Editorial

Jets corral Colts – welcome Vikings on Sunday

Admin - October 16, 2018

It's not often that kickers steal the spotlight but when one breaks a franchise record with seven successful field goals in a game, tongues start wagging. That’s exactly what unheralded Jason Myers did last week which contributed mightily to the Jets' 42-34 victory over the Colts. The Marist College product drilled 30, 48, 32, 37, 45, 37 and 45-yard attempts through the uprights and his 24 points are the second-highest single-game total by any player who did not score a touchdown in league history. Myers was claimed off waivers from the Seahawks prior to the season and out-dueled Taylor Bertolet for the kicking spot.

The Jets earned the victory and Sam Darnold had a few moments of brilliance in his afternoon of 280 passing yards with a pair of TDs and an interception. However, it was the ball hawks on defense that snatched three Andrew Luck passes, with Morris Claiborne kicking things off by scoring the first points of the game via a 17-yard pick-six. The big boys in the trenches were unable to get Luck’s uniform dirty, as the Colts' mainstay escaped without a sack and was hit just three times.

The Jets have now evened the slate at .500 with their most recent win but the receiving corps is among the walking wounded. Quincy Enunwa (ankle), Terrelle Pryor (groin) and Charone Peake (hamstring) are all nursing injuries to varying degrees and as such, the call has gone out to former Tennessee Titan wideout Rishard Matthews. You may recall that Matthews left Nashville in a huff (he was released) after complaining about his diminished role in the Tennessee offense.

As the Jets move on from their shootout with Indianapolis, they will now host an NFC power in Minnesota. The Vikings dumped the hapless Cardinals at home last week after their mild upset of the world champion Philadelphia Eagles the week before. Kirk Cousins will bring his passing attack to New Jersey and will test the Jets' secondary early and often. New York is currently ranked 23rd in passing yards allowed and will need to contain the terrifying tandem of Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs from moving the chains at will.

As we look ahead we are interested to see what the oddsmakers at Sportsbetting.ag are dealing in this matchup and there is no more reputable online sportsbook as their review indicates. It appears that the public is anticipating a Minnesota victory as the current line on this game is Minnesota -3 but there are indications that this line could drift north of a field goal. It might be a good time to jump on the favorite but if you’re like us, we prefer to wait just a bit to see if we can get the Jets +3 ½ or even +4 as kickoff approaches.

There are some interesting trends on the Jets' side of things as they enter this pivotal Week 7 showdown with the Vikings. New York is 6-0-2 ATS (Against The Spread) in their last eight games in Week 7, 8-0-1 ATS in their last nine games in October, 6-1 ATS in their last seven games after allowing more than 30 points in their previous game, and most importantly are 10-2 ATS in their last 12 home games. Conversely, Minnesota is 1-4-1 ATS in their last six games following a straight up win.

The Jets desperately need to get the receiving corps healthy as they won’t be able to rely on their field goal kicker garnering the majority of the offense. That could be a tall task as Minnesota can bring the heat as evidenced by their 18 sacks on the season. Nevertheless, the Jets are tied for second in the league in interceptions and a few on Sunday could decide their fate against a quarterback in Cousins who has only three picks on the season. Whatever you decide, make sure to check out the up-to-the-second odds and make a few bucks while you watch the J-E-T-S go to work.