After spending the last four seasons with Seahawks, Jets LT Duane Brown will face his former team on Sunday when the Jets visit Lumen Field in Seattle. The two teams have a chance to take a step closer to the playoffs.
Brown played with Seattle from 2018-21 and earned two Pro Bowl selections and a second team All-Pro selection. The 15-year veteran started 61 games during his time in the Pacific Northwest and will see former coaches, teammates and friends when the Jets travel West.
"It will be fun," Brown said. "I know a lot of the guys in the locker room and on staff. It is a great environment to play in and it is going to be loud. I am looking forward to it.
"You probably won't be able to hear much. They are a great fan base. They really take pride in the amount of noise and the hostile environment they create there. It is a fun place to play so I am looking forward to it."
Brown, 37, signed with the Jets during training camp, and after seven practices sustained a shoulder injury that forced him to miss the first four weeks of the regular season. Since returning in Week 5, Brown has been sturdy, starting all 11 games and playing 100% of the snaps in those games.
Despite Brown's consistency, the Jets run game has been inconsistent, rushing for fewer than 80 yards in their last three games after averaging 111.3 the first 13 weeks. To get the ground game going again, Brown says, the O-Line must get its mind right.
"It is our mentality," Brown said. "We must have that mentality of being physical. Just having great pad level up front and everything else will take care of itself. You have schemes and defenses that can catch you in the right defense and things like that, but as a group up front, we take full responsibility for it. So, we are just bringing that mentality this week."
The Seahawks have struggled to defend the run, surrendering the second-most yards per game this season (155.5) and the fourth-most rushing touchdowns (20).
Difficulties aside, Brown has been impressed by their defense, which is led by LB Uchenna Nwosu, who has 9 sacks, 20 QB hits, 3 FF and 9 TFLs this season. The Seahawks are No. 4 in fumble recoveries and tied for No. 10 with 21 takeaways.
"It is going to be a good challenge for us," Brown said. "We haven't really been able to run the ball that well over the last few weeks, so we are trying to get back to that.
"They fly around. They have a good mix of youth and some veteran guys over there. They are a fast group, and they play well off each other, with a lot of movement. And they play well at home. They really feed off crowd noise and getting off on the snap."
Following four consecutive losses, the Jets are No. 9 in the AFC playoff race. With wins in their final two games and a loss (or tie) by the Patriots, the Jets would clinch a postseason spot. Brown, who made the playoffs 3 times with Seattle, is not looking ahead.
"Nothing else matters if we don't handle our business this week," Brown said. "You have got to go 1-0 this week and then we worry about everything after that. You can't anywhere past this Sunday. It is a tough group we are playing against this week and that is all we got to worry about."
