The Lions come into this week’s game against the New York Jets in unfamiliar territory — they’re fighting for a playoff spot. With four games to go, they’re just a game and a half out of the final playoff spot in the NFC.
This week’s contest at the Meadowlands will be no guaranteed victory. The Jets have a good defense and an offense that’s shown life under backup QB Mike White. Here are five things to watch ahead of Sunday’s game.
Unstoppable force vs. immovable object
The Lions will take the fifth-highest scoring offense into East Rutherford on Sunday against a Jets’ defense that ranks sixth in scoring. This defense might be the best the Lions have seen since the Cowboys game, and that includes the Thanksgiving Day tilt with Buffalo. They didn’t look so hot against the Cowboys, but they were a lot less healthy than they are now. The Jets, on the other hand, may be without star DT Quinnen Williams, which would be a huge blow to their defensive line. Something’s got to give.
Scoring in the red zone
This may actually be the deciding factor in the game. The Lions come in with the best red zone offense in the league, scoring at a 75% clip. The Jets keep teams from scoring at a 57.6% rate, which is 20th in the league—slightly below average. If the Lions can keep taking advantage of their scoring opportunities, they should win this game. If the Jets’ defense steps up its game in the red zone, that might tip the scales.
Campbell vs. Saleh
Jets’ head coach Robert Saleh is the one many Lions fans wanted after Matt Patricia was let go. The Dearborn native was rumored to be the Lions’ next head coach pretty much from the get-go. Utimately, Saleh was hired by the Jets, and the Lions chose Dan Campbell. Both have found some success in the second year of their tenures. As of right now, I think both organizations are happy with their choices.
Wilson will start
Zach Wilson will start at QB for the Jets after doctors didn’t clear Mike White to play after he suffered a rib injury last week in Buffalo. This could potentially be a huge break for the Lions. Wilson has struggled mightily during his short career to this point. There’s a reason he was benched for White. The Jets have gone 5-2 in games started by Wilson this year, but the only legitimate opponent they beat were the Bills. For a Lions’ defense that has feasted off turnovers in recent weeks, it could be a big week.
Big game for both teams
Who would have thought that at the beginning of the season, a week 15 game between the Lions and Jets would have a ton of significance? Whoever wins this game may very well end up in the playoffs in their respective conference. This is a huge game for the both teams. The Lions need to keep up the momentum. The Jets need to get back that momentum that they had earlier in the season. There will a lot of eyes on this one.
Matthew Scheidel is a freelance writer.