New York Jets running back Michael Carter is brought down by Buffalo Bills linebacker Tremaine Edmunds during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 11, 2022, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus)
Week 1 of the 2023 NFL season is finally upon us and the New York Jets have quite the task ahead of them Monday Night.Â
An offseason full of increasing expectations comes to a head when Gang Green hosts the three-time defending AFC East Champion Buffalo Bills on Monday night. With the conference filled with top quarterbacks, each win the Jets gain on one of them will be extremely important to end their decade-long playoff drought.Â
Simply put, to unseat the champs, New York will need to beat the champs. It will be a team effort, but there are several players who will need to perform at a high level in order to give the Jets a chance to win.Â
Let’s go over the five biggest X-Factors here.Â
Thomas Morstead
Surprised to see a punter on this list? You shouldn’t be in the modern NFL. In this day and age of overwhelming passing offenses, the Jets need to be able to pin the Bills’ offense deep in their own territory to have their top pass rush, and raucous crowd take over. It worked last season as well.Â
Of the seven scoring drives the Bills had on the Jets last season (in itself an accomplishment for the group), only two came from when the Bills offense was deep in their own territory. In 2022, Morstead was eighth in football at punt percentage inside the 20-yard line and 10th in total punts as well. He is a perfect fit for how to limit Buffalo’s high-powered offense.
Top quarterback play can mitigate a tough environment like the one Josh Allen is walking into, but having a strong punter who can pin the team back consistently would be huge for the entire Jets defense on Monday night.
Laken Tomlinson
The health of the offensive line is important. The effectiveness of the group is even more important on Monday night. Players like…
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