Jets can get back to .500 with victory at home over struggling Colts

A major victory in the past. A winnable game at home ahead of them. The New York Jets’ outlook for Sunday is pretty rosy.

With a victory at MetLife Stadium against the visiting Indianapolis Colts (1-4), the Jets would move to 3-3 for the season. Incidentally, Gang Green was 3-3 through six weeks a year ago before going 2-8 the rest of the way.

Clearly, that’s not the desired direction for the franchise, but they still must get through Indy on Sunday. Here are three keys to the matchup.

Crowell not well?

Coming off the most efficient 200-plus yard rushing day in NFL history, Isaiah Crowell ought to be thought of as a focal point against Indianapolis. He can only do that, however, if he plays.

Crowell, who rushed for 219 yards on 15 carries for an incredible 14.6 per-carry average in last week’s 34-16 win over the visiting Denver Broncos, did not practice on Wednesday or Thursday due to an ankle injury.

If the 25-year-old running back with a penchant for long runs doesn’t practice again Friday, it won’t look good for his odds of suiting up Sunday. In that case, less dynamic Bilal Powell would become the lead back.

Luck factor

The numbers indicade Colts quarterback Andrew Luck has returned to his pre-injury form from 2014, when he led the NFL with 40 touchdown passes. He’s completing a career-best 66.5 percent of his throws and sports a 12-5 TD-INT ratio.

But other stats tell a different story, one of a player whom the Colts have asked too much of through five games. His 245 pass attempts leads the league by 18, yet his yards per attempt of 6.1 ranks 32nd of 35 qualifiers. Luck just isn’t getting the most out of his dropbacks.

The Jets secondary has been inconsistent this year, but they have a lot of talent both at safety (Jamal Adams) and cornerback (Trumaine Johnson). Luck will keep them busy, but that might not be a bad thing.

Darn it, Darnold!

Rookie Sam Darnold earned his second career victory on Sunday and tallied his first three-score game. That he did so while completing just 10 of his passes as a 45.5 percent clip is totally anomalous. The last time a winning quarterback completed 10 or fewer passes with under 50 percent accuracy and multiple TD tosses was five years ago.

It’s not a winning formula. The first-year quarterback will get plenty of leeway this season as long as he isn’t outright bad — he’s not — but his coaches surely won’t want him continuing to miss connections with his receivers against the Colts’ soft pass defense.