PITTSBURGH (AP) — Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets insist the season is not slipping away despite the recent addition of All-Pro wide receiver Davante Adams.

Rodgers and Adams were reunited in New York after the Jets acquired the star wide receiver from Las Vegas earlier this week. But in their first game with the Jets, the two were unable to re-establish the on-court connection they had in Green Bay as Pittsburgh used a big second half to earn a 37-15 victory on Sunday night.

“You see the great synergy,” said interim coach Jeff Ulbrich. “You can see the relationship they had and the same page they were on. At the same time, it has been a second since they played together. As we move forward, I imagine the relationship and production between the two will increase.”

New York played its second game with Ulbrich as interim coach after Robert Saleh was fired on Oct. 8, but the Jets fell to 2-5 overall and could not avoid their first four-game losing streak since a five-game skid last year . season.

Rodgers completed 24 of 39 passes for 276 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions. Adams was targeted nine times, including the Jets’ first offensive play of the game, but finished with just three catches for 30 yards.

“I threw a wide one at him on the first one,” Rodgers said. “He hit a little bit of a deep cross, but at that cross I felt like we were on the same page.”

Adams caught 615 passes from Rodgers for 7,517 yards and 68 touchdowns over eight seasons combined in Green Bay. Adams sat out the Raiders’ previous three games with a hamstring injury that coincided with a trade request.

Adams, a three-time All-Pro, had 18 receptions for 209 yards and a touchdown with the Raiders this season. Adams has had 100 or more catches in five of his previous six seasons, including a career-high of 123 in 2021 with Rodgers in Green Bay.

“I wouldn’t say it’s rust,” Adams said. “We can continue to achieve a better page. It’s just football. It doesn’t always work perfectly.”

The Jets opened a 15-6 lead thanks to touchdowns on two of their first five possessions. Breece Hall scored on a 13-yard run and Tyler Conklin caught a 1-yard play-action pass from Rodgers.

Pittsburgh scored 31 unanswered points after Conklin’s touchdown. Rodgers threw two game-changing interceptions to Beanie Bishop, New York punted, Pittsburgh blocked a field goal and the Jets turned the ball over on downs on their next five series. Hall had 114 yards from scrimmage in the first half, but was limited to just 27 yards the rest of the way.

After the game, Rodgers complained to Bishop about his first interception.

“It was a bad throw,” Rodgers said. “For whatever reason, it just changed the whole energy of the game.”

Star pass rusher Haason Reddick ended his long stint with the Jets and will report to the team on Monday. He has not played this season amid a contract dispute with the Jets, who acquired him from Philadelphia in March to boost their pass rush.

New York had the No. 2 defense in Sunday’s game but managed just one sack, while Russell Wilson and the Steelers piled up a season-high 409 yards and 37 points in total offense, the first time since 2020 that Pittsburgh has at least scored. 30 points in consecutive games.

Reddick, a two-time Pro Bowler, has 58 sacks in seven NFL seasons, but he returns to a team reeling from yet another loss.

“Everything is still right in front of us,” Rodgers said. “We have to somehow keep the faith in the locker room and get going. We can’t win ten in a row unless we win the first one.”

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AP N.F.L.: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL