Garrett Wilson did not try to sugarcoat things after the Jets struggled through a season-opening loss to the 49ers.

"You realize all of a sudden you not there," Wilson told reporters after the 32-19 defeat. "We gotta go prepare, get better every week every day every rep cause we not there yet. T

"hey whooped our ass today and that's the reality of it. We gotta find a way to get better. The great teams will bounce back from this and that's what we plan to do."

There was nothing untoward behind Sauce Gardner's brief absence from the Jets' season-opening loss to the Niners, the cornerback said after the 32-19 defeat.

"Oh, man, it was a tackle that I had made and I just had to get my wind back," Gardner told reporters in Santa Clara. "... When I felt like I was good, I went back on the field."

Gardner missed a total of nine plays as the Niners drove for an eventual field goal at the end of the first half. There was speculation about an injury, which the Jets shut down, then there was speculation about a benching, which was quelled by Robert Saleh, who said Gardner just needed a breather. Gardner backed up that explanation, so it appears all is well here.

One Jets fan was emblematic of all Jets fans on Monday night.

The ESPN cameras found a miserable-looking man clad in a Garrett Wilson No. 17 jersey in the Levi's Stadium stands taking some ribbing from the Niners fans on either side of him. Naturally, Joe Buck had some fun with it.

"These guys have been giving it to that Jets fan the entire second half," Buck said. "Stay strong! Stay strong!"

Aaron Rodgers didn't have the best night and admitted that after the Jets suffered a 32-19 loss to the Niners to open their season.

"We were bad in first and second down, I think for a lot of the game. We had a couple drives where we converted third downs. ... We didn't convert those third-and-mediums. We had a drop, a couple penalties, a bad throw -- a lot to correct," Rodgers told reporters in Santa Clara. "But overall, I feel really good about our guys. Thought the protection was really good tonight, we were just a little off in the run game. Couldn't get Breece going, couldn't get enough space. But a lot to build on."

Rodgers strung together a pair of impressive touchdown drives, but those accounted for the Jets' only points until the game got out of reach.

On the upside, Rodgers said he "felt great" in his first game after in Achilles tear, but it's no secret that the Jets need more from their star quarterback.

"No excuses," he said. "We've got to play better. I've got to play better."

Jets coach Robert Saleh struck an unworried tone after the Jets' season-opening loss to the Niners.

"We'll be better. 100 percent," Saleh told reporters after the 32-19 defeat. "I'm not worried. We'll get it fixed."

Saleh said the Jets never gave Aaron Rodgers a chance to get into rhythm, giving credit to the 49ers' defensive performance. Rodgers finished 13-for-21 for 167 yards, a touchdown and an interception.

"I thought he looked fine," Saleh said of Rodgers. "His command was fine." We'll be better, 100"

Saleh also added that Sauce Gardner's unexplained absence toward the end of the first half was so he could get a breather, confirming that the cornerback was not injured.

There's not much positive for the Jets to take out of a highly-anticipated season-opener.

Aaron Rodgers looked good in spots, leading a pair of touchdown drives, but a 13-for-21, 167-yard performance with an interception oozed of rust. The run game was a major problem spot, as Breece Hall picked up just 54 yards on 16 carries.

Allen Lazard, who scored a pair of touchdowns (one coming in garbage time) had an encouraging game and Garrett Wilson showed off his connection with Rodgers, but as a whole, the performance was less than ideal.

Defensively, the Jets didn't have to face Christian McCaffrey but got gashed on the ground anyway, with Jordan Mason running for 147 yards. Lack of pressure on Brock Purdy was also a consistent issue as the Niners' QB threw for 231 yards.

The only winner here was Haason Reddick, who will gain some leverage after the Jets' defensive line was a nonfactor in this one.

It's just one game and it came on the road against the NFC champs, so some grace can be afforded to the Jets. But given the Jets aspire to be competing for a title themselves, this was more than a little bit deflating.

Robert Saleh isn't bothering to try and pull off a miracle.

Down three scores with five minutes left, the Jets put in Tyrod Taylor and started running the ball, bleeding time off the clock. They will go to 0-1 after an all-around disappointing performance in Santa Clara to open the season.

Jake Moody might end up with the game ball from this one.

The Niners' kicker hit his sixth(!) field goal of the evening from 42 yards, extending San Francisco's lead to 32-13 with 4:20 to go. It's eight straight scoring drives for the Niners and even if six of those were field goals, that's a failing grade for a Jets defense that was billed as one of the best in the league.

Barring a miracle comeback, the Jets' chances of a comeback are probably done.

The Jets' window of opportunity is closing fast.

Down 29-13, a touchdown and a two-point conversion would have put the Jets within a score, but the offense couldn't produce that. After Breece Hall was forced out of bounds a yard short of the sticks on first down, the Jets tried and failed to pick up that yard on three consecutive plays.

The end result after Aaron Rodgers' pass to Garrett Wilson fell incomplete on fourth-and-1 is the Niners getting the ball at the 50, having already scored on seven straight possessions -- all but their first of the game. Doing so again here would likely put the game on ice.

Kyle Shanahan took the points on fourth-and-1 from the five-yard line, extending the Niners' lead to 29-13.

That's still a two-possession game, which is good news for the Jets, who have done a good job of bending and not breaking despite a generally lacking defensive performance. The defense did take a blow, however, as Michael Carter went down with an ankle issue during that drive. Carter, who is questionable to return, sprained his ankle during training camp.

The Jets needed some points and Aaron Rodgers delivered.

Rodgers hit Allen Lazard for a pair of throws, first dropping one right into his hands for 26 yards, then hitting him over the middle for a 36-yard score. After the Jets had struggled for a few drives in a row, this was a breath of fresh air from the star quarterback, and the sort of thing the Jets never would have been able to rely on from the position over the last few seasons.

After Breece Hall was stopped on a two-point conversion, the Jets are down 26-13, but they're still in the game.

The Jets held San Francisco to just three points after Rodgers was picked off, but still face a 19-point deficit with 3:28 to go in the third.

That counts as a minor win after the Niners took over with good field position, but the big picture still looks pretty bad for the Jets, who have put together just one good offensive drive on the night.