My main concern this week is special teams. This unit has been awful. Folk missed another very makeable FG yesterday. The missing blockers on that blocked punt was a atrocious. Kerley I think ran one punt back. And but for a smart play by Decker the Skins would have recovered that kickoff. The Jets have been able to overcome special teams so far, but the margin for such errors is too small against a team like NE. I don't have much faith that these problems can be fixed in one week.
They will obviously be keying the on Ivory. He's good enough to still get yards and sometimes big gains even when they play the run. But I think we might have to use a different weapon at times and not stay with the same game plan. And I'm think of targeting Cumberland maybe 5 times to change things up and open up some space for Ivory. Cumberland is on the field, I mean. Why not use him more in the passing game.
I'm a little worried that we only managed one sack against the Redskins. It's generally accepted that you have to hit Brady early, often and hard to get him off his game. At least pressure him since he's not as mobile as a lot of the other elite QBs. If we couldn't really rattle Cousins I don't know how we'll rattle Brady.
It's been on the football field escaping your attention, apparently. Is this where you bring up sack numbers to try to prove me wrong?
Jets have playmakers in Marshall, Decker and Ivory why give Cumberland (aka Cumbersome) ANY primary targets. He hasn't shown he deserves ANY targets. Lam
things to do... 1) pressure up the middle, Brady can not handle it , 2) no space and hit the WR and slot guys at the LOS to throw off their timing/passing - they run drag routes 5-7 yards most of the time, 3) be physical on OL and DL..... our WR can beat their CB but they will play zone...so I see decker having a good game... what the status of Ous(spelling)... he has been out for a few weeks....
I wouldn't say he doesn't deserve any. But I think the Jets against NEP have to do a few new things on O to take the pressure off of Ivory. Look, he's starting so they don't exactly think he's crap. Cumberland is one guy another is Kerley. Guys not right now being used much as receivers. Of course on Sunday they went to Quincy even on at least one important 3rd down play.
It will take a monster effort by the defense...and a few turnovers. Unfortunately, we cant expect much from our ST. The problem is our general problem.....falling behind by two scores. We may be bringing a knife to a gunfight.
I hate the Patriots with a passion and nothing would make me happier than shutting those stupid, arrogant fans up this Sunday. That being said, look at the stretch of games we have after them: @Raiders Jaguars Bills @Texans Dolphins "@" Giants Titans Yea, I'm looking past them, sue me. This team can win a shit load of games this season with that schedule. And if it wins Sunday then there's an outside chance that the last 3 games (@ Dallas, New England, @ Buffalo) could be for the first division title since 2002. Realistically, we need to sweep the Patriots and have them lose 2 other games for that to happen. A loss Sunday puts us 2 back and eliminates the possibility of taking the 2-0 H2H divisional tiebreaker, which would be key since I don't think we can outright finish ahead of them. Long story short is that if we sweep the Patriots [unrealistic] and go 6-3 [realistic] in (OAK, JAX, BUF, HOU, MIA, NYG, TEN, DAL, BUF) we may be able to win the division. That hope is likely gone if we lose Sunday, but I won't complain if we stay relevant in the wild card race, not by a long shot. This is going to be the most fun season in years.
You have to bring more confidence to the forum. They're not this invincible team. Beatable in many facets of the game. Stop Edelman and Gronk and same time get a push of the ever weakened OL into Tammy's lap. This is what is working against them. Play mistake free ball.
Did anyone see Edelman's quotes about that Colts fake punt play? "Shame on them" "I'm glad they did it" "Nothing surprises you with the way they play". I have a general dislike for anyone in a Patriots uniform, but with most players it's just a faint distaste for being associated with the logo. Even with someone like Gronk, I actually kinda like him because he's a cool guy. But I have a passionate hatred for Edelman. He's such a fucking pussy. The way he talks shit, bitches and complains about everything, he's just a walking toolbox. And if you've ever seen a game where he's mic'd up you know that he sucks Brady's dick on every chance he gets. Have you seen some of the modeling and TV stuff he does off the field? And the worst part is he's so cocky but he's really no different than any other short slot guy in the league. Put Cole Beasley or Kerley or Sanders in that offense and it's the same thing. Look at how Welker did away from New England, Brady makes all of them. I hope we break his other 9 fingers.
Edelman is a spoiled punk, he needs to be blown up on every play. Take the penalty and hurt him. His part in the Wahlburgers episode was just sad.
I don't know how the Concussion Protocol works, but I really hope Skrine can somehow play on Sunday. Losing him would be tough. He was brought in for games like this. The Jets are (4-1) but still have not played a solid 60 minutes yet. Heck, yesterday they really only played a solid 15. All they needed though. This week they will need 60. I have confidence because I don't fear the Patriots like other people/teams do. I watched the Jets play them close last year with Geno at QB, Rex at coach and a team without any talent. Now Revis has switched sides, Bowles is a good coach, Fitzpatrick is a clear upgrade over Geno, etc. Not saying the Jets will win, but they are fully capable.
Offensively: - Everything needs to be based off the running game. As I mentioned, the Jets are 1st in rushing/game and the Pats are 22nd in rushing allowed/game, despite forcing opponents to throw by taking large leads. They've been particularly gashed through the middle of the field by some not-so-great running backs. Ivory needs to get us in favorable downs and distances with downhill runs. This'll get us into convertable third downs and leave Brady on the sideline and the defense resting. - Malcom Butler is a very good cornerback, but the Patriots are very thin at the other corner spots. Belichick is the best in the league at taking away the opponents #1 target, so expect Marshall to have a tough time and probably some help over the top from an All-Pro in McCourty. Marshall needs to win some of the battles especially on big third downs and red zone opportunities. - We need to scheme to take advantage of their other cornerbacks. A good gameplan is that first half against the Colts, where Vonte Davis was doing a serviceable job on Marshall but Decker was repeatedly finding favorable matchups against linebackers, safeties and inferior corners. He had almost 100 first half yards before getting hurt. Marshall needs to win the occasional matchup like he did in that Colts game, while Decker carries the bulk against 1 on 1 matchups with mediocre corners. - Devin Smith is a wild card. Again, the Pats are very thin at corner so their 3rd/4th guys are very exploitable. If we can establish the run, maybe we can hit Smith with a play action long ball when he is matched up 1 on 1 with no help over the top, which is bound to happen with New England stacking the box and likely doubling Marshall or Decker. - New England has done a great job of neutralizing opposing tight ends this season by jamming the crap out of them at the line of scrimmage. Luckily, we don't use that position. So, ha! - Kerley has been a Pats killer in recent years but he's disappeared from the offense, sadly. - The Jets have outplayed the Patriots the last couple times they've played them but have been burned by settling for field goals while the Patriots score touchdowns. 1 touchdown is more points than 2 field goals. They need to capitalize with touchdown drives, don't settle! They might even have to take some risks, going for it on 4th downs in the red zone early on. They need to know they aren't going to win this game with a field goal barrage, Brady will get his points. Luckily, the Jets red zone offense has jumped all the way up from 32nd (last year) to 3rd this year. - Quarterbacks that have had success against this defense this year have made a conscious effort to get rid of the ball quickly. Fitz has been doing that all year, taking only 2 sacks in the process. QBs have gotten into trouble when looking to hit the home run, because Belichick's defenses are always sound. Look at the difference in how the Colts offense did when Luck was dinking and dunking (first half) vs looking deep (second half). Just chip, chip, chip away. Sustaining long drives with short plays is also a key to keeping Brady off the field. In that regard, I think Jets offense vs Patriots defense is actually a very favorable matchup for us, since their 2 weaknesses are the inside run and the quick pass, which is the entire foundation of our offense. We should be able to score in the high 20s if we execute properly. Defensively: -Tackling, tackling, tackling. According to PFF, Brady is getting rid of the ball in 2.11 seconds on average, the fastest they've ever recorded. Their offense is based on their pass catchers making plays after the catch. We need to stone them cold at the point of reception to keep them from picking up YAC. This'll keep them behind the down and distance and afford us the luxury of rushing the passer on a deep drop, which doesn't happen very often. Calvin Pryor and David Harris will be huge. They've both been remarkable at tackling in the open field this year, a far cry from 2014. If they can keep up their game in that regard then this area should be a success. - Communication is key. For some reason, every team that's played the Patriots this year has left Gronkowksi uncovered on multiple occasions. That's an obvious no-no and a recipe for disaster. I haven't seen too many blown coverages from us this year so I'm not overly worried here. Just be disciplined. New England loves to run their little pick/screen plays so you need to know where everyone else on the defense is so you're not running into each other. - Either Marcus Williams or Buster Skrine has to be active. That's imperative. We need someone who can match up in the slot against Amendola while the rest of the defense focuses on Edelman and Gronk. Luckily, Edelman has a little bit of a hand injury that caused him to drop 4 passes yesterday. That could be a huge factor. We also need Skrine's blitzing off the edge on third and long scenarios. - Legarrette Blount is the exact type of running back we usually shut down, but Dion Lewis is a problem. We know how bad our linebackers are in coverage. The one saving grace is that those wheel routes take a long time to develop so you can get pressure up the middle on those plays. The Redskins had Demario beat with Thompson on a wheel but it took too long and Sheldon was able to force a bad throw with pressure and getting his hands up. That needs to happen a lot in this game. Hands up on passes over the middle. - They're a mess at left tackle and center, so we need to abuse them to shut down the run on early downs and get interior pressure on other downs. Luckily, Sheldon is our best pass rusher and had a monster game on Sunday. Hopefully he's fired up and has a huge game. - The matchup concerns me defensively because our biggest weaknesses are physical tight ends, shifty slot receivers and pass catching running backs. The Patriots have all 3, and multiple at 2 of those positions. It'll especially sting if Skrine and Williams both can't go. The best way to defend this offense is to keep it off the field, so it's imperative that our offense moves the ball and doesn't turn the ball over. A couple big sacks and lucky/tipped interceptions will likely be necessary to win this game. I can't see the Patriots scoring less than 27-30 so we're really gonna need to show up and get some breaks as well. Special teams: - Please, just don't Edelman return any punts. Kick it to the sideline. Overall: I love this matchup offensively, I hate it defensively. Hopefully the former works to cover up the latter, the opposite of what's happened so far this season. We can't have any miscommunications, allow special teams plays or have red zone turnovers. One of any of those could be enough to cost us the game. We'll have to be near perfect for near 60 minutes, let's see what this team is made of.
Not too worried either way about this one. I don't really expect the Jets to win and I like that it's a measuring stick game. But I'm not gonna go postal if they lose and it won't really mean much other than they aren't ready to dethrone the Patriots which we all know. Just another game on the schedule which happens to be a tough one
