New England Patriots vs. New York Jets: What's the Game Plan for New York?

When the New York Jets and New England Patriots last faced each other, the game was there for the taking for New York. 

With 13 minutes left to play, Jets wideout Brandon Marshall dropped a pass in the corner of the end zone. If he'd held on, New York would have taken an eight-point lead and grabbed all of the game's momentum. Instead, the Jets were forced to settle for a field goal, New England scored back-to-back touchdowns and New York was never able to recover. 

Now nine weeks later, the Jets have a chance to rectify that early blunder and keep their playoff hopes alive. So, what does New York have to do to stop the Patriots? Here's the game plan for a Jets victory on Sunday. 

Offensive Game Plan

The Patriots defense isn't like a lot of other teams'. With how well the group is coached, there isn't necessarily a "weak spot" on the unit. Sure, the secondary isn't as good as when Darrelle Revis and Brandon Browner were the team's bookend corners, but it's far from bad. And, yes, the rush defense isn't as great as when Vince Wilfork was in the middle, but it's definitely not terrible. 

The group is, from top to bottom, solid. The stats emphasize that. 

The Patriots are sixth overall in yards allowed per game, sixth in points and have forced the 16th-most turnovers. Comparing those numbers to last year's Super Bowl champion team, you can see there hasn't been much of a drop-off. 

2014
Yards Per Game	Points Per Game	Forced Turnovers
344.1 (13th)	19.6 (8th)	25 (13th)
2015
Yards Per Game	Points Per Game	Forced Turnovers
326.1 (6th)	19.2 (6th)	20 (16th)

With that being said, the Jets' game plan on offense is going to be simple. Every one of the 11 players who takes the field is going to have to win their individual battle. If New York can do that, it will have a chance of winning. 

Say the passing game is working, New York will stick with it. If the Patriots counter to try to shut that down, thus opening up running lanes, the game will shift over to running back Chris Ivory. There is no set "the Jets need to do this" concept this weekend. It's going to be a read-and-react situation.

Receiver Brandon Marshall is going to have to beat whomever lines up in front of him, same for Eric Decker. Quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick is going to have to avoid the turnovers and make the smart decisions. The offensive line is going to have to control the line of scrimmage. 

"As Coach [Todd] Bowles likes to say, it’s a chess match," Jets offensive coordinator Chan Gailey said. "You’ve got to kind of see what they’re plan is, and it’ll be early, we’ll know, and then we’ll adjust from there. The good thing is that we’ve got enough veteran players that are comfortable with the offense now that we can make some adjustments when we need to in the ballgame."

It sounds simple, and in theory, it is. The issue is that the concept is much easier said than done. 

The biggest thing that the Jets are going to have to do Sunday, though, is simply outscore the Patriots by enough points through three quarters that there isn't enough time for New England quarterback Tom Brady to come back. 

See, here's the thing: Brady is that good. Eventually, he figures a defense out. As an offense, what you need to hope for is that you score enough points that when Brady eventually figures out a team's defense, you're up by enough points that he doesn't have enough time to build a comeback. 

If the Jets offense can do that, New York can win the game.

Defensive Game Plan

Comparing the Jets from the last time the team faced the Patriots to the one that will take the field Sunday, you see two completely different teams. The Jets have made monumental strides in terms of chemistry, have started to figure out their identity, especially in the last three weeks, and are beginning to fire on all cylinders.  

The Patriots, like the Jets, are also a far different team...but for other reasons. 

New England has been bit by the injury bug more in these last few weeks than many teams this year. Focusing just on the offensive side of the ball, and even if these guys play, it's highly unlikely receivers Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola will be at full strength. That's not including the team's injured reserve, which includes LeGarrette Blount, Aaron Dobson, Brandon Gibson, Dion Lewis, Nate Solder and Ryan Wendell. 

But for all the Patriots injuries, they do still have one 6'6", 265-pound mammoth who will be taking the field. And in the two teams' first matchup, Rob Gronkowski gave the Jets fits. 

Receptions	Yards	Touchdowns
7	77	1

Gronkowski caught 11 passes for 108 yards and a touchdown Week 7. Quite literally, New York tried about everything it could to slow him down, but nothing worked. In that 11-catch game, Gronkowski caught a pass against seven different Jets defenders. He specifically enjoyed picking on Marcus Gilchrist. 

When matched up on the safety, according to Pro Football Focus, Gronk caught five passes for 46 yards and a touchdown on six targets.

"That’s a great question and there’s about 30 other teams I need to ask," Jets defensive coordinator Kacy Rodgers jokingly said when asked how to stop Gronkowski. "In all fairness, he’s a tremendous player. We’ve got a lot of different things we’ve got to try. I don’t think that one thing works to stop him.

"As you look at it, this guy lines up in line at tight end, then you look at it and [he] lines up as a No. 1 receiver. He’s all over the place, and that creates matchup problems. It creates a lot of problems. A headache."

Having already caught 66 passes for 1,072 yards and 11 touchdowns this season, it's almost certain that Gronkowski is going to catch his passes and make his plays. What the Jets need to look to do Sunday is not shut Gronkowski down, because that's not going to happen. Instead, New York needs to contain him. Limit those big plays, keep him in check. Force another player on the roster to make the play that's the difference between a win and a loss. 

The Jets defense is good enough to match up one-on-one with the other skill positions on the Patriots offense. The X-factor is Gronkowski. If the team can contain big No. 87, there's a very good chance New York wins its 10th game of the season Sunday afternoon. 

Key Matchups

Sheldon Richardson, Muhammad Wilkerson vs. Patriots Offensive Line

The New York Giants provided the "Blue Print" to defeating Brady twice on the biggest of stages. As great as Brady is—arguably the best to ever play the position—he's a far different quarterback when being knocked down on a regular basis. 

Steven Senne/Associated Press

Brady doesn't really get happy feet, per say, but he does get frustrated. He'll start throwing fits on the sideline and get angry with his offensive linemen. When that happens, the defense gains momentum. 

The thing is, though, simply pressuring or blitzing isn't going to do the trick. The Jets are going to need to get to Brady and knock him down. The two most likely to do that? Defensive ends Sheldon Richardson and Muhammad Wilkerson. 

This year, the two have combined for 18 sacks and 69 quarterback pressures. 

Eric Decker vs. Malcolm Butler

The Patriots use a unique tactic on defense when it comes to covering an opponent's top target. See, while Malcolm Butler is their best cornerback, they instead put Logan Ryan with safety help on the best receiving threat of an opposition. In the case this Sunday, that will be Jets wideout Brandon Marshall. 

Butler is asked to shut down the next best option. For Sunday's matchup, that's wideout Eric Decker. 

The Patriots have been doing this each and ever week. It's quite smart, actually. Most receivers can be contained with double coverage, no matter who those two players are. Why waste your best cover corner when you're just going to put safety help over there anyway? In a way, this allows the Patriots to, theoretically, contain two of their opponent's best weapons. 

New England did this when it met the Jets earlier in the year. But back then, with Marshall being shut down, Decker was no match for Butler. The wideout caught six passes for 94 yards. The 94 yards are the second-highest total for Decker in any one game this year. 

"They put the safety on Brandon and that kinda gave me some one-on-one matchups," Decker said. "I think it was just some of the route concepts that we called. Fitz put the ball in the right place, and that allowed me to have some success. 

"[Butler] is a scrappy guy. It's one of those things where, depending on what they do this game, he's someone that's tough to go against."  

If Marshall is contained again by the Patriots, it'll be up to Decker to step up as the team's No. 1 wideout. The battle between him and Butler will be worth watching all afternoon. 

With a Jets Win

While the Jets will still need either the Cincinnati Bengals, Denver Broncos or Kansas City Chiefs to lose a game, a victory over the Patriots will keep the team's playoff hopes alive. The Jets are still going to need help, as it's been highly discussed how they don't control their own destiny. But if the team can't beat the Patriots, nothing those other three teams do will matter. 

With a Jets Loss

That will be it for the 2015 season for the Jets. Mathematically, they may still have a chance, but that would take a mini-miracle. This is a must-win game for them. Essentially, New York would then need the Pittsburgh Steelers or Chiefs to lose out. 

Prediction

The Jets are playing for everything. Their postseason lives are on the line this Sunday against the Patriots. 

If New York were to lose, that would all but put a bow on this season. Sure, it would have been a nice ride and certainly more than many expected, but with how well the Jets are playing right now, falling short of the playoffs would leave a salty feeling in the mouths of most on the team's roster. 

And that's exactly why it's hard to see the Jets losing this game. 

The Patriots could likely lose both of their final two games and still finish with the top spot in the AFC. If the Pats should lose to the Jets, they've got a cake-walk Week 17 finale against the Miami Dolphins that would still be a slam dunk even if the team elected to rest its starters. This game simply means more for the Jets, and expect them to play like that on Sunday. 

Wilkerson and Richardson will get after Brady and make his life miserable. Gronkowski will make his catches and have his yards, and he'll likely even get in the end zone, but he won't make that back-breaking play that gives the Patriots the victory. With Amendola and Edelman (likely) out, there just isn't another skill position player on New England's roster that should scare the Jets defense.

Marshall will be kept in check, likely putting together a similar stat line to the first time he faced the Patriots (about six catches, 70-ish yards), but look for Decker to break out. Under center, Fitzpatrick will do enough to give the Jets the victory. 

The game will come down to the wire with either Fitzpatrick having to lead a game-winning drive or the defense having to force Brady from doing the same. In either situation, New York will prevail. 

Final score: Jets 24, Patriots 21

Connor Hughes is the New York Jets beat writer for the Journal Inquirer and Scout.com. All quotes, practice observations and advanced stats referenced are gathered firsthand or via transcript unless otherwise noted.

Connor can be reached on Twitter (@Connor_J_Hughes) or via email ([e-mail]).