The New York Jets have been a snake-bitten franchise since Joe Namath’s guarantee in Super Bowl III. No man has attributed more to that curse than the coach they are about to face on Sunday.
Bill Belichick’s dominance over Gang Green is well-documented. The Jets haven’t won in 14 consecutive tries against the Patriots. The last time New York even beat their AFC East rivals in regulation was their very last playoff victory. That’s over a decade of futility for a team that hasn’t been in the playoff since the 2010 run with Mark Sanchez and Rex Ryan’s defense.
Without Aaron Rodgers, Gang Green’s chances of knocking off the Patriots have become more difficult. A string of young, inexperienced passers struggled under Belichick’s defensive mind. With Rodgers, the expectation was that things would be different. Now, the team will need to find a way to win a big Week 3 contest against their arch-rival.
Luckily for them, there are five ways the Jets can beat the Patriots on Sunday. Let’s go through them all here.
A Stronger Defensive Performance
Without Rodgers, the Jets’ defense will need to be a lot better than they were last Sunday against the Cowboys. While the group showed they can be excellent in the red zone, they’ll need to be a lot better against a strongly coached team. The Patriots don’t have a lot of true talents on offense, but they do have an improved Mac Jones at quarterback.
Jones isn’t considered a top passer, but he can win games when given the opportunity. If the Jets aren’t careful, he could carve them up just as Dak Prescott did. With a backup quarterback at their disposal, New York’s defense needs to rise and play like the dominant group they expect to.
Protecting the Football
Belichick’s defense is all about creating pressure and turnovers. With a top rookie cornerback like Christian Gonzalez at his disposal, the Patriots’ defense looks even better than they did last season. That means the Jets offense, and particularly Zach Wilson, need to be careful. A turnover-free Sunday at MetLife will give the offense a chance to move the ball effectively. It’s incredibly important for the Jets to not turn the ball over against New England.
The Patriots may be 0-2, but they have stymied two of the best offenses across the league. New York isn’t where Philadelphia or Miami are, but they have weapons at their disposal. They need to limit turnovers to give themselves a chance though.
Win on Special Teams
Any Belichick team is known for winning at all three phases. The Jets know this well considering last season’s 10-3 debacle in Foxboro. The good news is that New York is far improved on special teams. Greg Zuerlein might still be questionable, but Thomas Morstead is a very good punter.
Against a team like the Patriots, field position matters. Having a great punt returner like Xavier Gipson also helps.
If New York is going to end a decade-long curse to one team, they’ll need to be good at all three phases.
Don’t Overthink the Simple Decisions
One thing that many coaches across the NFL struggle with when playing the Patriots is a want or need to overthink the simple decisions. If something is working on the field, coaches overthink Belichick’s response and usually overplay their hand.
Making simple calls that work, or simple adjustments that succeed is all the Jets coaching staff needs to do. The minute they try to overthink the situation or try to show up New England in any way, it usually ends up poorly for them. For Robert Saleh, Nathaniel Hackett, and Jeff Ulbrich, coaching will be just as important as the play on the field.
New York is confident in their staff, and they need to be to beat the Patriots.
Win at the Line of Scrimmage
The NFL may have changed over the years, but the simple way to win games has not. The Jets were dominated at the line of scrimmage throughout the game in Dallas. Both offensive and defensive lines were pushed around immensely.
That must change against the Patriots.
When talking about disciplined units, they don’t come better than Belichick’s group. The only way to get an edge on them is if you overwhelm them at the line of scrimmage. Being able to run the football, and control the pass rush/run defense is a staple of beating Belichick.
If the Jets are going to end a very long streak against the Patriots, they’ll need to do so with these five main keys.
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