressing ‘Jets not beating Jets’ or ‘Jets beating Jets.’ Everyone in this locker room knows exactly what I said, what I was trying to communicate, and in my opinion, that’s all that matters.” That, and maybe getting a win for the first time since they beat the Browns on Oct.11. Sunday, they’ll visit a Chiefs team that has dropped its past two after opening the year with five consecutive wins. “I know what I said,’’ Fitzpatrick said.

“It doesn’t matter.We’re playing Kansas City this week.

… This locker room needs to focus on winning right now — and not something that I might have not said or something I might have done.Our focus and objective now is to win and not focus on should’ve, would’ve, could’ve.” Fitzpatrick said the controversy impacted him more because it had the potential to distract the team from what they have to do on the field to try to salvage some...