MORSE: Jets Week 17 Preview
Injury woes and rookie QB Brady Cook leave Jets vulnerable as Patriots prepare to capitalize in Week 17
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This week’s opponent is the lowly NY Jets. Even though the game will be played in the Meadowlands, not even Tony Soprano could help them. This team has been devastated by injuries which prompted them to hold a fire sale at the trade deadline. They traded CB Sauce Gardiner and DT Quinnen Williams. They have five 1st round picks in the next two years.
| Starter | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | |
| QB | Brady Cook | Tyrod Taylor | Justin Fields IR | – |
| RB | Breece Hall | Isaiah Davis | Khalil Herbert | Kene Nwangwu |
| WR | John Metchie | Tyler Johnson | Josh Reynolds IR | – |
| WR | Adonai Mitchell | Arian Smith | Irvin Charles O | – |
| WR | Isaiah Williams | Garrett Wilson IR | – | – |
| TE | Mason Taylor Q | Jeremy Ruckert | Stone Smartt | |
| FB | Andrew Beck | – | – | |
| LT | Olu Fashanu | Max Mitchell | – | Jelani Woods |
| LG | John Simpson | Xavier Newman | – | |
| C | Josh Myers | Joe Tippmann | Gus Hartwig IR | – |
| RG | Joe Tippmann | Xavier Newman | Alijah Vera- Tucker IR | – |
| RT | Armand Membou | Chukwuma Okorafor |
The Jets’ Offense is pretty anemic with 270.1 Yards Per Game (YPG), which is 29th. Passing, they are 32nd at 145.9 YPG. When they run the ball, they are 9th at 124.3 YPG. Scoring, they rank 28th at 18.8 Points Per Game. In the Red Zon,e they are 29th at 45.7%. On 3rd down, they are 27th at 35.0%
First-year Head Coach Aaron Glenn announced that Justin Fields was put on IR this week. He went on to state that Brady Cook will be the starter at QB. You know Brady Cook? He went Undrafted after this year’s draft. The 6’2” 215-pound QB started the last two years for Missouri in the SEC. So far this season, he has played in the last three games, starting the last two games and completing 58 of 98 passes for 527 yards, 59.2 Completion %, 1 TD, and 6 INTs. His QB rating is an anemic 9.7. Cook has been sacked 17 times in 89 dropbacks. He also has a 53.1% Pressure-to-Sack rate, which is no threat.
The Jets have three good running backs in Breece Hall, Isaiah Davis, and Khalil Herbert. I was surprised that the Jets didn’t trade Breece Hall at the trade deadline. Perhaps teams weren’t willing to pay the price the Jets wanted for a non-elite RB. Hall has 229 carries for 954 yards. 4.2 YPC, 3 TDs, and 2 Fumbles. As a receiver out of the backfield, he has 34 catches on 45 targets for 332 yards, 9.8 YPC, and a TD. Davis has 40 carries for 225 yards, 5.6 YPC. A TD and no Fumbles. As a receiver, he has chipped in with 20 catches on 27 targets, 8.9 YPC, and no TDs.
The Jets lost Garrett Wilson to IR, playing only eight games. He broke his streak of 1,000-yard seasons at 3 in a row. That streak was incredible considering how bad the QB play has been for the Jets over the last 4 seasons. He still leads the team with 36 catches on 59 targets for 395 yards, 11.0 YPC and 4 TDs. Adonai Mitchell assumes the #1 receiver role. He was acquired in the Sauce Gardner trade, has 21 catches on 46 targets for 279 yards, 13.3 YPC, and 2 TDs. John Metchie, acquired in a trade with the Eagles, has 23 catches on 37 targets for 195 yards, 8.5 YPC, and 2 TDs.
Mason Taylor is the top TE. He is the player I wanted for the Patriots instead of Treveyon Henderson. It was not because I thought Henderson was a bad player, but more because of the shortage of quality TEs. There was more depth in the draft for RBs, and the Patriots could have taken a good back later. It had nothing to do with Henderson, who turned out to be a terrific pick and likely Offensive Rookie of the Year. Taylor has missed two games with injuries and is Questionable for Sunday. He leads the team with 44 receptions on 65 targets, 8.4 YPC, and 1 TD. Jeremy Ruckert and Stone Smartt are the backups.
Andrew Beck is the Fullback and is used as a lead blocker. He only has 1 carry for 5 yards.
Despite the loss of Elijah Vera-Tucker, the Offensive line is the strength of the Offense. The Jets have invested in their line and so far, the three young players have been mediocre. LT Olu Fashanu was last year’s #1 pick (11). The 6’6”, 319-pound T out of Penn State is still only 23 years old. His PFF grade is 70, 36th of 83 Tackles. For the season he has given up 6 Sacks, 4 QB Hits, 27 Hurries, and 37 Pressures. RT is rookie Armand Membou, a player that I had highlighted early in the Draft process, might be the Patriots’ 1st selection. The 6’3”, 314-pound Right Tackle played at Missouri and was selected by the Jets in the 1st round (7) in this year’s draft. His PFF grade is 71.6, 30th of 83 Tackles. Let’s put Will Campbell’s stats next to these two young players. Campbell has a 71.3 PFF Grade, 33rd. Better than Fashanu and close to Membou. Campbell has missed the last three games and will miss the next game as well.
It is interesting that Membou did not switch to Left Tackle as a Senior at Missouri. The reason he did not switch was that Missouri signed SMU All-AAC Left Tackle Marcus Bryant from the Transfer Portal. Bryant was a surprise selection by the Patriots in the 7th round, and he has been on the roster all season. Josh Myers was signed a 1-year contract during Free Agency this year. The Jets liked him so much that they signed him to a 2-year extension for $11M. Myers is not that good and doesn’t deserve a $5.5M per year contract. His PFF grade is 38th of 40 Centers in the league. Let’s put that in perspective. There are only 32 starting Centers in the league. He is 6 spots away from being the last Center worthy of starting. In comparison, the Patriots re-signed Ben Brown to a two-year $6.6M extension that has a base closer to $5M. Brown is listed as a Guard by PFF and has a 68.5 grade. If he had had enough snaps at Guard, he would have been #30 among 73 Guards. That would be the top half of starting guards, and the Pats have him for half of what the Jets gave Myers. The Ohio State player was selected in the 2021 draft 2nd round (62) by Green Bay. On the season, he has given up 2 Sacks, 4 QB Hits, 20 Hurries, and 26 Pressures.
Joe Tippmann was another Jets high draft pick. The 6’4”, 330-pound Guard played at Wisconsin and was selected in the 2nd round 44th by the Jets. His PFF grade is 65, 32nd of 79 Guards. On the season, he has given up 6 Sacks, 4 QB Hits, 17 Hurries, and 27 Pressures. Filling in for Vera-Tucker, John Simpson is the Left Guard. The 6’4”, 330-pound Guard played at Clemson and was selected in the 2020 draft in the 4th round (119) by Las Vegas. His PFF grade is 56.5, 48th of 79 Guards. On the season, he has given up 4 sacks, 4 QB Hits, 18 Hurries, and 36 Pressures.
| Starter | 2nd | 3rd | |
| LDE | Will McDonald IV | Braiden McGregor | Tyler Baron IR |
| LDT | Harrison Phillips | Jowon Briggs | Payton Page |
| RDT | Jay Tufele Q | Khalen Saunders | Mazi Smith |
| RDE | Jermaine Johnson | Micheal Clemons | Eric Watts Q |
| WLB | Kiko Mauigoa Q | Marcelino McCrary-Ball IR | – |
| MLB | Jamien Sherwood | Mykal Walker | – |
| SLB | Quincy Williams | Kobe King | Cam Jones |
| LCB | Qwan’tez Stiggers | Keidron Smith | Azareye’h Thomas |
| SS | Malachi Moore | Isaiah Oliver IR | Tony Adams IR |
| FS | Dean Clark | Jarius Monroe | Andre Cisco IR |
| RCB | Brandon Stephens | Kris Boyd IR | |
| NB | Ja’Sir Taylor | Jordan Clark | Jarvis Brownlee IR |
The Defense gives up 342.3 YPG which is 21st in the league. Pass Defense is 13th with 208.7 YPG, but that is deceiving because they traded away their best All-Pro CB, Sauce Gardiner. They are ranked 30th in Expected Points per Dropback (-0.119). Run Defense is 28th at 138.7 YPG, Scoring is 30th at 28.4 Points Per Game. In the Red Zone, they are 21st at 59.6% and on 3rd Down, they are 9th at 36.3%.
The Jets don’t put pressure on the QB at 16.1%, which is 30th. They also have a poor sack rate of only 25 sacks, which is 29th in the league. With no pressure, the secondary has ZERO Interceptions.
LDE Will McDonald is their top Pass rusher with eight sacks. The 6’3” 241-pound DE played at Iowa State and was selected in the 2023 draft 1sr round (15) by the Jets. His PFF grade is 59.4, 83rd of 112 Edge players. On the seaso,n he has 8 Sacks, 12 QB Hits, and 22 Hurries. Harrison Phillips is the LDT. The 6’3” 307-pound DT played at Stanford and was selected in the 2018 draft 3rd round (96). His PFF grade is 67.8, good for 34th of 128 DTs. On the season he has 51 Tackles, 2 Sacks, 0 QB Hits, and 6 Hurries.
Jay Tufele is listed as Questionable and has missed Wednesday’s practice (no practice on Christmas Day). The 6’3”, 305-pound DT played at USC and was selected in the 2021 draft 4th round (107) by Jacksonville. His PFF grade is 51, 90 of 128 DTs. On the season he has 12 Tackles, 0 Sacks, 0 QB Hits, and 6 Hurries. If Tufele can’t go it is likely that Khalen Saunders will be his replacement. Jermaine Johnson is the RDE. He stands 6’5” and is a 262-pound DE who played at Florida State and was selected in the 2022 draft, 1st round (26) by the Jets. His PFF grade is 64.6, good for 62 of 112 Linebackers. For the season, he has made 39 Tackles. 3 Sacks, 4 QB Hits, and 27 Hurries.
The Linebacker group is very weak. LOLB is Kiko Mauigoa. He stands 6’3”, 230 pounds and played at USC. The rookie was selected in the 2025 draft 5th round (164) by the Jets. His PFF grade is 42.4, 77 of 86 LBs. On the season he has 45 tackles, 0 Sacks, 0 QB Hits, and 2 Hurries. Jamien Sherwood is the ILB. The converted Safety stands 6’2”, 216 pounds, and played at Auburn. He was selected in the 2021 draft, 5th round (147) by the Jets. Quincy Williams fills out as the ROLB. The 5’11” 225-pound linebacker played at Murray State and was drafted in the 2019 draft 3rd round (98) by Jacksonville. The linebackers make a majority of the tackles but they are on the very light side.
Injuries and the trade of Gardner have decimated this secondary. They have Isaiah Olliver. Tony Adams. Andre Cisco, and Jarvis Brownlee on IR. The secondary starts with Qwan’Tez Stiggers. He was a player I featured in my 2024 draft previews. He never played college football. He was supposed to start college football, but that dream was derailed by the sudden death if his father. He returned home and went to work to help the family out. He played for an arena team and was discovered by a Canadian Football scout. He signed with the Toronto Argonauts and went on to win the Most Outstanding Rookie award for the CFL that year. That led to an invitation to the East-West Shrine Bowl where I 1st saw him play. The 6’ 180-pound DB didn’t play college football but was drafted by the jets in the 2024 draft, 5th round (177). His PFF grade is 59.5 but doesn’t have enough snaps to get a rank.
Stiggers is replacing Sauce Gardiner. On the season, he has 17 Tackles, 0 QB Hits, 0 Hurries, and 0 INT. Malachi Moore is the Strong Safety. The rookie 6’0″ 200-pound Safety from Alabama was selected in the 2025 draft, 4th round (130) by the Jets. His PFF grade is 66.2, 44 of 1oo Safeties. On the season, he has 84 Tackles, 0 QB Hits, 1 Hurry, and 0 INTs. Dean Clark is now a Free Safety. The 6’, 215-pound Safety played at Fresno State. The rookie UDFA has a PFF grade of 61.3. He doesn’t have enough snaps to qualify for a rank. On the season heh as 6 Tackles and 0 Sacks, 0 QB Hits, 0 INT. Brandon Stephens is now the RCB. The 6’1” 215-pound CB from SMU was Baltimore’s 3rd round selection (105) in the 2021 draft. His PFF grade is a very respectable 70, 23rd of 112 CBs. On the season, he has 71 Tackles, 0 Sacks, 1 QB Hit, and 0 INTs. Ja’Sir Taylor is now the Nickle Back. He stands 5’10” 185-poundss and played at Wake Forest. He was a 2022 draft selection of Las Angeles Chargers in the 6th round (215).
| Starter | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | |
| PK | Nick Folk | – | – | – |
| P | Austin McNamara | – | – | – |
| H | Austin McNamara | |||
| PR | Isaiah Williams | Isaiah Davis | – | – |
| KR | Kene Nwangwu | Isaiah Williams | Khalil Herbert | Isaiah Davis |
| LS | Thomas Hennessy | – | – | – |
The one area where the Jets have an advantage is on Special Teams. Nick Folk is having another fine year at age 41. He led the league last season in Field Goal % and is tied for the lead this year at 96.4%. Austin McNamarra is 6th in Net Yards per Punt at 43.1. Isaiah Williams is 6th in Punt Return Average at 14.1 Yards Per Return. On Kickoff Returns, he has a 30.1 YPR, which is 2nd in the league.
The NFL always wants to put on a good show. They had three games scheduled for Christmas Day, with all three being on alternative streaming channels. However, the worst part is that each game featured a team’s 3rd string QB. Those 3rd stringers went 1 for 3. The lone winner was former UNH QB Max Brosmer for the Vikings. Brosmer’s official box score had him for 51 passing yards, and they still won.
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Good we’re playing the Jets with Brady Cook given the array of Pats injuries. The Pats need the W. The only chance the Jets have is if they run the ball given Tonga, Farmer, Milton WIlliams, Spillane are out. But the Pats will fill in there at DT with Pharms, Durbin etc. Baremore. Ponder and Anfrenee Jennings can pick up Landry’s snaps. Tavai and others can fill in for Spillane. Kyle Williams and Diggs can take the majority of WR snaps, and as well the pats can play 2 TEs and or 2 RBs and a jumbo TE if they… Read more »