The New York Jets should have one goal on Sunday: stop the Jay-Train (Jay Ajayi), which in essence stops the Miami Dolphins.
It’s easier said than done, I’m afraid. But that’s the truth.
Jay Ajayi is the little engine that could for the Miami Dolphins. They will go where Ajayi takes them, not Jay Cutler.
Cutler is heralded as one of the last gunslingers in the game, yet he looked reserved in his debut in Week 2 against the LA Chargers. He mustered 200 yards while posting meager seven yards per completion.
While on the ground, Ajayi had 30 touches on offense combining for over 125 yards of offense. This guy is going to get the rock early and often for the Phins. In his two games against the Jets last year, he combined for 160-plus yards and two touchdowns.
Unfortunately, that’ll be additionally difficult because through two weeks of football the Jets are the worst team in the NFL at defending the run, allowing over 185 yards per game.
The Jets are also …
- 0-2
- Third worst in total yards allowed
- Third worst in total points allowed
- Second to last in turnover differential
Long story short, the Jets don’t have a lot going for them right now. Despite that, I believe the Jets are going to win on Sunday. They’re returning home for their home opener in front of what should be a raucous crowd.
OK, ‘raucous-ish’ crowd. Plus, it’s a divisional opponent and those games you can throw records out the window. Also, despite the box scores for the Jets over the first two weeks of the season, they’ve actually played teams relatively close. So they haven’t been the cream puff everyone has suggested they’d be.
Now back to the point … stopping Ajayi means stopping the Dolphins. Here’s a fun fact I discovered in my research. When Ajayi runs for over 100-plus yards, the Dolphins are undefeated in his career (5-0).
The Miami Dolphins are a six-point favorite in this game and ESPN Analytics suggests the Dolphins have a 67 percent chance of victory. If the Jets are going to win any games this year, it’s going to come from within the division.
The Jets best chance at winning this game against the Dolphins is loading up the box and forcing Cutler to beat them. Gang Green possesses the 18th ranked pass defense in the league and their dynamic duo at safety has played phenomenal through the first two weeks of the season.
While I would love to say I have blind faith in the youngsters more so than blind faith that Cutler has a propensity for turning the ball over, it’s more so the latter.