MetLife Stadium will be back in Green & (but mostly) White for the Jets home opener against the Green Bay Packers in Week 2 of the NFL season. The Jets are unveiling their new white helmets and fans attending are encouraged to wear white to create the first Jets White Out.
It'll be the first of three NFC North opponents the Jets will face consecutively, but the only one during this stretch they will battle on home turf. Weeks 3 and 4 will be spent on the road against Detroit and Chicago.
Sunday's game will be the 15th meeting between the Jets and Packers and the first since the Green & White won, 27-10, in 2022.
"Good quality opponent, playoff-caliber team," HC Aaron Glenn said on Wednesday. "I've had a number of times to compete against Matt [LaFleur] and his staff and his players. It's a tough challenge and our players know that. But our players are up for the challenge"
Last week the Jets defeated the Tennessee Titans, 23-10, in the Music City with an offense that controlled the clock, a defense that forced 7 punts and a special teams unit that earned the Green & White an extra possession.
"It's a good feeling, man," edge Kingsley Enagbare said about getting that first win. "We obviously have a lot to clean up. It wasn't a clean victory, but a victory nonetheless."
After arriving back at the Atlantic Health Jets Training Center in Florham Park, NJ, the Jets turned their focus toward the Packers and the new game plan.
Green Bay remains on the road for another week, traveling to East Rutherford, NJ, after opening the season with a 39-22 loss in Minnesota against the Vikings. The Packers are playing without their standout defensive player, Micah Parsons, for three more weeks — he has started the season on injured reserve. Additionally, RB Josh Jacobs remains on the Commissioner's Exempt List, which prevents him from practicing or playing with the team.
The Packers showcased their ability to generate explosive plays (a run of 12-plus yards or a pass of 16-plus), and had 10 against the Vikings totaling 313 yards, but Green Bay only scored 22 points. The Vikings scored 29 unanswered points in the second half after trailing by 22-10 in the third quarter.
"The explosive plays that happen with those guys and the efficiency of this quarterback," Glenn said about what sticks out about the Packers and QB Jordan Love. "Those are two recipes really that allows you to win games."
While the Jets never relinquished their lead to the Titans, they did lose two players in the matchup. S Minkah Fitzpatrick left the game in the first defensive series with a groin injury, and rookie WR Omar Cooper Jr. injured his ankle.
"We have four guys that aren't practicing today, and those guys will be week- to- week," Glenn said. "It's Kene Nwangwu, Omar, Joseph Ossai and I'm really impressed with how he's moving around, so he's getting really, really close and also Minkah.
The Packers were without their starting LG Aaron Banks last week as he was dealing with tendinitis in his knee. Donovan Jennings started in his place -- it was his first career start. Love was sacked 4 times.
"It'll be a tough challenge, again our guys are looking forward to it," Glenn said. "It's been a good week of work for us."
