Throughout the season, NewYorkJets.com will provide a Stock Report focused on players and themes trending after the Jets' most recent game and ahead of the next matchup.
This week's report features QB Geno Smith, the Jets' offensive line and the Kansas City Chiefs, the Jets' Week 9 opponent on Sunday.
📈 Geno Smith
QB Geno Smith and the Jets came away disappointed with a third consecutive one-score loss, falling to the Raiders, 38-33, at MetLife Stadium.
The loss, however, doesn't diminish the fact that the Green & White's signal-caller is playing some of the best football of his career. Smith has thrown for 1,913 yards, 12 touchdowns and 3 interceptions, marking the best eight-game start to a season Those numbers put Smith, 36, on pace for 26 TDs, 6 INTs and 4,065 passing yards, which would set a single-season franchise record.
Perhaps even more impressive has been Smith's success pushing the ball downfield. Rather than seeing that part of his game decline with age, the 14-year veteran has become increasingly effective on deep passes.
Against the Raiders last Sunday, Smith completed 5 passes of 20-plus yards, the second-most in the league in Week 8, behind only the Bengals' Joe Burrow.
For the season, among the 47 quarterbacks with at least 10 attempts of 20-plus air yards, Smith ranks third in passing yards (565) and fourth in completion percentage over expected (+19.0%). On passes traveling 30-plus yards downfield, Smith is 6 -of- 11, with his 6 completions leading the NFL.
Smith's success downfield has helped fuel an uptick in explosive plays for the Jets' offense. After producing 41 explosive pass completions in 17 games last season, the Green & White already have 37 through eight games in 2026.
The offense has also posted its two highest-scoring performances of the season in consecutive weeks, scoring 25 points in Week 7 and 33 in Week 8 while generating 23 explosive plays over that stretch.
Following Sunday's game, Smith emphasized the need for the offense to keep building on its performance over the last two weeks saying, it "wasn't enough" to get the win. Based on Smith's statistical profile to begin the season, there is reason to believe the offense's best football is still ahead.
📈 Jets' Offensive Line
RB Braelon Allen's career-high 147 rushing yards got most of the headlines for the Jets' offense in Week 8, but the third-year back made sure to credit New York's offensive line for Sunday's dominant performance on the ground.
"The guys up front moving people made it happen," Allen said following the game against the Raiders.
"I was just being patient and just letting the game come to me," Allen said. "Not trying to force anything. Just going by my reads and progressing right. Like I said, the guys up front, they make it happen."
LG Dylan Parham returned from a knee injury and got the start, marking the first time the Jets' offensive line had been at full strength since Week 4. And the group played like it.
According to Next Gen Stats, the Jets found success running in every direction. They averaged 7.1 yards per carry on 9 attempts inside left, 5.5 yards on 4 attempts inside right, 7.0 yards on 5 attempts outside left and 5.0 yards on 9 attempts outside right.
RT Armand Membou (80.7) and RG Joe Tippmann (77.8) were the Jets' highest-graded offensive linemen by Pro Football Focus. All five starters also received run-blocking grades of 60 or higher, making the Jets and Buccaneers the only teams to accomplish that in Week 8.
📉 Chiefs' Wide Receivers
Despite a 5-2 start, Kansas City has relied on a rotating cast of receivers and playmakers in the passing game, contributing to an inconsistent Chiefs offense and back-to-back losses in Weeks 7 and 8.
The Chiefs have found creative ways to generate offense this season behind future Hall of Fame QB Patrick Mahomes, who has played at a high level in his return from last season's ACL injury, and reigning Super Bowl MVP RB Kenneth Walker III. Signed in free agency, Walker leads the team with 901 scrimmage yards and 8 total touchdowns.
Kansas City ranks No. 5 in total offense and No. 8 in passing yards but has yet to establish a reliable No. 1 wide receiver. TE Travis Kelce, 37, leads the team with 410 receiving yards, while six Chiefs have between 130 and 240 yards.
Kansas City has tried to address its receiving corps over the past few offseasons but continues to search for consistency. WR Xavier Worthy, a first-round pick in 2024, has 4 drops in 7 games. WR Rashee Rice, a second-round pick, has dealt with off-the-field issues and missed two games due to injury, while free-agent addition WR Tyquan Thornton has been out indefinitely since sustaining an ankle injury in Week 6.
The lack of production from the Chiefs' pass catchers caught up with them following their 5-0 start. In Week 7, Kansas City managed just 3 points against the defending Super Bowl champion Seahawks, with its wide receivers combining for 5 receptions for 36 yards.
Rice returned in Week 8 after missing two games with a hamstring injury, and the Chiefs showed improvement offensively but fell to the Broncos, 28-24. Kelce and rookie RB Emmett Johnson finished as Kansas City's two leading receivers.
The Chiefs will continue searching for the right combination of pass catchers as they look to get their offense back on track against the Jets in Week 9 at Arrowhead Stadium.
