How New York Jets Offense Can Be Successful Without Eric Decker

Under Rex Ryan, the New York Jets offense took on the personality of its head coach: smashmouth, "ground and pound" football meant to pummel its opponents into submission. Under Todd Bowles, the coach's influence seems to be having an effect on the offense once again, only this time the result is an aggressive but calculated strike.

Make no mistake, both Bowles and Ryan are defensive-minded coaches, but their approaches are much different. That being said, with wide receiver Eric Decker suffering a knee injury against the Indianapolis Colts, Bowles may have to think like Ryan on the offensive side of the ball. 

Decker did not practice on Wednesday or Thursday, and although he may be able to play Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles, the Jets have to be prepared for the possibility that he won't be 100 percent.

The Jets passing offense has soared to new heights on the strength of the one-two punch that features Decker and Brandon Marshall at the wide receiver position, as we saw on Monday night when the two combined for a monster performance.

Marshall will still be out there, but the Jets might have to look elsewhere for the missing production on offense if Decker is unable to play. 

The knee-jerk reaction is to get running back Chris Ivory as many carries as he can handle, but Ivory injured his quad in practice last Wednesday. He was limited last week leading into the Jets' Monday night game, but he hasn't been able to practice this week at all. Running back Zac Stacy made his debut on the active game-day roster last week due to concern over Ivory's groin and the Jets' lack of depth at running back.

"He's sore. He's real sore," said Bowles, "but treatment wise, we'll see how the week goes, but he's sore."

Backup running back Bilal Powell has been effective this year, so he could be the top back with Zac Stacy sliding in as his backup. 

But what about the passing game?

It would be just as easy to pin the tail on the next receiver on the depth chart. With Decker out, maybe someone like Chris Owusu could step up and be a key receiver this week. Owusu is dealing with a knee injury of his own, though, and has already been ruled out for Week 3. 

Even with a thin group of wide receivers, the Jets should think about focusing on the passing game this week against the Philadelphia Eagles.

Thus far, the Eagles' opponents have rushed for just 3.1 yards per carry (fourth-lowest in the NFL) but have earned 7.5 net yards per pass attempt through the air (10th-highest in the NFL). Sure, part of the reason may be that they've faced two talented passers in Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan and Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo. Neither team features a particularly fearsome running attack, either. 

But both Eagles cornerbacks Byron Maxwell and Nolan Carroll have been exposed this year. According to Pro Football Focus, Carroll has allowed a reception on seven of the nine throws into his coverage (77.8 percent) for 74 yards, while Maxwell has yielded a catch on 15 of the 19 throws into his coverage (78.9 percent) for 240 yards and two touchdowns. 

It's right about now that the Jets are glad they hung onto receivers like Quincy Enunwa, and even Jeremy Kerley. Enunwa has the size and positional versatility to fill in for Owusu as the interchangeable receiver between the boundary and the slot, and although Kerley is pretty much exclusively a slot receiver, he could be a valuable player in Week 3 in the right matchups. 

For other teams, this might be a time when the offense would shift to more of a two-tight end look. Unfortunately, the Jets just don't have the manpower at tight end to make that switch. Jeff Cumberland and Kellen Davis haven't even combined to play two-thirds of the Jets' offensive snaps this season.

The Jets don't have a whole lot of options. It's going to be up to the backup receivers to step up if Decker has to step down for a week. 

Unless otherwise noted, all injury report information and quotes obtained via team news release.