Thursday Night Football Preview – Patriots @ Jets

Week 3 of the NFL Season starts off with an AFC East clash between the New England Patriots and the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium. This divisional rivalry has been mainly one-sided in the last 15 years, with the Patriots winning 25 of their last 30 meetings. This will be Aaron Rodger’s first time playing the Patriots since the trade to New York, and the Patriots have first year head coach Jerod Mayo at the helm. In this article, I’ll provide start/sit advice for fantasy and provide my game pick.

Line, Odds:

New England Patriots (1-1) @ New York Jets (1-1)

Jets -6.0, Total: 38.5

Previous Meeting: Jets 17, Patriots 3

Start/Sit

Accuracy:

Through the first two weeks, I have outperformed NFL.com by margins of 13.1% and 15.8%. We kick things off here on Thursday night to continue to build on the momentum.

Week 1:

BetLegg: 67.1%
NFL.com: 54.0%

Week 2:

BetLegg: 66.7%
NFL.com: 50.9%

Start ‘Em:

RB Breece Hall, WR Garrett Wilson, RB Rhamondre Stevenson

If you have any of these three players on your roster, they are every-week starters. There will be games where you will be frustrated by the lack of production from any of these players, but they should be locked into your lineup at this point. If you have any concerns about Rhamondre against this Jets defense, New York has already given up 22.2 ppr points to Jordan Mason and 15.2 ppr points to Tony Pollard. Rhamondre is the workhorse in New England, and the offense will flow through him in what should be a low scoring affair.

TE Hunter Henry

It’s easy to overreact when a player has a career-best performance, but there’s no doubt that the chemistry is there between Hunter Henry and quarterback Jacoby Brissett. Brissett targeted Henry 12 times, connecting on 8 of those for 109 yards in the overtime loss to the Seahawks. There doesn’t seem to be any other pass catcher worth starting on the Patriots, and with the play of the offensive line in New England, Brissett will be looking to get rid of the ball quickly to his new favorite target.

New York Jets D/ST

The Jets struggled defensively against the 49ers in Week 1 but bounced back nicely in Week 2 against the Titans, putting up 11 fantasy points. I expect them to generate a lot of pressure early in this matchup, and they should be especially fired up for this primetime game at home.

Sit ‘Em:

New England Pass Catchers

We are three weeks into the season, and this is my third time listing the Patriots’ pass catchers in my Sit ‘Em section, and I was correct the other two times. At some point, we will see a receiver break out and establish themselves as the number one wideout, but I don’t believe it will happen against this tough Jets secondary. Continue to wait and see if anyone emerges going forward.

QB Aaron Rodgers

Aaron Rodgers has been playing good football, no doubt about it. However, he has been adopting a very low-risk approach, which is beneficial for winning games but not ideal for fantasy managers. He has thrown for just 343 yards and three touchdowns in his first two games. The Patriots’ defense ranks 23rd in passing yards allowed, at 245.5 per game. The upside is there, but until Rodgers demonstrates that he can light it up again, it’s best to leave him on your bench.

Game Pick

The Patriots have been one of the more surprising teams to start the season, defeating the Bengals 16-10 in Week 1 and taking the Seahawks to overtime in Week 2. The Jets were hammered in Week 1 against the 49ers, losing 32-19, but bounced back to defeat the Titans 24-17. In typical division rival fashion, I believe this game will be won in the trenches. The Jets have superior offensive and defensive lines, and they should be able to grind out a win against the Patriots.

Game Pick: Jets 24, Patriots 13