Home sweet home.
After two straight road games and three of four away from home, the Jets will return to the Meadowlands to face their third straight division-leading opponent. This weekend's foe: the Denver Broncos.
The Broncos lead the AFC West with a rather pedestrian 6-5 mark. Denver stormed out to a 3-0 start this season, but have struggled mightily since. The men in orange have dropped five of their past eight games, which included losses to the Kansas City Chiefs and last week's loss at home to the Oakland Raiders.
And now they have to face a high-flying Jets team that has ripped off five wins in a row.
Still, the Broncos aren't short on talent, especially on the offensive side of the ball.
Quarterback Jay Cutler is having a solid season. Here are his numbers so far this year: 246 of 406 (60.6 completion percentage), 3,036 yards, 19 TD, 12 INT, 87 quarterback rating.
Brandon Marshall ranks sixth in the NFL with 67 receptions, is seventh in yardage with 887 and has four touchdown grabs. Eddie Royal isn't doing too badly himself: 58 receptions for 673 yards and four touchdowns. And tight end Tony Scheffler is averaging 17.3 yards per catch this season, good for eighth-best in the league. Even the running game, which hasn't been the team's strength in 2008, is averaging 4.4 yards a rush.
The biggest problem for this inconsistent group seems to be on the defensive side of the ball.
Denver is giving up 144 yards per game on the ground this season, good for 27th in the NFL. Their pass defense isn't much better -- it ranks 25th in the league (236 yards per game). It seems as if old buddy
Dewayne Robertson hasn't been a factor for the Broncos this season.
But stats don't always tell the whole story. The Jets have had their problems in the secondary this season, but there have been more than a few games when they implemented the prevent defense (sometimes prematurely, but that's another story). That can sometimes skew numbers. For those who are interested, the Jets rank just behind the Broncos in pass defense, yielding 239 yards per game.
Injuries have also played a factor in Denver.
Champ Bailey has missed the past four games with a groin injury and is listed as questionable for Sunday. Safety
Marlon McCree is out with an ankle injury and linebackers Nate Webster (knee) and D.J. Williams (knee) are questionable.
Meanwhile,
two injured Jets may be getting closer to returning. David Harris (groin) and Eric Smith (concussions) returned to practice this week. Both are listed as questionable for Sunday. I don't think either guy will play against the Broncos, but it's good to see that they are on their way back. David Bowens has done a respectable job filling in for Harris and Abram Elam has been great in Smith's absence. In fact, I think Smith will have a difficult time wrestling the safety position away from Elam once he is cleared to play. My guess is that both Harris and Smith will be available next week against San Francisco.
Here's some Q&A on the Jets-Broncos game courtesy of
predominantlyorange.com.
While the Broncos have been trying to find themselves, people in the New York/New Jersey area are jumping on the Green and White bandwagon. I guess five straight wins and victories at New England and against a 10-0 Tennessee Titans team will do that. Still, I have mixed feelings about the added attention. First off, I like it when my team hovers below the radar. Maybe it's just my personality bleeding through or maybe I'm afraid of expectations. Whatever the reason, I don't like the spotlight. But there's another reason I don't relish the limelight -- the front-running fans.
You know who they are. They are the guys who don't watch most or any of the games, but catch some of the highlights and somehow feel that they know what transpired during those three hours. And that's fine. Not everyone has to watch every single play from scrimmage. I'm not here to debate what a real fan is or isn't. But if you can't name the staring offensive line for the Jets (or your favorite team), then I am going to have a hard time discussing why Brett Favre has changed the culture of losing for the Jets when you ask me. Which, by the way, is an absurd statement and/or question.
Anyway, I'm noticing more Jets apparel recently. You don't see many Gang Green gear in my neck of the woods -- it's mostly Giants country. And that's also been the talk of the town -- a Jets-Giants Super Bowl. I'm not even going down that road. But, if you're wondering what would happen if both teams were to host the conference championship game, here's the
skinny. One game would be played on the Sunday and the other would be played the following day. Yep, a Monday Night tilt for the right to play in the Super Bowl. The G-Men may be on their way to clinching homefield advantage throughout the playoffs, but the Jets face a much steeper climb. The Titans still hold a two-game advantage on the Jets and the Pittsburgh Steelers would be the No. 2 seed if the season ended today.
But if the Gotham Green want to at least entertain the thought of hosting a championship game, then they have to take care of business in the final quarter of the season (of course, the business should start Sunday against the Broncos, but I'm trying to make a point). After tomorrow (which will hopefully be a Jets victory), there will be four games left on the docket. The Seattle Seahawks and 49ers on the road and the Buffalo Bills and Miami Dolphins at home. Assuming a win on Sunday (which is something I don't like to do, but, well, I am), a 3-1 mark for the remainder of the season will give the Jets a 12-4 record and most likely the AFC East crown. My point (if I really have one) is that that should be the primary goal -- win the division. The Patriots may be down, but they certainly aren't out and I don't want to witness a mad scramble at the end of the year for the East.
Again, win the AFC East first and then worry about playoff seeding.
And the Jets can take a step closer to that goal with a win on Sunday.
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