The Jets have lost two games in a row (both on the road) by a combined score of 68-41!  They need this game badly in order to get the season going back on the right track.  The Patriots are 1-0 at home this year.  The Jets beat the Patriots two out of three times last year, giving this game more spice.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Jets have the ball:  The Jets are likely going to come out running the ball with Shonn Greene and LaDainian Tomlinson against a Patriots’ D that is giving up 108.8 yards rushing per game and 4.8 yards per carry.  Still, the Jets are going to be tempted to throw the ball down the field as the Patriots are allowing 368.8 yards passing per game so far this year.  Mark Sanchez should have a lot of time to throw the ball, as the Patriots don’t have much of a pass rush.  WRs Santonio Holmes, Plaxico Burress, Derrick Mason and TE Dustin Keller are likely each to catch a few passes in this game.

When the Patriots have the ball:  The Patriots are going to come out throwing the ball, as usual.  The Jets are probably going to try to lock up CB Darrelle Revis on WR Wes Welker and that will be an amazing matchup to watch.  Brady has other weapons though, as WR Deion Branch, WR Chad Ocho Cinco, TE Rob Gronkowski and TE Aaron Hernandez are also likely to get their hands on the ball a lot in this game.  The Patriots might even unleash a heavy dose of RBs BenJarvus Green-Ellis and Stevan Ridley against a suddenly very soft Jets’ run defense as they are giving up 130.5 yards rushing per game so far this year.

PREDICTION:  PATRIOTS 27, JETS 20

The New York Jets are likely to be in a nasty frame of mind after getting their butts kicked by the Raiders last weekend.  The Ravens are coming off a demolition of the Rams on the road last weekend.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Jets have the ball:  The Jets would love to get the running game going this weekend, but it’s not likely to happen against Ray Lewis and his gang as they are only allowing 84.0 yards rushing per game and 3.5 yards per carry.  That is going to put a lot of pressure on Mark Sanchez to beat the Ravens through the air.  The Ravens are giving up 245.3 yards passing per game, so if Sanchez has time to throw the ball, he should be able to make some plays down the field.  The Jets must keep OLB/DE Terrell Suggs (4 sacks this year) out of Sanchez’ face this Sunday Night.  At some point, the Ravens are going to try to get the ball down the field to Santonio Holmes and Plaxico Burress in this game.  I suspect though that LaDainian Tomlinson and Dustin Keller will be the guys Sanchez looks the most for.

When the Ravens have the ball:  The Ravens are going to likely try to repeat the Raiders’ success of last week on the ground, with Ray Rice and Ricky Williams banging away.  The Jets’ front seven needs to step up in this game, or the Ravens are going to have a really good game offensively.  The Jets are going to have to blitz Joe Flacco, because he can be forced into making mistakes.  CB Darrelle Revis will probably be locked up with Anquan Boldin.  That means the rookie WR Torrey Smith is going to be on Antonio Cromartie’s side of the field, and that has to be scary for the Jets as Smith caught 5 passes for 152 yards (30.4 avg) with 3 TD grabs last weekend.

PREDICITON:  RAVENS 24, JETS 16

The New York Jets are in for a challenge this weekend as the Raiders look like a decent football team.  Playing in the Black Hole is never easy, so the Jets must protect the football.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Jets have the ball:  The Raiders are giving up 127.5 yards rushing per game and a stunning 6.7 yards per carry, so look for the Jets to try to get their running game going.  I have a feeling that the Jets are going to run the ball more than they pass it this weekend.  Shonn Greene will likely get around 20 carries in this game with L.T. getting 10-15, and they should have success.  If the Jets get the running game going, Mark Sanchez is going to be deadly on play action passes down the field to Santonio Holmes and Plaxico Burress.  TE Dustin Keller is also likely going to have a big game as he has developed into Sanchez’ favorite target so far this year.

When the Raiders have the ball:  The Jets are going to key on Darren McFadden as he is the main man for the Raiders.  He has rushed for 222 yards (5.3 ypc) so far this year for the Raiders.  The Jets are only giving up 88 yards rushing per game and 3.3 yards per carry, so something is going to give this Sunday.  The Jets have to be wary of the longball too in this game as that is a Raiders’ specialty.  The corners better be ready as Jason Campbell has only been sacked one time so far this year, as the Raiders’ O-Line has looked solid.

PREDICTION:  JETS 23, RAIDERS 17

The Jets are going to tighten up the chinstraps this weekend, because this game might look more like a boxing match than a football game.  Both teams are going to try to impose their wills with the running game on offense.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Jets have the ball:  The Jets threw the ball 44 times last week, while only running the ball 16 times.  The Jets want that balance to be around 50/50 between the run and the pass this weekend against the Jaguars.  It won’t be easy to stick to that though, as the Jaguars only gave up 43 yards rushing on 13 carries (3.3 ypc).  Shonn Greene and LaDainian Tomlinson are going to fight for every yard they get against the new linebacking crew of the Jaguars which included Paul Poslusny and Clint Session now.  If the O-Line gives Mark Sanchez time to throw the ball, he should have some success.  CB Rashean Mathis is the only real thief in the Jags’ secondary, so Sanchez will have to be careful when throwing in his direction.  WRs Plaxico Burress and Santonio Holmes will get their fair share of looks this weekend, but look for TE Dustin Keller to be heavily involved in the passing game as well as veteran WR Derrick Mason.

When the Jaguars have the ball:  The Jaguars are a run first team and that’s the way they are going to roll this weekend against the Jets.  Bart Scott and David Harris are going to have to be on their toes to deal with Maurice Jones-Drew and Deji Karim.  WRs Mike Thomas and Jason Hill should be no problem for CBs Darrelle Revis and Antonio Cromartie.  Jags’ QB Luke McCown doesn’t have a lot of experience, so look for the Jets to blitz him a little more than they ususally would.

PREDICTION:  JETS 20, JAGUARS 9

I look for the Jets to be inspired tomorrow night on the 10th anniversary of the attacks on New York City.  The fireman that starts the chants is going to work up the crowd into a frenzy against the Cowboys.  It will be to the Jets to harness that energy and take it to the field of play.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Jets have the ball:  The Jets are going to get physical with the Cowboys right off the bat.  I see them feeding the football to Shonn Greene and L.T. until the Cowboys prove that they can stop it.  If the Jets can handle keeping DeMarcus Ware and Anthony Spencer away from Mark Sanchez, he will have opportunities to hit some long passes tomorrow to Santonio Holmes and Plaxico Burress.  TE Dustin Keller and WR Derrick Mason will handled the hard work of catching the shorter passes for the Jets in this game.  This is going to be a close, hard fought game….so Mark Sanchez will have to protect the football.

When the Cowboys have the ball:  The Cowboys might come right out and challenge the Jets’ corners as they have big time WRs in Dez Bryant and Miles Austin.  The Jets will need to get a good pass rush on Tony Romo because he’s still a good QB.  TE Jason Witten will probably be the Cowboy with the most receptions tomorrow night so safeties Jim Leonhard and Eric Smith are going to have to bring their A-Game.  David Harris, Bart Scott, Calvin Pace, Bryan Thomas and the D-Line are going to have to deal with the speedy and powerful RB Felix Jones.

PREDICTION:  JETS 17, COWBOYS 16

The Jets have to feel very confident coming into this game.  They have just beaten Tom Brady and Peyton Manning on the road so they are not intimidated at all by the Steelers and Ben Roethlisberger.  The Jets beat the Steelers 22-17 on Heinz Field just five weeks ago so they are confident they can knock them out of the playoffs tomorrow.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Jets have the ball:  The Jets are going to come out running the ball with Shonn Greene & LaDainian Tomlinson.  Despite the Steelers having a great run defense, I think the Jets are going to rush for over 100 yards tomorrow.  If the establish the running game, I look for Mark Sanchez to have success throwing the ball downfield to WRs Braylon Edwards, Jerricho Cotchery and Santonio Holmes.  The Steelers corners are vastly overrated so I expect the WRs to make their share of big plays as long as the Jets’ O-Line can keep OLBs James Harrison & LaMarr Woodley out of the backfield. 

When the Steelers have the ball:  Rashard Mendenhall had some success running against the Jets the first time around but I don’t think he’ll be so lucky tomorrow.  ILBs Bart Scott & David Harris are going to be keying Mendenhall all night long and I don’t expect him to come anywhere near the 99 yards he had in the first meeting.  The Jets will likely be blitzing the outside linebackers a lot in this game to put pressure on Ben Roethlisberger.  Because, if he has too much time to throw, he’s going to make plays down the field.  The Jets’ inital plan is to have Darrelle Revis on Hines Ward and Antonio Cromartie on Mike Wallace, but that could change.  I like both of those matchups for the Jets.

PREDICTION:  JETS 17, STEELERS 16

Rex Ryan and some of the Jets’ players have been talking a lot of trash this weekend leading up to Sunday’s afternoon’s tilt in New England.  The Patriots don’t seem to be biting as they are likely going to be doing their talking on the field.  The Jets whipped the Patriots 28-14 on September 19 in New Jersey.  But the rematch on December 6th is a day the Jets’ keeping trying to forget as the Patriots applied a 45-3 beating to them!  Here is a look at the rubber match:

When the Jets have the ball:  The best chance the Jets have of pulling an upset is to run the ball to try to control the clock.  That means that LaDainian Tomlinson & Shonn Greene are going to have to keep moving the chains against the Patriots’ D.  The Patriots don’t have much of a pass rush so Mark Sanchez should have time to throw the ball.  He will have to be smart with the ball though as the Patriots have some ballhawks in the secondary.  Look for Sanchez to spread the ball around to Braylon Edwards, Santonio Holmes, Jerricho Cotchery and Dustin Keller in the passing game this Sunday.

When the Patriots have the ball:  The Jets have to go all out to try to stop Tom Brady.  They need to get a good pass rush on him (easier said than done) because if he has time to throw the ball he’s going to dice up the Jets’ secondary.  The reason is that Brady never keys on throwing to one guy which makes him almost impossible to defense because double covering any of his WRs or TEs is just plain dumb.  BenJarvus Green-Ellis & Danny Woodhead gave the Patriots a very underrated running game so the front seven of the Jets will have to deal with them.

PREDICTION:  PATRIOTS 30, JETS 23

This should be a very interesting football game tomorrow night.  The Jets are 6-2 on the road this year and they are looking to avenge a 30-17 loss on this very field last January in the AFC Championship Game.  The Colts have played much better at home (6-2) then on the road (4-4) this year.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Jets have the ball:  The Jets are without a doubt going to come out running the ball against the Colts tomorrow night.  Shonn Greene, LaDainian Tomlinson & Brad Smith are likely going to do a lot of damage against a Colts’ D that is allowing 127.0 yards rushing per game and 4.6 yards per carry.  If the Jets’ O-Line gives Mark Sanchez time to throw the ball he could be deadly in play action tomorrow as the Colts’ secondary isn’t too good.  WR Braylon Edwards, Jerricho Cotchery and Santonio Holmes will stretch the Colts’ pass D softening things up for TE Dustin Keller on the shorter stuff.

When the Colts have the ball:  The Jets’ front seven should be able to stuff the Colts’ running game as Joseph Addai, Donald Brown and Dominic Rhodes couldn’t scare a good college team.  It all comes down to putting pressure on Peyton Manning and the only way to do that is to blitz him some.  I have a feeling that Jason Taylor might have at least one more big game in him and it might come in Indy.  Darrelle Revis will likely be covering Reggie Wayne the whole game but Manning will still throw the ball his way, so Revis needs to win that battle for the Jets to win.  Antonio Cromartie will likely be matched up with Pierre Garcon quite a bit tomorrow night.  TE Jacob Tamme and WR Blair White could wind up being the keys to the Colts’ offense tomorrow night.

PREDICTION:  JETS 26, COLTS 20

The Jets really don’t have much to play for tomorrow so they would be very smart to limit the P.T. of their starters to rest them for the playoffs which start next weekend.  They would like to win tomorrow though as they don’t want to limp into the playoffs as they have lost 3 of their last 4 games.  The Bills have won 4 of their last 7 games so they have not been playing to bad as of late.  The Jets pounded the Bills 38-14 in the first meeting this year in Buffalo.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Jets have the ball:  The Jets are likely going to have crusty old veteran QB Mark Brunell under center most of the game tomorrow.  With that in mind I see the Jets leaning on the running game tomorrow.  The Bills are allowing 162.5 yards rushing per game and 4.7 yards per carry so look for rookie Joe McKnight to see his most extensive playing time of his rookie season.  It will be interesting to see who the Jets get out of mothballs to catch passes from Mark Brunell tomorrow.

When the Bills have the ball:  The Bills have stated that they want to get RB Fred Jackson up to 1,000 yards rushing this year and he has 892 right now.  That means the Bills will likely be leaning on the running game tomorrow.  The Jets should be able to double cover WR Steve Johnson due to the fact that a lot of Bills’ WRs won’t be playing tomorrow due to injury.  The Bills’ secret weapon tomorrow could be C.J. Spiller who could line up some at WR tomorrow.  The QB situation is up in the air for the Bills as Ryan Fitzpatrick’s knee has been barking.  Brian Brohm has taken all of the first string snaps in practice this week for the Bills.

PREDICTION:  BILLS 20, JETS 17

The Jets got back on the right track last weekend against the Steelers.  They are in good shape for a Wild Card in the AFC and they are still 2 games behind the Patriots in the AFC East.  The Bears dominated the Vikings last Monday Night and they have won six of their last 7 games.  The Bears have already won the NFC North but they are trying to get the #2 seed in the NFC so they need this game.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Jets have the ball: With QB Mark Sanchez hurting the Jets are going to likely turn to the running game.  LaDainian Tomlinson and Shonn Greene might have a hard time getting many yards against Brian Urlacher, Lance Briggs and the rest of the Bears’ imposing front seven.  The Bears are only giving up 89.8 yards rushing per game and 3.8 yards per carry so far this year.  The Jets’ O-Line is going to have to give Mark Sanchez time to throw the ball or the Jets will have little chance of mounting much of a passing game this Sunday.  The Bears have 19 interceptions and 32 sacks this year so Sanchez is going to have to get rid of the ball quickly while being careful and that’s not easy to do.

When the Bears have the ball:  The Bears are likely going to also come out running the ball with Matt Forte.  The Jets’ front seven should be able to handle him as they are only allowing 92.7 yards rushing per game and 3.6 yards per carry.  The Jets have given up 21 TD passes and they only have 7 interceptions so Jay Cutler is going to feel confident if he has time to throw the ball.  That is why the Jets will need to get back to blitzing Cutler and forcing him into making some mistakes.

PREDICTION:  BEARS 16, JETS 13