The last time the Jets and Patriots played each other, the Jets looked like they had given up on the season with Luke Falk as their quarterback. Now, after Sam Darnold’s illustrious return, the Jets look rejuvenated on the heels of their first win of the 2019 season.
But that euphoric feeling of victory could fade quickly Monday night against arguably the best team in football right now. The Patriots rank near the top of the league in offense and defense and show almost no signs of slowing down any time soon. The Jets, meanwhile, continue to look to hold on to their spark of hope to save what is left of their year.
Here are four things to know for the Jets’ Week 7 matchup with the Patriots.
Sam Darnold better at home
The comfortable confines of MetLife Stadium have been friendly to Sam Darnold so far during his career. In eight games at home, Darnold completed 62.28 percent of his passes and averaged 265 passing yards and almost two touchdowns. He torched the Cowboys secondary in Week 6 for 338 yards and two scores and will look to continue to play well at home against the Patriots.
However, New England presents a much tougher challenge for the young quarterback and home-field advantage probably won’t matter as much against the third-best passing defense in the league. The Patriots have allowed just 160 passing yards on average and opposing quarterbacks have only completed 53.3 percent of their passes. New England only gave up 68 passing yards to the Jets in Week 3, but that was with Luke Falk under center. Darnold should be able to at least play better than that at home.
Another new starting offensive line
The Jets offensive line looked vastly improved in Week 6 against the Cowboys after allowing only two sacks in New York’s first win. However, the ankle injury to Kelvin Beachum forced Adam Gase to shake up the lineup again, this time moving rookie Chuma Edoga to left tackle and Brandon Shell back to right tackle.
Sam Darnold looked tremendous against the Cowboys thanks to his line, but now that same unit faces a much more menacing matchup in the Patriots, who rank first in sack percentage on passing attempts and second in the league in total sacks with 25. Shell continues to disappoint after giving up a sack in only 22 snaps in Week 6, and Edoga will now go toe-to-toe with the likes of Kyle Van Noy and Jamie Collins, some of the best linebackers in the league.
Patriots offense will be short-handed
Not that it means anything, but the Patriots could be without a couple of key offensive contributors against the Jets. Tight ends Ryan Izzo and Matt LaCosse, as well as wide receiver Josh Gordon, have already been ruled out, and Julian Edelman, Philip Dorsett, Gunner Olszewski and Rex Burkhead are all questionable to play. Edelman is fully expected to play, but he, James White and Sony Michel will be the only experienced weapons for Tom Brady to work with against the Jets.
The Patriots have been able to score with just about everyone, but an injury-depleted Patriots offense is still easier to defend against than a fully-loaded one. With the expected return of C.J. Mosley, the Jets might have a shot at containing one of the best offense’s in the league if they can emulate what the Bills did in Week 4 when they held the Patriots to only 16 points.
C.J. Mosley should rejuvenate defense
The Jets paid Mosley an exorbitant amount of money to be the glue that holds the defense together. He played that role well for almost the entirety of the Jets’ Week 1 game against the Bills, but as soon as he left with a groin injury the team gave up 16 points and lost in a heartbreaker.
Mosley says he’ll play Monday night, and that would be an incredible boost to the Jets defense from both a moral standpoint and a schematic one. Mosley is a potent pass rusher but his presence will stabilize the middle of the Jets defense, especially against short and intermediate passes to the likes of Edelman and White.
