(Photo: DAZN)
AFC Game Of The Week
Buffalo Bills at New York Jets
Bills: The 3-0 start was good, but you knew they would lose eventually. Against the Baltimore Ravens in week four, they were kicked in the mouth and pushed around in their first loss of the year. In Houston against the Texans last weekend, they were down but found a way to get themselves back into the game. Also, they did this despite Josh Allen, not because of him. His stat line is one I know he’d like to forget as he only completed nine of his 30 pass attempts. In other words, he only completed 30 percent of his passes. It also didn’t help that his security blanket in Khalil Shakir was also out. Through the first four games of the year, Khalil has caught 18 of the 19 passes targeted to him, and had he played on Sunday against the Texans, who knows what would’ve happened this could be a different ball game, but I’m not going to play the what if game. As I was watching this game last weekend, one thought came to mind and I even repeated this to Brian Snow on “Snowman in the Morning” yesterday morning. The Buffalo Bills need a true number one Wide Receiver and there’s a guy whose name has been circulating in trade rumors and his name is Davante Adams. Here’s why I feel it would be a hand-in-glove fit for both parties. Right now, the Bills have a number one receiver-by-committee thing taking place and that’s cute at this point of the year, but down the stretch, you need that weapon that can put fear into secondaries. There’s not a single guy on this roster that makes me say let’s zoom in on him and take him away. If you add Davante to that mix, it’s a different story. Despite the last two games, this is still the team to beat in this division in my opinion and I’m sticking to it. On Monday night, they will make their way to East Rutherford.
Jets: M-E-S-S, Mess, Mess, Mess! That’s exactly what they are and I will be blunt here. I was never sold on them even when they acquired a future Hall of Famer in Aaron Rodgers. The hype was something and the fan base was excited, so I let them be great. Then, Aaron unfortunately tears his Achilles and is done for the year. A year later, he’s back and he’s had moments where he’s looked good, but I’m just going to come right out and say it. Aaron doesn’t scare me as he once did. Against the Vikings in London, he threw the football a total of 54 times and that isn’t the recipe for success at all. At this point in his career, he can’t throw the ball that many times and expect to win. When the Jets did win the two games they did, the running game was prominent and it seems as if they aren’t even wanting to use Breece Hall at all. During the Summer, I kept saying if Breece nor Garrett Wilson weren’t being productive, there was nobody else on this offense who could step up and answer. I knew Robert Saleh was on the hot seat, but I didn’t expect him to be fired this soon. Honestly, I’ve never been a fan of in-season coaching changes depending on the situation. For as bad as Adam Gase was, the Jets let him keep his job until the end of the season before they handed him his pink slip. Back to the field for a second, the biggest glaring issue with this team has been the Offensive Line. It doesn’t matter the weapons you have (they’ve also been linked to Davante) or who the Quarterback is, if you can’t protect him, the struggles will continue. This is an average football team at best with a serving of theatrics on the side. They return home on Monday night for a divisional showdown.
Bills X-Factor: Terrel Bernard– Whenever someone brings his name up, the first word that comes to mind is energy. That’s exactly what he brings to this Bills defense. Terrel is always moving downhill and has the speed to close in and fly to the football. I also like how he’s used as they will send him on a blitz to rush the passer, he stops the run and he also plays the pass, plus, he does everything I just mentioned with the same energy and consistency. Terrel plays with the background of a Safety with how he hits, covers ground, and swarms to the ball.
Jets X-Factor: Breece Hall– To the desk of Jets interim Head Coach, Jeff Ulbrich: This guy is your saving grace, please use him! If you give him an inch of space, he can burst through the lane and get you a large chunk of yards. Breece is so explosive and it’s good to see him with that speed even after the injury he suffered his rookie year. I’m glad I said that! Look when the Jets made him the focal point of the offense in 2022, good things happened and if he didn’t get hurt, he’s your Offensive Rookie of the Year without question. Breece reminds me a little bit of Arian Foster.
Final Thoughts: September 11, 2023. It’s a Monday night, week one is about to wrap up and this is one of the more anticipated games of the opening slate. The team that’s owned this division every year since 2020 against a team looking to right things with a legendary Quarterback. Four plays in, Aaron hurts his foot which would later be reported as a torn Achilles. Over a year later, we have another matchup between these two, and first place is on the line in the AFC East. I’m anxious to see how Josh Allen comes into this game and the one thing the Baltimore Ravens exposed was Buffalo can’t handle pressure and when you get after him, Josh will fold. Houston watched the tape and mimicked the approach. They attacked the a gap (the middle) and bought blitzes from the edge. This is what the Jets’ defense must do often to remain in this ball game. If I’m the Bills, I want Aaron throwing the ball over the top as many times as possible. He can still throw it, but if he takes the game into his own hands, this will play into their hands. Both teams have lost two in a row and are each looking to right the ship. I like the Bills to bounce back into the win column and remain in first place in the AFC East.
Prediction: Bills 23, Jets 17
