The Jets head to Chicago at 1-2 with a two-game skid hanging over them, and this Week 4 matchup has already turned into a chance to reset the tone. New York has shown flashes, but there are still three glaring areas that have to tighten up if they want to get back in the win column against the Bears.
The first issue is the pass rush, which has produced sacks without consistently creating real heat. The Jets are tied for sixth in the NFL with eight team sacks, but that number doesn’t tell the full story. Aaron Glenn has gotten some of that production by dialing up blitzes that have hit home, yet when he doesn’t send extra bodies, New York hasn’t been able to get there with four.
David Bailey and Kingsley Enagbare are tied for the team lead with two sacks apiece, but neither has been a steady source of pressure. Bailey is still a rookie learning on the fly, while Enagbare is more known for his work against the run.
Will McDonald’s snap count has dropped in each of the last three weeks, and even when he’s on the field, he hasn’t always stood out. Glenn has gotten the rest of the defense to punch above its weight, but the Jets need more from their edge rush if they want to disrupt quarterbacks instead of just hoping pressure arrives.
The run game is the other area that needs to snap back into place. New York wants to be a ground-and-pound team, but the offensive line hasn’t delivered that style over the last two weeks. The Jets have only managed 125 rushing yards across Weeks 2 and 3, and they haven’t topped 67 yards in either game.
That’s a clear step back from the 152 rushing yards they posted in the Week 1 win over the Tennessee Titans. Even with Breece Hall out for some time, the Jets still need to find a way to reestablish the run.
The passing game can help carry the load, but a more reliable ground attack would give this offense the balance it’s missing. New York enters Week 4 ranked 26th in the NFL in rushing offense at 92.3, and Week 1 is doing a lot of the heavy lifting in that number.
The Bears aren’t exactly airtight against the run either, sitting 21st in run defense at 117, so there’s room for the Jets to get moving again on the ground.
Then there’s the bigger problem of how slowly the offense has been starting games. The Jets have had productive stretches, but too often they’ve taken their time getting into rhythm.
Against the Titans, they scored 10 first-half points and still felt like they left points behind. That didn’t matter that day, but it carried into the next week.
Against the Packers, New York managed only seven first-half points and couldn’t put the game away even though the defense had Green Bay frustrated through three quarters. Last week followed the same script in another way: just seven points before halftime, then 17 in the second half.
The offense has shown it can function. The problem is the slow starts. If New York can come out faster, it can control the pace, expand the playbook, and take some pressure off a defense that could use the help.
In Other News...
Jets Enter Bears Game With Aaron Glenn Facing A Major Problem
Aaron Glenns first few weeks on the job have already featured the kind of injury churn that can test a new coaching staff, and the Week 4 trip to face the Chicago Bears brings another round of roster uncertainty. The Jets ruled out wide receiver Adonai Mitchell, running back Breece Hall, guard Dylan Parham, tight end Mason Taylor and linebacker Francisco Mauigoa, trimming depth on both sides of the ball as they try to keep the season moving in the right direction.
Hall and Parham were already expected to miss after the previous game, but Mitchell and Taylor had been in limbo for much of the week, leaving Glenn to sort through a lineup that keeps shifting late in the process. Edge rusher Kingsley Enagbare is also dealing with a knee injury and remains limited in practice, adding another question mark to a defense that can least afford to be thin going into a matchup with the Bears. [Read more 🡒]
Jets Fans May Not Be Done Hearing About Tom Brady Yet
Tom Bradys name keeps finding its way back into the conversation, even after his retirement following the 2022 season. In a recent interview, Lars Anderson, author of a Brady biography, suggested the seven-time Super Bowl winner may look back on the way his career ended and feel some regret, raising the kind of speculation that never really dies when Brady is involved.
For Jets fans, it is the sort of chatter that brings an old rival back into the frame, at least hypothetically, because any comeback discussion would immediately invite thoughts about scheduling and what it could mean for New York. Brady has not responded to the comments, and there is no real sign of a return, but the very fact the possibility is being floated is enough to keep the topic alive a little longer. [Read more 🡒]
Jets Defense Gets A Needed Boost At The Perfect Time
Minkah Fitzpatrick is set to rejoin the Jets for their Week 4 matchup with the Bears after missing time with a groin injury, giving New York a defensive presence it has been missing. He was a full participant in practice and said he is ready to go, a welcome development for a unit that has been looking for more takeaways lately.
Fitzpatricks return comes at a timely moment for a Jets defense that has had trouble creating interceptions, and his ability to track the ball could help change that. Against Chicago, the Jets will be counting on him not just to fill a spot, but to lift a secondary that needs a jolt. [Read more 🡒]