The Jets (2-5) and the Patriots (1-6) will close their 2024 season series Sunday afternoon in New England. Following the Jets' 24-3 drubbing of the Pats in Week 3, much has changed for both clubs. But they share one similarity entering Week 8 – desperation for a win.
Following his team's 37-15 loss to the Steelers in Pittsburgh, a game in which the Jets held a 15-6 lead late in the second quarter, interim HC Jeff Ulbrich talked about the mental game.
"There's a bit of pressing, a little bit to make things happen, and it's coming from the absolute best place on earth," he said. "Guys wanting to do the best and provide the best for their teammates in this organization, this fan base. We have all got to take a deep breath and just do our job, and collectively."
One day prior to Ulbrich's comments, Patriots' first-year HC Jerod Mayo struck a harsher tone with his players. The Patriots dropped a 32-16 decision to the Jaguars at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London. In the game the Pats surrendered 171 yards on the ground and at one point Jacksonville ran the ball 17 straight times.
"We're a soft football team across the board," Mayo said in summation.
'Play With Excitement and the Joy'
The Jerod Mayo line has been commented on by many across two continents for the past week. WR Davante Adams, acquired from the Raiders last week, was also compelled to make a statement to his new team behind closed doors in the Jets' locker room in Pittsburgh. Adams thought the Jets were lacking "juice" and he wants to help kick-start a change in culture.
"I've got to do whatever I've got to do to help this team move forward," Adams said. "And lacking energy, I mean, that's a prerequisite to be able to go out there and have a good year or have a good play or whatever it is. So in my mind, it was something that I wouldn't have been able to sleep if I didn't speak up on it."
Quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who is dealing with knee, ankle and hamstring ailments, called it the "realist speech" he's heard in an NFL locker room. In seven games, Rodgers is completing 62% of his passes with 10 TDs and 7 INTs. He threw for 281 yards and posted a season-high 118.9 passer rating in the Jets' September dismantling of the Pats.
"We need to get rid of any anger or frustration and be able to move on and remember how much we love the game and play with the excitement and the joy," Rodgers said. "I think whatever was going on, on gameday, we all didn't maybe have the same type of spirit that we usually do and I just took it on me. I got to lead with that type of joy and energy each week, so that it gives permission for everybody to enjoy themselves a little bit more."
Maye Day
The Jets have lost four games in a row while the Patriots are on a six-game slide. Rookie QB Drake Maye, who was greeted by the Jets with 2 sacks in garbage time in Week 3, has shown promise in his first two starts. He is the third rookie in franchise history with back-to-back games with 2-plus pass TDs and he's the first rookie QB since 1950 with 500-plus pass yards, 5-pluspass TDs and 50+ rush yards in his first 2 starts.
"I'm feeling more comfortable back there, more comfortable in the huddle, play calls and little things like that, little things that you don't see on the field," Maye said this week. "Felt more comfortable in the huddle, felt like I was bringing some more energy to the start of the game. From there, I think protecting the football, that's the big thing."
The Jets have no intention letting Maye find comfort in his third start. They're expected to add Haason Reddick to a group that is sixth in the NFL in sacks (21) and 7 of those came in their first meeting with New England.
"If he's ready, we're going to roll because obviously we need him," Ulbrich said. "He's a huge part of the success that we will have on defense."
'Take a Deep Breath'
A huge part of the success the Jets will have on offense is Breece Hall. Hall, whose 4.6 rec/g and 43.9 rec yds/g are career highs, rushed for a career-high 178 yards in the Jets' 17-3 win over the Pats last January. In Weeks 5-7 against the Dolphins, the Texans and the Jags, the Pats allowed 193, 192 and 171 rush yards, respectively.
"We got to get the run game going," said Jets' play-caller Todd Downing. "I think that's something we took a stride in the right direction in Buffalo and a little bit of a step back against Pittsburgh."
Ulbrich added: "I think that the run game is the first thing that we really want to just to improve on in every level, getting our aggression right. Sometimes, especially all the intricate detail within like a run gameplan, you want to be perfect and perfection and precision it's a big part of it. But a big part of it is mindset and just coming off the ball and moving people, so we got to keep working on that, keep improving that."
The Jets have some ground to make up, but they have a golden opportunity to change their narrative over the next five days. A win Sunday would give them their first season sweep over the Patriots since 2000 and their first three-game win streak in the series since a four-game run in 1999-2000-01. And a victory would give them a jolt of electricity heading into Thursday's Halloween havoc with Houston.
"Take a deep breath," Ulbrich said. "We can enjoy this process. We can be detailed. We can be mature about it. We can sweep the corners and get all the little nuance and detail that you need to be successful on Sundays. We can also enjoy it. We can also let this game come to us a little bit at times. Searching for that balance right now."
