Skip to main content

Jets Aim for Defining Victory in Foxborough, Sunday

 It has been a long time since the New York Jets last won a game of any significance up at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. 

While New York's most recent victory there came just three seasons ago, a 17-3 win in Week 18 of the 2023 season, that game was pretty meaningless. The Jets finished 7-10 that season, a season that was supposed to be about Aaron Rodgers first in New York. Of course all the dreams of Rodgers succeeding in different shade of green was hijacked in Week 1 when he went down with an Achilles Tear. 

As for the Patriots they were an awful 4-13. It was Bill Belichick's final game as Patriots Head Coach, but nobody really seemed to care that the Jets sent him out of the NFL with an 'L.' Not in a snowy, cold Week 18 game with both teams already looking forward to the off-season. 

So if you are looking for the last Jets win at New England that had any real significance as far as playoffs, or AFC East standings, or even division titles are concerned, you'd have to go all the way back to the Jets 28-21 divisional playoff victory over the Patriots in the 2010-11 season! 

That's right, the last time the Jets had a truly significant win at Gillette Stadium, Tom Brady was still under center for the Patriots; Bill Belichick was still Head Coach. The Patriots hadn't even won Super Bowl titles No. four, five, and six yet. 

Rex Ryan was in the midst of taking the Jets to their second consecutive AFC Championship game; Mark Sanchez was under center; Brian Schottenheimer, now the Dallas Cowboys Head Coach, was the Jets O.C.  Revis Island was still a thing. 

It's hard to believe that for as long as the Jets playoff drought (15 years and counting), it's been that long since Gang Green's last meaningful victory on the road in New England. 

The Jets are 1-14 in their last 15 games at Gillette. They are 4-25 overall if you include an equally dismal 3-11 record at home against the Patriots. What's remarkable about that stat is the fact that the losing continued long after Tom Brady was off the scene. The Jets are 2-10 against the Patriots in the post-Brady Era; 1-3 against them in the post Belichick Era. 


 

It's really outrageous when you think about it. 

At some point something has to change, and this game, this week might be that golden opportunity. 

The Jets (2-3) have been lead by their defense all season. They have held three of their first five opponents under 200 yards of offense for an entire game, including an eight-sack masterclass last week against Cleveland. 

I know that was Cleveland, but Aaron Glenn has been dialing up some nasty blitzes this year, and it's clear play-calling is indeed his super power. 

Now as for the Patriots, they looked terrible offensively just a few weeks ago.  They were 1-2 after getting shellacked 35-6 by the Jaguars in Week 3. Drake Maye threw four picks that day, and many were wondering if he was showing signs of being a flash in the pan. 

Well, guess what? The last two weeks Maye and the Patriots have been on fire. Maye has thrown seven touchdowns to one pick in wins over the Bills and Raiders, to get to 3-2 on the season. Suddenly the Pats are rolling again. 

Obviously the Patriots are a -7.5 point favorite. They deserve to be. The Jets have to prove they can beat a team as deep as this, and as well coached as Mike Vrabel's squad. This will be  a huge test for Geno Smith who will be without Breece Hall again. The Jets offensive line must do a better job in giving him time than it did the previous two weeks. 

Still, I got a feeling this Jets defense is going to keep New York in it, and as they say when it comes to the law of averages, sometimes a team is just due. The Jets are more than due for some success in New England. 


 

 

 

 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Is Aaron Glenn in Danger of Getting Fired?

 According to Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio there is a "chance"   that Jets head coach Aaron Glenn could be fired at seasons end.  While Florio doesn't site any sources, the rumor has caught fire the last two days. The question is would it make sense? Let's examine this for a second?  Why it Makes Sense:  Glenn has not been great in his first year as Head Coach of this team. The talent has taken a major step backwards, granted two of those talented players were traded away in Sauce Gardner to Indianapolis and Quinnen Williams to Dallas.  The decision he and GM Darren Mougey made to give Justin Fields a two year deal proved to be a horrible mistake, and Glenn stuck with Fields for far too long before pulling the plug following the Jets loss to the Patriots on a Thursday night in mid November.  Glenn gave now former Defensive Coordinator Steve Wilks too much power to run the defense, and the players couldn't stand Wilks. Reports indicated this week af...
Post a Comment
Read more

Jets, Dolphins and Patriots Playoff Breakdown

Here are the formuli that could get the Jets into and out of the playoff party this season: 1) If the Jets win against Seattle and Miami, they win the AFC East based on a better conference record (8-4) than the New England Patriots, even if New England wins out as well. 2) If the Patriots win out and the Dolphins win out and finish at 11-5, the Jets would be 10-6, or 9-7, and probably out of the playoffs. Both New England and Miami would make the playoffs, with the Dolphins as a divison winner and the Patriots as a wild card. The Patriots make the postseason if Baltimore loses one of its final two games. 3) If the Patriots win out and the Dolphins and Jets split, then the Patriots win the AFC East. The Jets will have to hope that they beat Miami to win that tie-breaker and, further, hope that they have a better conference record than the Baltimore Ravens in order to clinch the sixth seed. 4) If the Patriots and Ravens win out and the Dolphins and Jets split their final two games, then ...
8 comments
Read more

Same Ol' Jets! Gang Green Dropped by Ravens

 RAVENS 24 - JETS 9  In short the opener to the 2022 season for the New York Jets was a complete and utter disaster.  A team that came into the season with the promise of better days ahead, a team that had taken on so many kudos in the off-season for what so many in the media had claimed was an impeccable off-season and draft, came out flat as a pancake when it mattered the most.  If this was a debut of what is to come for the Jets in 2022, you better start preparing your 2023 draft boards.  Sunday's 24-9 loss wasn't just a defeat at the hands of a better team, it was a total indictment of the Jets current predicament.  The Jets offensive line, which has been battered and beaten this summer with the losses of Meckhi Becton and Duane Brown looked like a sieve on Sunday. Joe Flacco, who is not exactly fleet of foot, was under siege all afternoon. The fact he came out of Sunday's game having been sacked only three times was a miracle in itself.  George Fa...
Post a Comment
Read more