NFL: Re-match Time for Jets and Patriots

New York’s finest are rallying while the Patriots’ have dropped two straight. Al Dannity looks ahead to an AFC East game where both sides have a lot to play for.

Yes, it’s happening this early
Did anybody watch the way the Jets’ beat Buffalo last week. The brain-trust in the Meadowlands has dialled up the defensive schemes to 11. Everything the Bills tried was easily countered. This was Rex Ryan in playoff mode and it was only early November. For fans of the Jets, that doesn’t mean it’s time to pop the bubbly yet but the train of momentum towards the playoffs looks a lot more stable in 2011. Sure the Sanchize is not a premier quarterback but he’s not Flacco-bad either and the run game is…well I’m not sure if there actually is a running game. Defensively however the Jets are entering that scary phase where you don’t know how anyone is going to outsmart them. That’s bad news for a New England team that is becoming increasingly dependent on gaudy numbers from the offense.

This won’t end well
You can win in this league with passable defense. Having an electrifying offense means you might even win big regularly with a so-so D. Unfortunately, as NFL betting fans are all too aware, having a bad defense is likely to end in misery. Tom Brady’s heroics simply haven’t been enough for New England in recent weeks and it’s because of what’s happening on the other side. This defense reeks and wouldn’t look out of place in Indianapolis or Miami. Cutting Albert Haynesworth loose will probably have little impact. The only question for New England fans is whether the Jets’ offense is strong enough to exploit the porous secondary.

The verdict
The Jets won’t light up the scoreboard against anybody this season but I don’t think they need to this weekend. I like Rex Ryan’s troops to come out ready for a fight on Sunday night, delivering a stingy performance on defense all game long. Brady showed some vulnerability against the Giants and he’s going to have an even harder time against the Jets’ defense on Sunday. So long as Mark Sanchez doesn’t gift New England a couple of picks, I like the Jets to get the job done in front of their own fans. This may not be the most exciting game of the weekend but they all count if you come out on top. I like the New York Jets to get the big win on Sunday.