Jets And Patriots Battle For Playoff Momentum In Week 16
By Abraham Gutierrez
With the end of the regular season in the horizon, pro football fans will be treated to what could be a preview of this year's NFL playoffs when the New England Patriots make a trip to the Meadowlands for a Week 16 showdown with the rival New York Jets.
Met Life Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, will be filled to capacity to see if Gang Green can keep the momentum going by earning a split of the season series with the mighty Pats. Opening kickoff is scheduled for Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m. ET and it will be broadcast live on CBS Sports.
The last time they met dates back to Week 7 of the 2015 NFL season (Oct. 25), when the two sides went back-and-forth for three-quarters. However, with the game on the line, Tom Brady and the Patriots kicked it into high gear with a 14-point fourth quarter surge, New England came away victorious, 30-23 in Foxborough.
New England Patriots 2015 NFL Season
Poised for another trip to the Super Bowl, the Patriots come into Week 16 having already punched their ticket into the postseason, as well as a first-round bye by virtue of winning the division. Nevertheless, Bill Belichick & Co. still have plenty to play for, as the top seed in the American Football Conference, which translates into home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs, is still up for grabs.
Heading into this pivotal contest, the Patriots are 12-2 on the year, are 7-1 at home, 5-1 on the road and are unbeaten against fellow AFC East opponents at 4-0. New England is also 9-1 versus the AFC, 3-1 when facing interconference foes, having won two in a row and three of their last five games.
Patriots On Offense
Offensively, New England is a juggernaut in three of four of the main statistical categories used to measure a team's greatness. It should come as no surprise that the weakest part of the Patriots game can be found on the ground, where this team ranks a whopping 28th in the league averaging 91 rushing yards per game.
Having that said, Tom Brady and the rest of the offensive unit more than make up for their lack of a ground game. That's evident by the fact that the Patriots come into the penultimate week of the season ranked first in passing yards per game (303), third in points scored (31) and fourth in total yards per contest (394).
Patriots On Defense
One of the things that make this year's Patriots a legitimate Super Bowl contender is the balance they bring on a weekly basis every time they step on the gridiron. Unlike some of their past championship teams, New England's defense has been a force to be reckoned with in 2015.
Under the tutelage of defensive coordinator Matt Patricia, the Patriots defense is ranked in the top 10 in all four facets of the game. Statistically, their strong suit can be found in the total yards allowed category, where they surrender an average of 326.1 yards per game.
Furthermore, their second best area is in the points department, where New England surrenders an average of 19.2 points per contest. Their third best area is against opposing aerial attacks, where this club is ranked eighth in the NFL, yielding 230.3 passing yards per week.
Finally, Matricia's unit has also surprised many by their ability to shutdown the ground game. This is evident by the fact that New England's resistance ranks 10th in the National Football League surrendering 95.8 rushing yards per game.
Patriots Players To Watch
While it's obvious that the Patriots offensive player to watch is quarterback Tom Brady (572-for-368 for 4405 yards, 35 TDs, 6 INTs), the fact that tight end Rob Gronkowski (66 catches for 1072 yards, 11 TDs) makes this arguably the greatest QB-TE duo in NFL history. The Gronk must also be accounted for at all times.
Patriots vs. Jets Outlook
This battle of titans is sure to highlight Week 16 of the 2015 NFL season. Despite being on the road, most experts expect the Pats to go into the Meadowlands and still come away victorious. However, the Pats are sure to face some stiff resistance, especially considering the Jets come in with momentum on their side having won four straight contests.
Abe Gutierrez's (Twitter: @GutierrezAbe) passion led him to ditch law school journey in order to launch his own publishing company. His expertise make him a valued addition to Examiner.com, AXS.com and the CBS-Sports family. Some of his work can be found on CBS-Miami (Dolphins), CBS-LosAngeles (Chargers), CBS-BayArea (Raiders), CBS-NewYork (NY Jets), CBS-TampaBay (Buccaneers), AXS.com, Examiner.com and other online publications.
