Giants (2-7) Jets (1-7)
Last week the Jets started off their game in Miami with a touchdown drive. They had no more after that, as the Miami Dolphins treated their loyal fans to their first win of the season, 26-18.
The Giants failed to take advantage of opportunities that came their way in their Monday night match up with the Dallas Cowboys. Settling for field goals for most of their scoring, they lost 37-18.

NY Jets
Many thought Josh McCown would be the Jets starting quarterback in 2018. McCown was coming off a year where he set career highs in completions, yards, and touchdown passes before breaking his hand. Instead, Todd Bowles started the Jets third pick, and Sam Darnold became the youngest quarterback to start in Week 1 since Drew Bledsoe in 1993.
It's been a tough road for the Jets. After finishing the 2015 season with a 10-6 record, the Jets failed to win more than 5 games in the following years. After going 4-12 last season, they parted ways with head coach Todd Bowles. Adam Gase is in charge now, and going into the season, management hoped his offensive minded style of coaching would foster Sam Darnold in his second year.

Jets Offense
Things have not gone well for the Jets on the offensive side of the ball. They have regressed from last year in most areas. The Jets are the last place team in the NFL in total offense (223.5 yards), passing offense (157.3), third-down offense (22.8% ), and points (12) scored per game. That's about 9 points a game less than the previous year. Opponents have hit them for 37 sacks, which is what the offense gave up all last year. Sam Darnold had to sit out a few games after being diagnosed with mononucleosis, and when he returned, things were looking up, as he guided his team to a 24-22 upset over the Dallas Cowboys.
They weren't able to build on that, and have taken three losses since. New England shut them out 33-0, and despite the fact that in the past two weeks the Jets scored touchdowns on their opening drives, the offense stalled, and they ended up losing both games. Le'Veon Bell is their workhorse. Bell has carried the ball 125 times for 415 yards and 1 touchdown. The running back is also second on the team in catches only to top receiver Jamison Crowder, who has just 3 more, and both have caught 1 touchdown pass.

Jets Defense
The team does very well defending against the run. Gregg Williams, their new defensive coordinator, knows how to utilize his linemen, who he likes to rotate in and out into different fronts. It's paid off, as the Jets defense has given up just 89.3 yards a game on the ground, ranking them 6th in the NFL. Last year they were 26th, allowing 126.3 yards a game. They're also the league leader, allowing opponents an average 3.1 yards a carry, and a lot of their good work comes on first downs, where about 60 percent of the time they've limited rushing attacks to two yards or less.
Though their sack numbers are down from last year, the Jets passing defense is about the same as far as the numbers go. Safety Jamal Adams is the best player in the secondary. He leads the team with 52 tackles. The Jets have been hit hard in the cornerback position. This week Trumaine Johnson was placed on injured reserve, and Darryl Roberts missed practice with a calf injury. It Daniel Jones has time to throw, he can do damage.

Giants Offense
Daniel Jones can be very good at times, and then bad, making rookie mistakes, but what can you do? With more experience, Jones will figure it out, and sooner or later, the good should outweigh the bad. In the 37-18 Monday night loss to the Cowboys, Jones had 3 turnovers, 1 interception and 2 fumbles, and was sacked five times. For this Jets game, once again Jones won't have wide receiver Sterling Shepard, and tight end Evan Engram is also out. Jones will have to lean heavily on Golden Tate, who had as many receptions as Engram last week, catching all 6 he was targeted for.
As for the ground game, you have to wonder if Saquon Barkley is fully recovered from his ankle injury. Barkley rushed for only 28 yards against the Cowboys on 14 carries. If you think the offensive line is the problem, except for one play where Barkley broke free for 65 yards after catching the ball, his total on all 6 catches was 67 yards. Getting back to the offensive line, the Giants will lose some consistency there, as center Jon Halapio has been ruled out with a hamstring injury. Also, right tackle Mike Remmers has been listed as doubtful, with a back injury.

Giants Defense
Defensive end Leonard Williams was on the Jets team just two weeks ago. He was traded to the Giants, and in just his second game with them, will be facing off against his old teammates. It's an unusual circumstance, and hopefully Williams was able to sprinkle some inside knowledge around. Sam Darnold doesn't play behind the best offensive line, but he can fling the ball. Any additional pass pressure would help in a big way, as the Giants are prone to giving up big plays through the air.
Defensive end Markus Golden leads the team with 5.5 sacks, and the Giants sack numbers are actually up compared to last year. Still, the Giants couldn't crack the Cowboys offensive line on Monday. They had no sacks, and gave up 139 rushing yards to Ezekiel Elliott, who averaged 6 yards a carry. As we mentioned, Le'Veon Bell is one of the Jets best weapons. Bell was limited in practice this week, dealing with a knee injury, and the Jets have listed him as questionable. That could be a break for the Giants.

Overall
The Giants are favored in this game, but don't forget that the Jets did win over the Cowboys not too long ago. Both teams have poor records, and are looking to turn things around, but there's not much of a season left to do this. If each team were to win all their remaining games, they would be 9-7, which would be respectable, but obviously not likely. After this game is played, one won't even be able to do that. Giants or Jets fans, who don't pay attention to the other team, will have an opportunity here to see two young quarterbacks whose names might well be recognized for years to come.

NFC East Games
Sunday at 1:00pm Giants (2-7) at Jets (1-7).
Sunday at 8:20pm Vikings (6-3) at Cowboys (5-3).
The Giants and Cowboys are favored to win in these games. Check out.
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Notes.

Giants Daniel Jones has 8 fumbles on the season, tied for fourth in the NFL.

Giants are 20-10 in games going into the bye week.

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