An inside look at Sunday’s Jets-Patriots Week 7 matchup at Gilette Stadium:
Marquee matchup
Patriots offensive line vs. Jets defensive line
The Patriots have had a rotating cast of characters on their line recently. New England has used 10 different starters on its O-line, the most in the NFL. Injuries and trips to the COVID-19 list have kept them moving parts around, and it has hurt their continuity. The Patriots have started four linemen over the past two weeks who began the season as backups or on the practice squad. It has led to some offensive struggles for the Patriots, who are No. 26 in total offense in the league and No. 27 in rushing offense.
The Jets’ defensive line has been their best unit. They are fourth in quarterback hits per game, fifth in average time to throw and ninth in sacks per game (via TruMedia). They are one of eight teams in the league with four players who have 10 or more pressures this season — John Franklin-Myers (17), Quinnen Williams (14), Bryce Huff (12) and Sheldon Rankins (10), according to Next Gen Stats.
If the Jets can dominate the line of scrimmage, it could be a long day for Pats rookie QB Mac Jones.
“All those guys are high-motor guys,” Patriots coach Bill Belichick said. “[Franklin-]Myers has good power. Good speed on the edge. They do a good job pushing the pocket with their inside guys, so that makes it sometimes difficult for the quarterback to step up, which brings the outside guys into the rush.”
Costello’s call
This is a “get right” game for the Patriots, who lost a tough one to the Cowboys last week. I need to see the Jets solve their offensive issues to believe it. This one will be close until the fourth quarter, then the Patriots pull away.
Patriots 23, Jets 10
4 Downs
Mac attack: Rookie Patriots quarterback Mac Jones has gotten off to an impressive start. The former Alabama QB has completed more than 70 percent of his passes through six games. He’s the only rookie quarterback to do that in NFL history. He leads rookie quarterbacks in passing yards (1,472) and completions (150). His completion percentage is 71.1. The best completion percentage by a rookie for a season was Dallas’ Dak Prescott in 2016 at 67.76 percent. The Jets think Patriots coaches are now putting more trust in Jones.
“It feels as though that they’ve opened up the playbook a little bit more for him,” Jets defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich said. “The first time around it was screen, it was run, it was quick game, it was play-pass. All that still exists, for sure, but now there’s a little bit more drop back than you see in the first game I thought. So, it’s just they’re opening up the playbook. It’s more and more of the Tom Brady-type plays that he was very comfortable with, the historic Patriot plays that they’ve always had.”
Missing Mosley: The Jets are going to try to give inside linebacker C.J. Mosley a chance to convince them he could play Sunday morning before the game, but all signs point to Mosley missing this one with a hamstring injury. He has been one of the Jets’ best players, and his absence will be felt not only because of his ability as a linebacker, but also as the defensive signal-caller. Rookie Jamien Sherwood will replace Mosley if he can’t go.
“He carries himself like a vet,” Ulbrich said of Sherwood. “He communicates like a vet. Although he doesn’t have the experience that a C.J. has, he’s a guy that we have a lot of trust in. So, if C.J. can’t go, Jamien will be our guy.”
House of Horrors: The Jets have not fared well in Foxborough, Mass., since the Patriots opened Gillette Stadium in 2002. The Jets are 4-17 in the building, and their last win there came in the 2010 playoffs, when Rex Ryan and Mark Sanchez were the Jets’ leading men. In other words, it has been a while.
They have been especially bad there lately. The Jets have not scored more than 20 points there since 2015. They have lost by scores of 28-14, 30-14, 38-3, 26-6 and 41-3 in their past five trips there. Two of those games were the final game for a Jets head coach. Todd Bowles and Adam Gase both got fired a few hours after losing season finales in Foxborough.
Take your pick: The Jets have failed to get an interception yet this season through five games. Their drought actually is seven games if you go back to the final two games of last year. In other words, they are due. The seven-game drought without a pick is tied for the 13th longest in NFL history. The 2016-17 Raiders went 11 games without an interception. The Lions were the most recent team to have a drought like the Jets’ — they went eight games without a pick last year.