It’s a battle of two of the NFL’s worst offenses in Week 9, and the Dolphins are actually the better statistical team despite their winless record. Miami has more yards, plays run, yards per play, first downs and touchdowns after seven games, but the Jets have one more win.
This game, though, is the perfect opportunity for the Jets offense to get back on track against a horrific defense. The Dolphins have allowed a league-high 34 points per game and only forced three turnovers this season. Sam Darnold and company need a clean game to keep their spirits alive, especially after a tumultuous trade deadline this past week.
Here are four keys to the Jets offense heading into Week 9.
Attack through the air
The Dolphins have been gashed through the air, and now they’ll be without their best cornerback after placing Xavien Howard on injured reserve. The Dolphins allow the fourth-most passing touchdowns (18), second-most yards per completion (13.4) and the highest quarterback rating (120.0). Adam Gase needs to attack Miami’s weak secondary with a barrage of passing plays.
Darnold should also have ample time to throw, as the Dolphins are bad at rushing the passer. They only have 39 quarterback pressures, 15 hurries, 15 knockdowns, and nine sacks – all among the worst in the league. The Jets put up 24 points in their lone win of the season thanks to a great passing attack by Darnold and that performance could be replicated against the Dolphins.
String together longer drives
The Jets haven’t scored many times this season, but when they have it’s mostly been because of elongated drives. New York is 32nd in plays per drive (4.5) and scoring percentage (10 percent) this season, so it’s not all that surprising that the Jets average double the plays of their season average on drives they score points.
Miami, meanwhile, allows teams to score on half of its offensive drives – highest in the league – and average 6.1 plays per drive, which is tied for sixth in the league. The Jets won’t score unless they can build a long drive that also fatigues the Dolphins’ defense.
Score touchdowns in the red zone
Teams have scored touchdowns almost at will against Miami in the red zone: 68 percent of offensive drives end in touchdowns when facing the Dolphins defense, which is third-highest in the league. The Jets have the fewest red zone attempts in the league (nine), but at least they managed to score touchdowns on more than half of them (five).
Though it looks like Chris Herndon will miss another game, Darnold will have an almost full arsenal with Robby Anderson, Le’Veon Bell, Jamison Crowder and Demaryius Thomas. When the team gets inside the 20-yard line, they need to make it count.
Keep Darnold upright
This is more a prayer than anything after the offensive line gave up eight sacks last week. Darnold was actually on his way to a fantastic game against the Jaguars after opening up with a 12-play, 93-yard touchdown drive, but crashed down to earth when the offensive line failed to protect him. The line gave up eight sacks and hasn’t looked the same since its fantastic performance against the Cowboys in Week 6.
Darnold is mostly at fault for his eight turnovers over the past few weeks, but the offensive line isn’t doing him any favors, either. Teams are consistently getting to Darnold and putting him in situations where he can’t get good throws off, or he scrambles away and forces a pass. Fortunately, Miami is a terrible pass-rushing team that should help. But if the Jets’ offensive line can’t block the Dolphins than Adam Gase has an enormous problem.
