Thursday Night Football: New York Jets vs New England Patriots

The New York Jets and New England Patriots will renew their AFC East rivalry when they meet for the first time this year on Thursday Night Football.

New York Jets (1-5) vs. New England Patriots (4-2), Thursday, October 16, 8:30 PM. ET.

After winning their first game of the season, the Jets have lost five games in a row, which has seriously dampened their playoff aspirations. The Jets finished last season 8-8, defying a lot of people who had low expectations for the team. In the offseason, they added Chris Johnson and Eric Decker, and were supposed to contend for the AFC East crown this season, but haven’t looked like contenders so far.

The Patriots were one of the favorites to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl, but they also endured a slow start to their season. They lost their first game to the Miami Dolphins, and had a lot of offensive problems in their first four games, which led to critics wondering if the team’s window to win another championship was finally closed, especially after a humiliating loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.

The Patriots rebounded from the disappointing loss to the Chiefs by winning their next game against the previously undefeated Cincinnati Bengals, and another over the Buffalo Bills, who had a share of the division lead. During the two game streaks, quarterback Tom Brady has thrown 6 touchdown passes, after throwing 4 in their first 4 games.

The Jets were the league’s best running team after the first three weeks, but they have been unable to run the ball consistently since then. Their lack of a running game is putting added pressure on Geno Smith and the passing game, which is the worst in the league. The offense is averaging 16 points per game, which is 30th in the league; they will need to score more points than they currently do, if they want to win any more games this season.

New York’s defense was also supposed to be strength this season, but they have not been as good as advertised. Second year cornerback Dee Milliner has been sidelined with injuries for most of the season and the defense is allowing opponents to score 26.3 points per game, which is 25th in the league. 

Defensively, the Patriots have had some problems with the run, but managed to play good run defense against the Buffalo Bills, and will try to continue playing well against the run when they face New York.

The Patriots have three straight games at home on the schedule; with a game against the Denver Broncos on November 2, before their bye week, the game against Denver will let them know how they stack up against the best team in the AFC.