New England Patriots vs. New York Jets Game Preview: Round Three

This Sunday the Patriots will come off their bye week to face the Jets who are fresh off of a big win over the Colts away from home. The last time these two teams played it was billed as the most anticipated regular season game so far, it ended in a rout with the Patriots destroying the Jets 45-3. I doubt a score like that will happen again and this time it should be a much closer contest between the two teams.

This slide show will show you some key points and match ups that will be key for each team if they desire to win.

Brady Vs. Ryan

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INDIANAPOLIS, IN - JANUARY 08: Head coach Rex Ryan of the New York Jets looks on against the Indianapolis Colts during their 2011 AFC wild card playoff game at Lucas Oil Stadium on January 8, 2011 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Gett

Last week Ryan had almost the perfect game plan against Peyton Manning and finally managed to get a win over the Colts. He did this by not using his usual arsenal of blitzes, but simply drop into coverage and give Manning all the check downs he wanted. Apart from the Pierre Garcon touchdown catch there weren't many if any big plays from the Colts offence which is normally full of them.

The same game plan probably won't work against Brady and the Patriots as the Patriots are much better after the catch then the Colts receivers. If the Jets drop back Brady will hit the check down and the receivers will do the rest.

Ryan will have to come up with a new game plan that won't let Brady throw all over the Jets like last time. If Ryan can do this and hold the Patriots to a modest score then the Jets will have a good chance of winning.

Sanchez Vs. Belichick

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FOXBORO, MA - DECEMBER 19: Bill Belichick, head coach of the New England Patriots, looks on during the second quarter of the game against the Green Bay Packers at Gillette Stadium on December 19, 2010 in Foxboro, Massachusetts. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Imag

Mark Sanchez has had mixed success against the Patriots so far in his young NFL career. It can be split into two simple categories though. Home and Away. When Sanchez has being playing at home against the Patriots he has thrown for 383 yards, 4 touchdowns, 0 interceptions and two wins. However at Gillette Stadium Sanchez has thrown for 300 yards, 1 touchdown, 7 touchdowns and two losses. Sundays clash is taking place at Gillette so if things go as they have for the first four games Sanchez has played against the Patriots then Belichick's defence could have a field day against Sanchez.

 Belichick seems to have Sanchez's number at Gillette and if he once again calls all the right plays then the Patriots could run away with it again.

Getting The Run Going

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FOXBORO, MA - JANUARY 02: BenJarvus Green-Ellis #42 of the New England Patriots carries the ball as Tim Robbins #51 of the Miami Dolphins defends on January 2, 2011 at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

Both of these teams have good running games, but they are different in what they do. The Jets running game is needed to set up Mark Sanchez in the passing game, whilst the Patriots set up the run game as teams focus more on Tom Brady.

Both teams have two backs that are effective, the Jets have Tomlinson and Greene whilst the Patriots have Green-Ellis and Jets cast-off Danny Woodhead.

Whoever can get their running game going the quickest could be a key to victory.

Patriots Weapons Vs. Jets Defence

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ORCHARD PARK, NY - DECEMBER 26: Danny Woodhead #39 and Rob Gronkowski #87 of the New England Patriots celebrate Woodehead's 29 yard touchdown run in the first quarter against the Buffalo Bills at Ralph Wilson Stadium on December 26, 2010 in Orchard Park,

The Patriots have so many viable weapons this season and no one player is seen as a favourite target to Brady as on every play it could go to anyone. Last time the Jets couldn't keep up with all of these weapons, mainly because of the mass substitutions every play, and there were mismatches almost every play it seemed. On some plays Danny Woodhead was being covered by a defensive end, that is just a recipe for disaster for the Jets.

If they plan to win this game then the Jets must keep track of the Patriots offensive personnel, because if they don't there will be mismatches just like last time and we all know what happened then.

Darrelle Revis

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EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - OCTOBER 31: Darrelle Revis #24 of the New York Jets reacts against the Green Bay Packers on October 31, 2010 at the New Meadowlands Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)

Revis can be massive in games, shutting down #1 receivers for whole games. Just last week he shut down Peyton Manning's best receiver Reggie Wayne, holding the receiver to just one catch for a single yard.

The problem against the Patriots is that they don't have a #1 receiver so Revis is underutilised in the Jets secondary. Last time the two teams met Revis was matched up against Alge Crumpler, the teams #3 tight end, for one play which is simply a waste of Revis' talents.

It would help the Jets to stop the Patriots offence if they could find a way to utilise Revis better.

Conclusion

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FOXBORO, MA - JANUARY 02: Tom Brady #12 of the New England Patriots looks on in the third quarter against the Miami Dolphins on January 2, 2011 at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

The Patriots have too many weapons for the Jets to cover for the whole game and this will be to the Jets downfall as they fail to cover them all and lose the rubber match between the two. I do though believe the Jets will do better then the last time.

I'm not going to sleep on the Jets though and they are a very talented team and deserve their place in the playoffs. They could very easily upset the Patriots and win this game like they did against the Colts, but I can't see it this season and with the Patriots at home.

Score Prediction: Jets 17-34 Patriots