Offense: There is no team worse in the NFL at defending the pass than the Houston Texans and considering how well Mark Sanchez has been playing the previous few weeks, there is no reason not to take advantage of it. Braylon Edwards, Santonio Holmes, and Dustin Keller should all have favorable matchups throughout the game and I wouldn't be surprised to see the Jets take more shots down the field than normal to them. It is looking like Joe McKnight and maybe Jeff Cumberland will get a crack at taking some of Jerricho Cotchery's reps, along with Brad Smith. The Jets spent an extended amount of time in their "Tiger" formation last week. You would think they would use it a little less this week with Smith taking over more wide receiver duties.
In the running game, hopefully Shonn Greene will continue to stay in the 18-22 carry range, while LaDainian Tomlinson stays around the 13-16 mark, along with doing his normal work receiving out of the backfield. It would be nice to see Greene keep building momentum heading into December and get another 100-yard game under his belt. He has only had one so far in 2010.
This is a week where the offense should really flourish against a porous, finesse defense. The Jets have scored at least 20 points in seven of their games this season and it might be time for them to get their second 30-point performance of the year.
Defense: The Jets are well equipped to take away the two things Houston has done best so far this year, run the football with Arian Foster and throw the ball to Andre Johnson. If the run defense keeps doing what they've been doing and Darrelle Revis plays the way he did against Calvin Johnson two weeks ago, the Texans are going to have a very tough time moving the football. They will be forced to rely on players like Kevin Walter, Jacoby Jones and Joel Dressen to make plays against the rest of the Jets secondary, which has been inconsistent at times. However, Antonio Cromartie is more than capable of taking Walter or Jones out of the game. It will really be up to Kyle Wilson, Drew Coleman and the safeties to improve the consistency of their coverage.
The Texans will likely try to attack the Jets in a similar way to the Lions and Browns, which is to work the middle of the field, particularly on short crossing routes. Rex Ryan and members of the Jets defense have expressed displeasure with their level of production up to this point in 2010. This is a great week to start the turn around because honestly the Jets haven't been one of the best defenses in the NFL so far. It would make a nice statement to shut down one of the top offenses in the league like Houston.
The defense has played well at home this year, unlike the offense. They have allowed 10, 14, 20, and 9 points respectively. Beyond that, four of their five interceptions this year have came at the New Meadowlands. Hopefully the trend will continue and the Jets can begin climbing back towards being an elite defense in the NFL.
Special Teams: This is a big bounce back week for Nick Folk. If he misses a couple more field goals the Jets are going to have major problems moving forward at the kicker position. On returns, I feel like Kyle Wilson might actually be do for a huge return and maybe we will get a look at Joe McKnight at kick returns now since Brad Smith will be playing more offense.