After losing their fifth game in a row on Sunday to the lowly New England Patriots, the Jets are scrambling for answers.
Could they start to turn things around with a win over the Texans on Sunday?
Here are the biggest stories to watch as New York looks to beat Houston for the second year in a row…
Can the Jets repeat last year’s success against C.J. Stroud?
The teams head into Thursday’s game in exactly the same situation as when they met last year. The Jets have lost five in a row and the Texans have won four out of their last five.
However, in last year’s game, the Jets improbably had their best defensive performance of the season, holding Stroud under 100 passing yards in a 30-6 blowout win.
That game was actually scoreless at halftime before the Jets scored two third quarter touchdowns to take control. Interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich will be hoping his defense can cause similar problems for Stroud this time around.
Will New York be able to exploit the Texans’ injury issues?
While the Jets have been banged up over the past few weeks, they are facing a Texans team with their own injury issues.
With Nico Collins already on IR, the Texans received a further blow at wide receiver when Stefon Diggs suffered a non-contact knee injury on Sunday. While the severity of Diggs’ injury isn’t yet known, it seems unlikely that Diggs – who was a thorn in the side of the Jets while in Buffalo – will be able to suit up.
The Texans also have issues in their back seven, with safety Jimmie Ward’s status uncertain and a couple of injured starters at the linebacker position.
Is Aaron Rodgers’ lack of mobility limiting the Jets’ offensive effectiveness?
One eye-opening postgame comment after Week 8 came from Patriots defensive lineman Davon Godchaux, who remarked that Rodgers has no mobility at all and that he felt confident that he could chase him down.
Rodgers was moving so well in the first meeting with the Patriots that these issues likely are due to the wear and tear of the season, and some of the punishment he’s taken over the past few weeks rather than last year’s Achilles tear. However, on a short week, it’s unlikely we’ll see any improvement on Thursday night.
At some point, the question has to be asked: would the Jets be better off with Tyrod Taylor at the helm for a while to give Rodgers a chance to get back to 100 percent?
Can the Jets’ defense get off the field on third down?
The Jets allowed New England to convert seven of 15 third downs on Sunday, including four 3rd-and-longs in the closing stages.
Now that Haason Reddick is in the fold, that was supposed to be an area that would be vastly improved. However, he only had a couple of pressures in his Jets debut, and New England was able to march downfield for the winning touchdown when it mattered. The Jets must improve in this area to have a chance of beating the Texans.
Can someone on defense force a turnover?
The Jets haven’t forced any turnovers in the past three games. After the loss to the Pats, cornerback DJ Reed alluded to the fact that the defense needs to step up in late game situations and with momentum-changing impact plays.
Where are the turnovers going to come from, though? The only Jets player to intercept a pass this season has been Brandin Echols, and with the top three cornerbacks healthy again, he’s not likely to be in the rotation.
Sauce Gardner in particular is long overdue for an interception, as he’s now gone 33 straight games since getting one. In addition, he’s been getting his hands on the ball less and less as his career has progressed. Gardner broke up 32 passes in his first 35 career starts, but has only two passes defensed in his past seven games.
