The New England Patriots look to move to 3-0 on the season when they welcome the New York Jets to Foxborough, Mass., on Sunday. The Jets come into the game with an 0-2 record.
Next Man Up
The New York Jets currently are 0-2 sitting between a rock and a hard place. Not only is their starting quarterback, Sam Darnold, currently out with mono, but they also lost their backup, Trevor Siemian, to an ankle injury in Week 2, and now have Luke Falk under center.
The Jets offense will most likely revolve around their newly-acquired running back Le’Veon Bell, as they travel to take on the Patriots. Bell has 128 yards rushing so far this season with no touchdowns on the ground and one through the air. He also had 10 catches for 61 yards against the Browns on Monday night.
The Jets injury list continues to grow, with Darnold and Siemian out at QB, and they also have CJ Mosley, Quinnen Williams, and Brian Poole all out on the defensive side of the ball. It will take many guys stepping up this week to match up with all the weapons on the Patriots offense.
New York has only averaged 9.5 points per game over the first two weeks while giving up 20 points a week. They were able to play Buffalo close in Week 1, losing just 17-16, but once they lost their second quarterback in Week 2, the wheels seemed to fall off as they took a loss against Cleveland 23-3.
Rolling Early
The Pats are off to a 2-0 start, and with their stout defense, their offensive weapons, and Tom Brady, the talks of going 16-0 have already started. While predicting an undefeated record seems premature, this may be the best Patriots team we have seen in years.
While everyone likes to talk about offense, the most underrated part of this Patriots team may be its defense. With all the focus on Brady and the offense — as well as Antonio Brown’s problems before he was released Friday — the New England defense has allowed just 1.5 points per game over the first two weeks. All of this while coming off a season where they held the high-powered Rams to just three points in the Super Bowl.
With the Jets offense lacking any real firepower to stay on the field and their defense struggling and dealing with injuries, this game is set up for the Patriots to dominate start to finish once again. Their offense should be on the field for most of the game with their team of running backs splitting carries and prolonging drives.
While divisional matchups usually play a little closer than most, Brady and the offense should have no problem in this one. The Patriots are averaging 318 yards passing a game and 111.5 yards rushing. Brady has a WR group featuring Gordon and Julian Edelman that rivals any group he has had in his entire career. I’m not jumping on the undefeated Patriots bandwagon yet, but if there was a team that could do it this season, it is New England.
Currently, tackle Marcus Cannon, guard Caleb Benenoch, and fullback James Develin are listed as questionable for Sunday’s game, but all are expected to play.
What To Expect
The Jets will have to have a perfect gameplan in place if they wish to hang with the Patriots in this one. While divisional opponents can be tough, last week the Patriots proved against the Dolphins that they could stick to a gameplan and take care of business. This game should be a Patriots showcase from start to finish. It may be closer than the experts predict, but the Patriots will win.
