The New York Jets will look to get back on track this Sunday after falling to 2-2 on the year last week losing 10-9 to the Denver Broncos. As they travel to London to take on the surprising 4-0 Minnesota Vikings one matchup stands out as a key to victory for Gang Green.
The pressure is on the Jets’ offensive line
After playing like an elite unit through the first three weeks of the season, the Jets’ offensive line took a major step back against Denver last week which was a major reason for their defeat against a team they should have beaten in the Broncos. Denver has run a heavy blitz system, leading the league in blitz rate at 44.1% on the season, and that consistent pressure led to five sacks of Aaron Rodgers.
The barrage of extra rushers took its toll and led to Aaron Rodgers coming up limping after a sack in the fourth quarter and has spent this entire week on the injury report with a swollen knee. Denver’s aggressive attack also led to five pre-snap penalties as the offensive line was quick to flinch during Rodgers’ cadence resulting in more negative plays.
The offensive line needs to play better to avoid putting the offense in bad positions while also keeping the Jets franchise signal caller healthy and upright.
The Vikings present a similar challenge
The Vikings’ defense, led by old nemesis Brian Flores, presents a similar challenge. Flores is a pupil of Bill Belichick and the former head coach of the Miami Dolphins, known for bringing pressure and presenting exotic looks to the offense to confuse the offense. Similar to Denver, Minnesota blitzes very often ranking just behind the Broncos as the second-most blitz-happy defense with a 40.8% blitz rate.
Minnesota also boasts a talented group of edge rushers, led by Jonathan Greenard, Patrick Jones II, and Andrew Van Ginkel. Greenard was Minnesota’s splash free-agent signing, inking a four-year $76 million contract after posting a 12.5 sack campaign for the Houston Texans last season.
So far this year he has racked up four sacks. Patrick Jones II actually leads the team with five sacks. He’s a bit of a late bloomer who prior to this season had just five career sacks through the first three seasons of his career, but seems to have found another gear this season. Lastly, Van Ginkel is a veteran pass-rush specialist who’s made a living converting speed to power on the edge and played under Flores in Miami previously.
All three of those edge rushers have the ability to win on their own, however, the exotic blitzes that Minnesota favors also put them in advantageous positions. Watch for Minnesota to design ways to get them matched up against tight ends, running backs, or even a free rush lane.
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The Jets’ tackles have been a problem
The Jets earned high praise for completely revamping their tackle room with the signing of future Hall of Famer Tyron Smith, the trade for Morgan Moses, and drafting Olu Fashanu in the first round of the 2024 NFL draft. The results this group has put together so far have been mixed, however.
Smith has been okay, earning a 70.2 overall grade from Pro Football Focus on the year which while decent is a far cry from his peak. He’s also allowed three sacks over the past two weeks and has been penalized four times on the year. The Jets are without Morgan Moses for a few weeks due to injury but through the first three weeks, he had been the weak link on the offensive line.
Then there’s rookie Olu Fashanu who struggled mightily in his first career start playing right tackle instead of his natural left tackle role. Heralded as a ready-made pass protector coming out of Penn State, Fashanu allowed five pressures last week and posted an abysmal 32.0 pass-blocking grade according to PFF.
Given the Jets’ interior trio of Joe Tippmann, Alijah Vera-Tucker, and John Simpson will be tied up trying to contain the Vikings’ blitzes, expect Smith and Fashanu to spend a lot of time on an island where they must win their one-on-one matchups against Minnesota’s productive edge rushers. The Jets will be counting on them to hold their own.
The Jets will win if…
The Jets will win if the offensive line stays disciplined, communicates well to pick up blitzes, and their tackles win their one-on-one matchups. All of the above will be crucial to allow Aaron Rodgers to keep the offense on schedule and pick apart the Vikings’ secondary that has allowed the most 1,097 passing yards, the most in the NFL, through four weeks.
Perhaps even more importantly, protecting Aaron Rodgers’ health is of paramount importance for the team to have a shot at realizing their Super Bowl aspirations. After last week’s scare, they’ll need the offensive line to play much, much better.
