An inside look at Sunday night’s Jets-Steelers Week 7 matchup in Pittsburgh:
Marquee matchup
Jets RT Morgan Moses vs. Steelers edge rusher T.J. Watt
There has been a lot of talk about how the Jets have improved the weapons for Aaron Rodgers with the Davante Adams trade, but it is not going to matter if they can’t keep Rodgers upright.
That starts this week with slowing down Watt, who remains one of the best pass rushers in football. Watt enters this game with 4.5 sacks.
Moses is going to be the primary blocker against Watt, who lines up almost exclusively on the offense’s right side.
Moses is coming back from a knee injury and looked like he was hurting a bit in last week’s loss to Buffalo.
Interim coach Jeff Ulbrich said Moses is improving every week, and he should be ready to go Sunday night against the Steelers.
The Jets have surrendered 30 quarterback hits in the past three games, a number that has to drop.
Ulbrich said they will have a plan for Watt.
“It goes back to moving the target,” Ulbrich said. “Sometimes chipping them, sometimes sifting them, sometimes cutting them and just keeping him off balance. He’s a game-wrecker, as we all know. He’s one of the best players, one of the best defensive players in this league, and he’s a generational talent. So, you’ve got to account for him every single play.”
Costello’s call
The Jets made an all-in move this week in trading for Davante Adams.
Though Adams will help the offense, I still think their issues run deeper than that.
The Steelers have a tough defense that could give the Jets fits, and I think Pittsburgh will be able to run the ball and win a close one.
Steelers 23, Jets 21
Four downs
Stop Russ from cooking: Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin did not announce who his starter will be, but all indications are that Russell Wilson will get his first start of the season, over Justin Fields.
It is a bit of a surprise, since Fields has led the Steelers to a 4-2 record while Wilson was injured.
The Jets spent the week preparing for both quarterbacks, and they suspect there will be a package of plays for Fields even if he is not the starter.
“I would say from the pass game perspective, not much will change,” Jets interim coach Jeff Ulbrich said. “Where you have to count for Justin Fields is the scrambling and the quarterback runs, because he’ll have designed runs that aren’t necessarily Russell’s forte, so having an answer for the quarterback runs and then at times just accounting for this scrambler, and you can do that a lot of different ways.”
On the run: The Jets defense has looked vulnerable against the run this season, with the latest example coming Monday, when Bills backup Ray Davis ran for 97 yards and the Jets gave up 149 total yards on the ground.
The Steelers have the second-most rushing attempts in the NFL this season, and offensive coordinator Arthur Smith is known for his run game.
The Jets know that they need to be better against the run, or they will have a tough time winning this one.
“That’s a key thing that we talked about this week,” defensive tackle Quinnen Williams said. “But that’s not just for Pittsburgh, but in general, in our own play. Being playmakers instead of placeholders. I feel like … we’ve been placeholders, and now have to take it to the next level.”
Beaten in the ‘Burgh: The Jets are 2-10 all time in Pittsburgh, though one of those wins came in their most recent visit here two years ago when Zach Wilson led a fourth-quarter comeback.
That was unusual, though.
The Jets have had some brutal losses here, including two in the playoffs.
The infamous Doug Brien game in the 2004 playoffs then the AFC Championship loss in the 2010 playoffs — the Jets’ last postseason game. Maybe this team can change the mojo.
Just for kicks: The Jets have plenty of issues to clean up, but one that has become a concern is kicker Greg Zuerlein.
He has missed four field goals this season, including two in last week’s loss to the Bills.
The Jets worked out some kickers this week, an indication they may be realizing they need a backup plan.
Publicly, though, they are still talking up Zuerlein.
“I have not lost faith in Greg at all,” special teams coordinator Brant Boyer said, “and if you look through his track record, I think I said this last week, you look through his track record in his career, and when he’s struggled maybe a little early, he always digs himself out of it.”