One of the steadiest performers in this so far unsteady Jets season has been kicker Nick Folk, who takes a streak of 11 consecutive field goals into Sunday's home game against the Ravens. I asked Nick this week if he feels like he's "in the zone" now.
"Not really," he said. "I take it one week at a time, one kick at a time, try to get better each week, each kick. ... I'm just trying to make them all to put this team in the best situation to win."
Folk's focus is exceptional. It didn't waver when he got off to, for him, a rocky start this season with a 22-yard blocked field goal and the first missed extra point of his career in the opener against the Bengals. And it's not wavering now that he's on another one of his rolls. If he hits his next try, it will mark the 11th time in franchise history that a kicker has converted 12 field goals in a row in-season. Folk tops that list with his 23 straight to start 2013.
Another element of Folk's game is his kickoffs. His hangtime unofficially is 4.18 seconds, his best since 2011, and the opponents' average drive start after kickoffs of the 23.6-yard line is seventh-best in the NFL.
"I'm just trying to get back to where I was kicking a couple of years ago," he said. "My kickoff groove last year wasn't what I wanted it to be. There was a little tempo thing, body-position thing, so I tried to get that corrected to where I can feel comfortable and I can hit a good ball warm, cold, inside, outside.
"And when we haven't gotten touchbacks, we've covered real well. A lot of guys are taking knees now because of, a, the 25-yard-line rule, and b, our guys are covering so well that they're not going to get close to the 25."
Here are the top 10 in-season field goal streaks in franchise history:
| Streak | Kicker | Season | Streak | Kicker | Season |
| 23 | Nick Folk | 2013 | 13 | Nick Lowery | 1994 |
| 21 | Mike Nugent | 2006 | 13 | Nick Folk | 2014 |
| 17 | Pat Leahy | 1990 | 12 | Pat Leahy | 1991 |
| 15 | Mike Nugent | 2007 | 12 | Pat Leahy | 1985 |
| 14 | Jay Feely | 2008 | 12 | John Hall | 2002 |
Mo's ContributionsJon Gruden had a good analysis of Muhammad Wilkerson on ESPN's MNF telecast:
"Wilkerson only has 1½ sacks. That bothers some people, but this man shows up. He rarely comes off the field, he diagnoses screens as well as anyone, and he's got great hand/eye coordination — he can bat down balls."
Gruden gave that scouting report after Wilkerson swatted down a Carson Palmer pass on first-and-goal. It was the 20th PD behind the line of scrimmage for Wilk in his career and his third this season, all coming in the last three games. He also drew his second holding penalty of the season when Larry Fitzgerald grabbed him on a running play.
Numbers NotesFollowing up on last week's Inside the Numbers lead note, the Elias Sports Bureau reviewed the third-quarter pass that Lee knocked down at Pittsburgh and changed the ruling from no pass defense to a PD. Hopefully that will help Lee as he rehabs the ankle he sprained at Arizona. ... Rookie CB Juston Burris picked up 20 yards of field position for the Jets when the gunner was illegally blocked once and held once on punt coverage vs. the Cards.
