The Jets head to Cleveland in Week 2 to take on the Browns and they sure could use a bounceback after last week’s rough outing, a 24-9 loss at home to the Baltimore Ravens. Let’s discuss some of the big stories for the Jets’ visit to FirstEnergy Stadium Sunday.
Offensive Line needs much better performance, especially against Garrett and company
It’s easy to go back and say Joe Flacco looked very bad against his former team. While that is true, it was not 100 percent his fault. The offensive line for the Jets was just as poor, if not worse, including left guard Laken Tomlinson.
Out of 61 guards on Pro Football Focus, Tomlinson’s grade of 38.6 ranked 58th. Indeed, out of all the qualified guards, only three (Miami’s Liam Eichenberg, Arizona’s Sean Harlow and Detroit’s Logan Stenberg) graded lower than one of the Jets’ big free-agent acquisitions.
Center Connor McGovern was 20th (out of 33) and the two tackles graded low, as well, with George Fant 40th and Max Mitchell 62nd (out of 64).
The one positive was guard Alijah Vera-Tucker ranking seventh among all guards in Week 1 for PFF grades with a 76.2.
All this is to say the line absolutely needs to be better, especially this week. Because if they aren’t, Browns edge Myles Garrett is going to eat Jets quarterback Joe Flacco for breakfast, lunch and dinner on Sunday.
Jets' No. 3 rush defense vs. dynamic duo of Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt
It may only be one week, but the Jets already look ten times better defending the run this season compared to last season, where they finished 29th in the league. Through one week, the Jets are the No. 3 rush defense after holding Baltimore to just 63 yards on the ground.
Week 2 presents a big challenge for the Jets, as they get to deal with the excellent tandem of Nick Chubb, Kareem Hunt and the Browns’ No. 2-ranked rushing offense. Last week against the Panthers, Chubb rushed 22 times for 141 yards and caught one pass for two yards, while Hunt saw 11 carries for 46 yards with a touchdown and also caught four passes for 24 yards and another touchdown.
With Jacoby Brissett under center for the Browns, Chubb and Hunt are likely going to continue seeing a lot of work. They combined for 38 touches for 213 yards. That was 60 percent of the Browns’ offense against the Panthers. The Jets have to figure out a way to contain the two excellent running backs. If they can, the Jets may actually have a chance to pull off the upset.
Jets look to avoid fourth straight 0-2 start
It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish. That’s the old saying, but lately, the Jets haven’t known what it feels like to start well. A loss Sunday would mark New York’s fourth straight 0-2 start.
To make matters worse on that front, seven teams in 2021 started 0-2. The Colts, Jaguars, Vikings, Giants, Lions, Falcons and Jets. Zero of those teams made the playoffs. Only the Colts finished with a winning record (9-8).
An 0-2 start doesn’t immediately signal the end of your playoff hopes. But it sure does make them extremely bleak. Since the NFL expanded to 12 playoff teams in 1990, 265 teams have started 0-2. Only 30 of those teams went on to make the playoffs. In fact, no NFL team has started 0-2 and went on to make the playoffs since 2018, when the Texans and Seahawks did so.
So a loss wouldn’t completely end the Jets season. But it sure would start dimming the lights very quickly.
