Our Clients:

Field Level Media - Professional sports content solutions | FLM

Oct 14, 2024 10:55 am

Week 6 MNF: Jets-Bills Preview, Best Bet

Aaron Rodgers

Underwhelming might suffice as a five-game summary of the New York Jets through five games of the 2024 regular season.

Even so, the Jets can move into first place in the AFC East with a win on Monday night against the Bills.

A 2-3 start resulted in Jets owner Woody Johnson firing head coach Robert Saleh and promoting Jeff Ulbrich, the Jets’ defensive coordinator, to take the reins as the interim coach.

Ulbrich demoted offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett, stripping his play-calling duties to hand the responsibility to quarterbacks coach Todd Downing.

It might not take long to determine if the changes are akin to putting lipstick on a pig, given how much deference the offensive coaching staff gives Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

Can Buffalo’s offense get back on track?

The Bills had a much better start to their campaign. They rattled off three straight wins but have now lost back-to-back games.

In hindsight, Buffalo might have benefited from a soft schedule, as its three wins (Cardinals, Dolphins, and Jaguars) came against sub-.500 teams, with a combined record of 5-12.

Defensively, those opponents rank 25th or lower in FTN Fantasy’s comprehensive Defense-adjusted Value Over Average (DVOA) metric.

Offensively, Bills quarterback Josh Allen is coming off a 9-for-30 (131 passing yards) performance on the road against the Houston Texans.

Allen and his receivers weren’t on the same page. He has the fourth-highest percentage (19.5%) of “bad throws” that don’t include spikes or throwaways. Buffalo receivers have the second-highest percentage of dropped passes per attempt (7.8%).

Things won’t get any easier against a Jets secondary that Pro Football Focus ranks first in pass coverage with an 86.5 grade.

Rodgers deserves blame for the Jets’ dysfunction

Trading for Rodgers also meant the Jets essentially would give him the keys to the franchise.

Even before his arrival, Saleh signed Hackett as the offensive coordinator, given his strong relationship and perhaps even friendship with Rodgers since working together in Green Bay.

Some think Rodgers was even working behind the scenes, prodding the Jets to sign wide receiver Allen Lazard, a former Packers teammate.

We know that Rodgers definitely played a part in the Jets signing another former teammate in wide receiver Randall Cobb.

Thus, Rodgers has been the puppet master, pulling the strings for quite some time now.

There are even reports that Rodgers contacted the Jets owner after learning that Saleh was considering firing Hackett as the coordinator.

The dismissal completely blindsided Saleh, which suggests that something must have changed radically over a short period of time for the Jets front office to make such a decision.

Interestingly, the first thing the Jets’ new play-caller addressed when meeting the media was the Jets’ rushing attack.

“First of all, this team does have a strong run game. We just haven’t seen it come to fruition consistently enough,” Downing said. “Secondly, I think there become times where you can find people pressing a little bit because there’s an expectation for production and when it’s not met, you can feel a sense of urgency.”

There was no mention of his underperforming quarterback, who ranks 25th in Total QBR.

Unless Downing is brave enough to add dramatic wrinkles, we’re bracing for more of the same: the Jets’ stagnant offense relying on a dominant defense.

Best bet: Under 41 points (-110 at BetMGM)

–By Michael Nwaneri, Field Level Media

You may also like

saquon barkley
Nov 8, 2024 8:48 pm

Top 10 Player Props for NFL Week 10

Fans and bettors have probably already seen the most exciting game of the Week 10 slate in Thursday night’s Bengals-Ravens game, but that does not mean we take the week…

lamar jackson, bengals
Nov 7, 2024 1:21 pm

Week 10 TNF: Bengals-Ravens Preview, Props & Prediction

Two AFC North rivals looking to make a major statement on the national stage meet Thursday night when the Baltimore Ravens play host to the Cincinnati Bengals in a rematch…

max greyserman
Nov 6, 2024 3:12 pm

2024 World Wide Technologies Championship: Preview, Prop Picks, Best Bets

A player with zero PGA Tour victories withdrew from the World Wide Technologies Championship on Wednesday, and it led oddsmakers to dramatically shift the tournament’s odds. That’s the intrigue of…

More Sports Betting News

saquon barkley
Nov 8, 2024 8:48 pm

Top 10 Player Props for NFL Week 10

Fans and bettors have probably already seen the most exciting game of the Week 10 slate in Thursday night’s Bengals-Ravens game, but that does not mean we take the week…

lamar jackson, bengals
Nov 7, 2024 1:21 pm

Week 10 TNF: Bengals-Ravens Preview, Props & Prediction

max greyserman
Nov 6, 2024 3:12 pm

2024 World Wide Technologies Championship: Preview, Prop Picks, Best Bets

travis hunter
Nov 4, 2024 2:08 pm

Heisman Trophy Odds: Travis Hunter in hot pursuit as Cam Ward regains lead

Mahomes
Nov 4, 2024 9:04 am

Week 9 MNF: Chiefs-Buccaneers Preview, Props & Prediction

Read all
fb-post
advertisment
title-icon

Upcoming events

See all odds