The New York Jets and the Denver Broncos, two teams struggling to gain some respect around the league, are facing off now at Mile High Stadium. The Jets (5-4) are coming off an ugly loss to their division rival New England Patriots at home that will make it difficult to get back in the division race. The Broncos (4-5) are finally winning, but their option-style offense captained by quarterback Tim Tebow is under heavy criticism from players and analysts alike.
Rex Ryan and his pride and glory, All-Pro cornerback Darrelle Revis, have proclaimed that the option won’t work for long in this league or this Thursday night. “If you have Michael Vick and Chris Johnson at running back,” Revis told the New York Daily, “yeah, it can work. Those are probably the two fastest guys that can get out on the edge.”
But he was skeptical, going on to say that the Jets are aware of what will be coming and are comfortable with their plan. They expect a lot of runs, and coach Ryan told them himself that if it looks like a pass, play the run anyway. The Jets’ defensive strategy comes after Tebow threw the ball just eight times, completing only two passes, in a 17-10 win over the Chiefs in Kansas City.
With Willis McGahee sidelined, Lance Ball took the majority of the Broncos’ 55 carries in the game, rushing for 96 yards on 36 attempts. Tebow is still a viable running threat, totaling 43 yards on the ground on just nine carries and reaching the end zone in the game. But expect the Jets to play the run better than the Chiefs did, as they allowed Denver to pound the rock for 244 total yards.
The Broncos know they can’t pass, so don’t expect them to try very much, especially against a Jets’ secondary that is one of the few bright spots on the team this year. Darrelle Revis and Antonio Cromartie should have a pretty uneventful Thursday night if Tebow knows what’s good for him.
The Jets’ offense is having a lot of trouble finding its identity. Are they a ground-and-pound team that is focused on Shonn Greene? Are they an upcoming passing threat that needs to get Mark Sanchez some more downfield throws? Right now, they aren’t sure, and neither is working well enough for the coaching staff to make a decision.
Their matchup against the Patriots this past Sunday night was supposed to be an opportunity to show the world what the Gang Green offense can do when they get face an inferior secondary (one that had lost Patrick Chung to an injury). Unfortunately, the offense stalled and never found any consistency or momentum. They need to hope that won’t be the case against a mediocre Broncos’ defense on Thursday Night.
