The Dolphins will travel to MetLife Stadium for the Jets' home opener in Week 3. However, this will only be Miami's second regular season game as its season opener against the Buccaneers was postponed to Week 11 because of Hurricane Irma.
The Dolphins have a similar team to last year other than their quarterback. Ryan Tannehill tore his ACL during a training camp practice and the team eventually signed Jay Cutler, who was originally slated to be a part of Fox's broadcast team in 2017. The move reunited Cutler with head coach Adam Gase, his offensive coordinator in Chicago in 2015. Cutler completed 24 of 33 passes in his Dolphins debut for 230 yards and one touchdown in a 19-17 victory over the Chargers.
Running back Jay Ajayi picked up right where he left off in 2016. The league's fourth leading rusher last season, Ajayi rushed for 122 yards on 28 carries against Los Angeles last Sunday. The Jets held the 6'0", 223-pounder to 51 yards on 19 carries in their last meeting, but Ajayi broke the century mark in the prior matchup.
The Dolphins have a talented defensive front, led by DT Ndamukong Suh and DE Cameron Wake. Age is just a number for Wake considering the 35-year-old finished sixth in the NFL with 11.5 sacks last season. Miami featured the third best rush defense in 2016 and only allowed 44 yards on the ground last week, but Chargers quarterback Phillip Rivers threw for 324 yards and one touchdown. The Jets could lean on their passing game this week to try to open up the ground attack.
Offensive Matchup to Watch: Jets OL vs. Dolphins DL
The Jets made it clear that they wanted to establish a run game in Week 2 and they did so. The team averaged 5.0 yards per rush, but they'll have a tough task this weekend with Suh and the rest of the Dolphins' front.
"They're exactly what their reputation is," said center Wesley Johnson said. "They're big, fast and physical. We just have to buckle down, prepare the right way and play the game the way we know how to play it."
Defensive Matchup to Watch: Jets LBs vs. Jay Ajayi
Ajayi burst on the scene last year, displaying a combination of power and speed. He gets a heavy workload as his number was called 28 times on Sunday, so it's possible the Jets may stack the box to limit Ajayi.
