The Seattle Seahawks (6-5) will visit the New York Jets (3-8) Sunday afternoon at MetLife Stadium. To help preview the matchup, John Boyle of Seahawks.com and John Pullano of NYJets.com discussed the game.
The Seahawks have been able to win their last 2 games, despite averaging 17 points per game, and moved into first in the NFC West. How do the Seahawks get their offense back on track versus the Jets defense?
JB: For starters, the Seahawks need to find a way to run the ball more successfully. They've been trying to get their running game going in recent games after being pass-heavy earlier in the season, but lead back Kenneth Walker III hasn't had a lot of running room, gaining just 95 yards on 30 carries in the past 2 games. The lack of a consistent run game has put QB Geno Smith & Co. in some tough spots on third down, as was evident Sunday when he was sacked 4 times on third down. Second, Seattle's offense has tended to be productive when it avoids mistakes – penalties and turnovers. When they stay on schedule and take care of the ball, the Seahawks have shown they can score points, but too often this season they have had too many drives undone by mistakes they should be able to reduce.
The Jets' defense snapped its skid of uneven performances in run defense vs. Indianapolis, allowing 91 yards on the ground. How do the Jets build on this momentum against Seattle?
JP: I think it begins with the defense getting off to faster starts. Against Indy, the Jets allowed 43 yards on the ground in the first quarter and 52 over the final 3 quarters. The 2 games before, the Jets surrendered an average of 48 rushing yards in first quarters. The damage being done on the ground early is allowing opponents to dictate the flow of the game over the final three frames. Colts QB Anthony Richardson had 2 rushing touchdowns and 1 passing against the Jets and said postgame that it was because they were able to "get going early" they felt like they could "move down the field consistently.". As DL Quinnen Williams said Monday, the Jets are a "talented" group on defense, but they will have their hands full with Seattle RB Kenneth Walker III (767 scrimmage yards, 8 total TDs) and Geno Smith (5.2 yards per rush attempt).
Seattle's defense has registered a takeaway in each of its last 5 games after going without a takeaway in 4 of the first 6 contests. How have the Seahawks been able to consistently get turnovers over the past month and how do they matchup with the Jets?
JB: More than anything, the Seahawks have just gotten better overall on defense in the past months, with the change really starting in their Week 9 loss to the Rams and continuing with standout performances in wins over the 49ers and the Cardinals. Teams had a lot of success running the ball on Seattle earlier this season, but the run defense has improved significantly over the past few games, thanks in part to improved health up front. Also , as well as the addition of linebacker Ernest Jones IV via a midseason trade, and in part because I think we're just seeing a defense grow as the season goes along in its first year learning Mike Macdonald's scheme. And with better run defense, and just better defense overall, comes more third-and-long situations, or more late-game situations where an opponent is playing from behind and having to pass, leading to more opportunities to get the pass rush going and in turn create turnovers.
How can the Jets continue to build off of a strong performance from RB Breece Hall (2 TDs, 121 scrimmage yards) against the Colts before the bye and carry that momentum into their game vs. Seattle?
JP: By staying committed to run game. The Jets' offense is at its best with the ball into the hands of RB Breece Hall, as demonstrated vs. Indianapolis. The Green & White scored a season-high 27 points and Hall had a season-high 23 touches. Through the first 11 weeks, the Jets rank last in rush attempts (21.3 per game) and have averaged 19.3 per game during the last three weeks. The Jets should take a page from the league's best teams. The Eagles, the Steelers, the Ravens and the Lions, who have a combined record of 35-10 this season, lead the league in rush attempts and rush attempts in the first quarter. By running the ball early, they keep the defense on its heels and create more play-calling flexibility late in games. Five of the Jets' 8 losses have come by single-digits this season. Fans could see those results start to flip if the Jets can have more success running the ball.
Wh*ich* player on the Jets or the Seahawks, despite maybe a slow start, has improved drastically this season and should be part of the opposing team's gameplan as they prepare for Sunday?
JB: On offense, second-year receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba has gone from important contributor on offense to a focal point. His improvement has had more to do with opportunity coming more often later in the season than either player not doing his job early on. Smith-Njigba, a first-round pick in last year's draft, had a great training camp and hopes were high for him, but with DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett on the roster, there are only so many targets to go around. So while he was having a solid start to the season, he wasn't putting up huge numbers. Over the past three games, however, Smith-Njigba has piled up 367 yards and 3 touchdowns, and he now ranks sixth in the league in receiving yards (755) and eighth in receptions (66).
JP: Rookie RB Braelon Allen has really settled into his role as the season has gone along and had a positive impact on the Jets' offense, that might isn't obvious based on counting stats. Allen, a fourth-round pick out of Wisconsin by the Jets in April's NFL Draft (No. 134), has rushed for 229 yards on 62 attempts and found the end zone 3 times, twice on runs. In recent weeks, Allen has primarily been used in short-yardage situations. Through the last 9 games, he is 9 of 9 on third-and-1- or 2-yard conversion runs. Now playing second fiddle to RB Breece Hall, Allen (6-1, 235) has developed an affinity for the bruising short-yard attempts and been essential to keeping offensive drives alive in the past month.
