EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — The second win of the season was two months in the making for the New York Jets. Now they get two weeks to enjoy it — which is good for head coach Rex Ryan, who might just need all that time to remember how to celebrate and savor a victory.

“Oh man, I don’t know, but I can’t wait,” Ryan said Sunday afternoon following the Jets’ stunning 20-13 upset of the Pittsburgh Steelers at MetLife Stadium. “Because I tell you, when you win, everything’s better. Food’s better. I always tell the guys: Your girlfriend’s prettier. Wife’s better looking. And the beer is colder. So that’s a great feeling.”

It was a feeling the Jets (2-8) appeared as if they might never experience again during an eight-game losing streak that cost quarterback Geno Smith his job and imperiled the futures of Ryan as well as general manager John Idzik.

But the Jets avoided the longest single-season losing streak in franchise history and went into the bye week on a winning note by going back to the basics of a Ryan-coached team Sunday, when they forced four turnovers — one more than they’d forced in the first nine games combined — while committing none.

Quarterback Michael Vick played mistake-free ball in going 10-of-18 for 132 yards and two touchdowns. He also added 39 yards rushing on eight carries. With an 18-yard gain in the third quarter, he became the first quarterback in history to reach 6,000 yards rushing.

A beleaguered Jets defense that had surrendered a league-high 24 passing touchdowns entering Sunday, didn’t allow Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger — who threw six touchdown passes in each of the previous two games — to find the end zone until the final two minutes.

“We were going to play Jets football — we’re not intimidated by anybody, we’ve faced them all,” Ryan said, “We just played Jets football and that was good enough today.”

Safety Jaiquawn Jarrett, who started in place of benched rookie Calvin Pryor, led the defense with two interceptions, a fumble recovery and a sack. He entered Sunday with no interceptions or fumble recoveries and a half-sack in four NFL seasons.

The Jets were already up 10-0 — via a 23-yard field goal by kicker Nick Folk and a 67-yard touchdown pass from Vick to wide receiver T.J. Graham — before forcing the Steelers’ first turnover.

Pittsburgh wide receiver Antonio Brown fumbled on the Steelers’ first play from scrimmage following Graham’s touchdown. The ball was recovered by Jarrett and the Jets extended their lead to 17-0 five plays later on a five-yard touchdown pass from Vick to tight end Jace Amaro.

What the Jets said:

“Finally. I’ll tell you what, that felt great. Typical way to end the game, I thought. Only this year can you feel like you’ve got a win and then give up an 80-yard touchdown pass. Oh my goodness. But you know what? We’ll take the win.” — Head coach Rex Ryan, after New York survived a last-minute 80-yard touchdown pass by the Steelers to snap an eight-game losing streak with a 20-13 victory.

What the Steelers said:

“Bottom line is we didn’t do what was required to win today. We didn’t secure the ball, we didn’t get the ball. It’s not winning football.” — Head coach Mike Tomlin

What we learned about the Jets:

1. The Jets have a playmaker on defense, and his name is … Jaiquawn Jarrett? The little-known fourth-year safety was a part-time player in the first half of the season, but drew the start Sunday with rookie safety Calvin Pryor underperforming and head coach Rex Ryan in desperate search of a spark. Jarrett responded by intercepting two passes, recovering a fumble and notching a sack in the Jets’ 20-13 win over the Steelers. He entered the game with no interceptions or fumble recoveries and a half-sack in his career. “My mindset is the same every day going into practice,” Jarrett said. “Prepare like a starter.” He’ll likely get to be a starter the rest of the season as the Jets (2-8) begin trying to find potential contributors for 2015 and beyond.

2. Michael Vick should have been the Jets’ starting quarterback weeks ago. He probably wouldn’t have directed the talent-starved Jets to the playoffs in the loaded AFC, but at least the Jets would have had an NFL-caliber offense for the majority of the season. Vick has directed the Jets on 10 scoring drives in 31 possessions since taking over in the first quarter of a 43-23 loss to the Bills on Oct. 26. He’s committed three turnovers, but none in his two starts. Deposed starter Geno Smith led the Jets to 10 scoring drives in his final 29 possessions as starter but committed five of the Jets’ six turnovers in that span. There’s always doubt whether or not Vick can continue to play efficient football, but he’s done so the last 11 quarters while also displaying the game-breaking arm and speed that remains top-notch even 14 years into his career. Vick’s 67-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver T.J. Graham on Sunday was a thing of beauty in which Vick dropped the ball into Graham’s hands in double coverage. Vick also accounted for the Jets’ second- and third-longest plays from scrimmage Sunday with a pair of 18-yard scrambles. He’s putting himself in position to start somewhere next year.

–QB Michael Vick made NFL history Sunday, when he became the first quarterback to reach 6,000 career rushing yards by rushing eight times for 39 yards in the Jets’ 20-13 win over the Steelers. Vick surpassed the 6,000-yard mark on an 18-yard scramble in the third quarter. It was one of two 18-yard runs for Vick, who was 10-of-18 passing for 132 yards and two touchdowns in his first win as a starting quarterback since Oct. 6, 2013.

–S Jaiquawn Jarrett had the best game of his NFL career Sunday, when he took advantage of a rare start by recording two interceptions, one fumble recovery and a sack in the Jets’ 20-13 win over the Steelers. Jarrett set up a Jets touchdown by recovering a fumble in the first quarter and picked off Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger in the red zone once apiece in the second and third quarters. Jarrett, who hadn’t started a game this season, entered Sunday with no interceptions, no fumble recoveries and half a sack in four NFL seasons.

–CB Darrin Walls (calf) missed his second straight game Sunday, when the Jets beat the Steelers 20-13. Walls was injured in the Jets’ 43-23 loss to the Bills on Oct. 26 and hasn’t practiced since.

–QB Geno Smith (right shoulder) was active Sunday but didn’t play as the backup to Michael Vick in the Jets’ 20-13 win over the Steelers. Smith, who lost his job after he threw three interceptions in a 43-23 loss to the Bills on Oct. 26, was inactive last week due to a right shoulder injury

What we learned about the Steelers:

1. A 20-13 loss to the woebegone Jets proves the Steelers aren’t good enough to overlook anybody. The Steelers surely entered Sunday feeling pretty good about themselves after a three-game winning streak in which they outscored Houston, Indianapolis and Baltimore by a combined 124-80. Those three teams entered play Sunday a combined 15-12. But the Jets, who began Sunday with an eight-game losing streak, outgained the Steelers 164-5 in jumping out to a 17-0 first-quarter lead and forced four turnovers in a game that wasn’t as close as the final score indicated. “This is a team we should beat,” linebacker Lawrence Timmons said. “But this is the NFL. You have to go into their house. You can’t go in and win when you have four turnovers and not enough defense.” Now the Steelers are on the outside looking in in both the AFC North, where they are a half-game behind first-place Cleveland, as well as in the wild card race, where they are percentage points behind current no. 6 seed Cincinnati.

2. Nor are the Steelers good enough to get away with making foolish mistakes. Kicker Shaun Suisham, who kicked a career-long 53-yard field goal to end the first half, shanked a 23-yarder to open the fourth quarter. A Suisham field goal pulled the Steelers within 20-6 midway through the fourth quarter, after which they appeared to recover an onside kick. But wide receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey, who recovered the kick, was ruled offside. Cornerback William Gay dropped an interception in the red zone, which allowed the Jets to kick a field goal. Even superstar wide receiver Antonio Brown was not immune: He lost two fumbles, one of which led to a touchdown. “You play sloppy against anybody, you’re going to lose the game,” running back Le’Veon Bell said.

–WR Antonio Brown had a rare subpar game Sunday, when he lost two fumbles and was limited to eight catches for 74 yards in the Steelers’ 20-13 loss to the Jets. Brown was stripped of the ball after making a first-quarter catch and muffed a punt return in the second quarter. The 74 yards were a season-low for Brown, who has at least five catches and 50 yards receiving in an NFL-record 26 consecutive games.

–QB Ben Roethlisberger’s stretch of red-hot play came to a screeching halt Sunday, when he suffered through his first multi-interception game of the season in the Steelers’ 20-13 loss to the Jets. Roethlisberger, who set an NFL record by throwing six touchdown passes in each of his last two games, was 30-of-43 for 343 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions Sunday. His touchdown — an 80-yard bomb to WR Martavis Bryant — came with just 1:16 left in the fourth quarter. The two interceptions, both of which he threw in the red zone, were one shy of his season total entering the game. It was his first two-interception game since Dec. 29, 2013.

–K Shaun Suisham kicked a career-long 53-yard field goal to end the first half Sunday but also shanked a 23-yard field goal in the fourth quarter of the Steelers’ 20-13 loss to the Jets. The miss was the shortest in the NFL this season. The 53-yard kick was the fourth 50-yarder of Suisham’s career and one yard longer than his previous best. He nailed a 52-yarder for the Redskins in 2006 and a 52-yarder for the Steelers in 2012.

–S Troy Polamalu (knee) missed the Steelers’ 20-13 loss to the Jets on Sunday. Polamalu was injured during the Steelers’ 43-23 win over the Ravens on Nov. 2 and was declared out for the Jets game earlier in the week. Prior to Sunday, Polamalu had played in each of the Steelers’ last 30 games.