The ill-fated play was now four days old, but on Thursday, it was still visibly eating at Mike LaFleur. 

The Jets’ offensive coordinator took full ownership for a lack of communication on last Sunday’s fourth-and-2 play-call gone wrong, which helped turn a potential upset of the Buccaneers into a gut-punch loss. 

LaFleur called a play for an end-around to wide receiver Braxton Berrios, but it included a built-in read for Zach Wilson to run a quarterback sneak if he got the right look. Wilson went for the sneak and came up short, allowing Tom Brady and the Bucs to march 93 yards for the game-winning touchdown. 

“First, it’s 100 percent on me,” LaFleur said Thursday. “Disappointed in myself for two reasons: I pride myself on communication and our unit on execution. I failed at both of those. The total intent was to get Braxton the ball, he was balling. I failed at that, to get that relayed. 

“Our quarterback did exactly what he was supposed to do in that moment. I know what our intent was, whether people want to believe that or not, but that’s what happened. I failed at both and I have to live with that. I know I’m going to learn from that. I know I have learned from that. You can’t let the same play beat you twice. In that situation, I’m going to make sure that absolutely does not happen again.” 

In the aftermath of the game, Wilson received some criticism for being selfish and taking the ball himself. But LaFleur took the blame, adding that he knows he called the right play, he just didn’t have the proper communication. 

“Not a time to sneak it, obviously. That’s why I can’t call that play. That’s why I need to communicate what needed to happen,” LaFleur said. “But it didn’t get done.” 

The crunch-time snafu put a damper on what has otherwise been an encouraging stretch run to the season from both LaFleur and Wilson. 

Both rookies in their respective positions, the first-time NFL play-caller and first-year NFL quarterback have experienced their share of bumps in the road, especially early in the season. The Jets started off averaging 6.7 points through their first three games and didn’t score any first-quarter points until Week 8 against the Bengals. 

But LaFleur has come into his own in the second half of the season, growing more comfortable calling plays and showing some creative thinking to make the best of an offense that has often been missing its top weapons. 

Wilson, for all the growing pains he experienced early on, is coming off his best game of his career Sunday when he nearly out-dueled Brady and the defending Super Bowl champs. 

“I feel like our relationship is just going to keep getting better,” Wilson said of LaFleur. “I feel like he’s probably obviously learned a lot this year as well, so it’s cool to kind of go through this whole process together. I think it’s just going to get better with time, but I really am enjoying the offense. 

“I brag about it to my old BYU coaches, and to my parents and stuff, how much I enjoy being a part of this system.” 

There is still plenty of room to grow — as evidenced by the fourth-and-2 play last Sunday, for which Wilson said LaFleur couldn’t take all the blame. But the 22-year-old quarterback and his 35-year-old offensive coordinator both insisted they would be better off for it in the years to come. 

“I think Year 1 to Year 2 for players is huge,” LaFleur said, “but just as important is how coaches can take the next step to get those players to be the best they possibly can be.”