Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
NFL: New York Jets at Pittsburgh Steelers
The New York Jets will have their sights set on picking up their first win of the season at MetLife stadium this Sunday at 1:00 p.m. against the Miami Dolphins. Not only that but a win would put them in a second place tie with the Dolphins in the AFC East.
Gang Green is coming off of yet another comeback win this season after they snuck past the Pittsburgh Steelers on the road 24-20. The Jets cannot rely solely on comebacks to win games moving forward. A team like the Miami Dolphins with the firepower that they have on their offense can make things get ugly real fast.
Anyone who has watched the Kansas City Chiefs offense for the last six years knows that speed kills. Now Dolphins wide receiver, Tyrek Hill, aka “the cheetah” is a player who has the potential to blow the top off of any defense. Hill has a league leading 477 yards receiving on 31 catches and two touchdowns thus far. He is coming off of a 10 catch 160 yard performance against the Cincinnati Bengals.
Throw in second year wide receiver Jaylen Waddle who has 381 yards on 21 catches and three touchdowns and you have quite an explosive combo. Both Hill (quad) and Waddle (groin) were limited in practice on Thursday, it is yet to be seen if they will both be one hundred percent for Sunday.
Cornerback’s DJ Reed and rookie Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner will be going up against one of the toughest wide receiver duo’s that they will face this year. Through the first four games of the season Reed and Gardner have only allowed a combined total of 17 catches for 174 yards, and a touchdown with zero penalties. This will certainly be quite the battle in Rutherford, New Jersey on Sunday.
The Jets defense will be going up against the Dolphins backup quarterback Teddy Bridgewater as Tua Tagovailoa has already been ruled out with a concussion. Bridgewater started against the Jets last season as a member of the Denver Broncos and went 19 for 25 with 235 passing yards, and zero touchdowns. The journeyman quarterback is not to be overlooked. He has the ability to beat you with his legs and is mobile in the pocket.
Defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich’s defense needs to get pressure on Bridgewater early and often and force run-happy head coach Mike McDaniel to run the ball.
The Jets offensive line has become a major concern as they have had a roulette of injuries since Week 1. The latest addition to the injury report is rookie right tackle Max Mitchell who is out for the next several weeks with a knee injury that he suffered last Sunday. Conor McDermott slid over to take his place last Sunday. It is unclear as to how the Jets line will look but left tackle Duane Brown was back at practice on Wednesday and Thursday. He has the potential to suit up on Sunday.
The Jets will have to get their unit in shape for a Dolphins defense that is very blitz happy. The Fins defense has plenty of talent to get after the quarterback. Edge rushers Melvin Ingram, Emmanuel Ogbah, and Jaelan Phillips could certainly give Zach Wilson some trouble this Sunday.
“They’re very tight knit in the way they run things.. In other words you don’t see a lot of busts, when you play as aggressive as they do, their zero package, their pressure package, and how aggressive they are…”, head coach Robert Saleh told the media.
Wilson was a limited participant in practice on Wednesday dealing with an ankle injury. Head coach Robert Saleh described it as “just nicks and bruises”. Wilson will surely need his mobility given the status of the offensive line and the strong defensive front that the Dolphins possess.
Zach Wilson looked very polished, calm, cool, and collected despite his offensive line’s issues. He was able to find success against a Steelers defense that normally is a sack producing machine. Wilson also threw two interceptions, one of which was not on him. He needs to play smart with the football and not give the explosive Dolphins offense easy field position.
Wilson leaned on his rookie running back Breece Hall last Sunday against the Pittsburgh Steelers which earned him the NFL Pepsi Zero Sugar Rookie of the Week honor. He rushed for 66 yards on 17 carries including the game winning touchdown with just 16 seconds left. Hall should again be in for a hefty amount of the workload in the backfield this Sunday. Being as Wilson could be under a lot of duress again, Hall could become a valuable option for him in the passing game.
Prediction: The Jets two wins on the season have come from late game heroics however, they can’t be playing catch up with the offensive caliber that the Dolphins have. This game will come down to which duo wins the battle, Reed-Gardner or Hill-Waddle and the Jets banged up offensive line vs. the quarterback hungry Dolphins defensive front. The Dolphins could be without their number one cornerback Xavier Howard so this could be a big opportunity for Wilson to expose the secondary if in fact he has the time to do so. In the end, I could see Gang Green coming away with this one in a narrow 28-24 victory.
