The Jets avoiding the season sweep to the Dolphins is among the pregame storylines for this week’s game.
After an embarrassing loss to the Bengals last week, the New York Jets will look to avoid the season sweep when the Dolphins come to MetLife Stadium on Sunday.
The last time these two teams faced each other, the Dolphins had their way with the Jets in a 26-18 win in October. At the time, the Dolphins were a winless team, which made it look even worse. With both teams out of the playoff race, so the loser of this game will be in a better position for the 2020 NFL draft.
With that being said, let’s take a look at this week’s pregame storylines.
Can the Jets avoid the sweep?
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Coming into 2019, everyone looked at the Dolphins as an easy victory. For the Jets, they’ve been a challenge.
In the first matchup, Ryan Fitzpatrick torched the Jets defense for 288 yards and three touchdowns while Sam Darnold struggled. Since then, Darnold has improved drastically, but Fitzpatrick is still playing quality football.
Given the injuries the Jets have on defense, Fitzpatrick and the Dolphins have a great opportunity to come in and light up the scoreboard. If the Jets were to lose this game, it would be the topper for a forgetful season.
The Jets secondary will be vulnerable to the Dolphins this Sunday as they’re missing a ton of key pieces.
The Jets secondary is as depleted as it has ever been this season.
New York will likely be without its star safety Jamal Adams due to an ankle injury. Meanwhile, both Brian Poole (concussion) and Arthur Maulet (calf) are trending towards being out as well. That means the Jets will have only two members of their secondary playing in Sunday’s game that started in Week 1 in Marcus Maye and Darryl Roberts.
In other words, the unit is looking extremely vulnerable heading into Week 14.
Defensive coordinator Gregg Williams has already coached up this defense to be respectable, but this might be his biggest challenge yet.
We could be seeing multiple players playing in different positions on Sunday. With Adams out, Roberts could see some time at safety as he played at that position for five games last season. As for the slot, Nate Hairston will have to play on the inside. To replace Maulet, the Jets will have to slide Maurice Canady to the outside. It’s not an ideal situation, but there’s not much else they can do to fix this.
“You have to have the contingency plans of what if somebody goes out, how are we shuffling things around,” Gase said. “We’ve got a lot of guys that are going to be responsible for playing a few different positions.”
The last time the Dolphins faced the Jets, Ryan Fitzpatrick threw for 288 yards and three touchdowns in a win. That was when New York’s secondary was considered healthy. Since that game, Fitzpatrick has thrown for over 300 yards twice and wide receiver DeVante Parker has had over 100 receiving yards in two of his last three games. If Fitzpatrick and the rest of the Dolphins continue to play the way they have lately, the Jets’ defense will be in deep trouble.
“They’re throwing the ball, which I’m sure [Fitzpatrick] loves,” Gase said. “He had a good game last week. The last time we played him, we struggled to get him to turn the ball over and create enough pressure to make him uncomfortable. That’s the number one thing when you’re playing Fitzy is you’ve got to try to get to him, you’ve got to try to get him to make some mistakes and put pressure on him and make some of those throws tough.”
Top-ranked DFS PRO Jason Mezrahi, founder and CEO of WinDailySports.com, breaks down his favorite Daily Fantasy Football plays at various salary ranges for Week 14 of the NFL. Find out who Jason will be locking in his lineups on DraftKings and FanDuel.
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Top-ranked DFS PRO Jason Mezrahi, founder and CEO of WinDailySports.com, breaks down his favorite Daily Fantasy Football plays at various salary ranges for Week 14 of the NFL. Find out who Jason will be locking in his lineups on DraftKings and FanDuel.
QUARTERBACKS
KYLE ALLEN- $5700 DRAFTKINGS, $7100 FANDUEL
I believe this is the week to pay down at the quarterback position and save cash because you’re going to need it. Kyle Allen can get you there, at near minimum salary for the quarterback position on both sites. He is coming off consecutive 20+ point games and I think it continues in Week 14. The Falcons rank 22nd against opposing quarterbacks and are allowing 259 yards passing per game. The rookie will have something to prove after Ron Rivera was fired and his future is going to become even more of a question moving forward. I think Allen steps up and exceeds value with another 20 point performance this week.
RYAN FITZPATRICK- $6000 DRAFTKINGS, $7400 FANDUEL
The value train continues and who better to highlight that than a man who has gotten a ton of value out of his career. Ryan Fitzpatrick or “Fitzmagic” as they call him, keeps getting it done and puts up points each week no matter what team he plays for. He is coming off two back to back monster games. Fitzpatrick had a 25 point outing versus the Browns and backed it up with a 30 point performance versus the Eagles. He now faces off against the New York Jets and their suspect secondary. Fitzpatrick will be finding his way into my tournament lineups and I will stay away from him in cash games.
RUNNING BACKS
CHRISTIAN MCCAFFREY- $10300 DRAFTKINGS, $11000 FANDUEL
Christian McCaffrey is having one of the best seasons I have seen while playing fantasy football. The man is a lock and is averaging a whopping 31 points per game and hopefully carrying me to my season-long championship. He gets points in good and bad matchups, he scores when his team is winning or trailing in games. As long as he is healthy he is on the field accumulating fantasy points. McCaffrey will gash the Atlanta Falcons on the ground and the air. If you have followed this column all season I have written him up in almost every week and I don’t plan to stop anytime soon. I don’t mind pairing him with Kyle Allen and hope this game shoots out.
DERRICK HENRY- $8200 DRAFTKINGS, $9100 FANDUEL
If you like to follow game logs you will like to see 24, 36, 32, and 27 as Derrick Henry’s last 4 games. He has 1140 rushing yards on the season, along with 13 touchdowns and has seen a bump in production ever since Ryan Tannehill took over as quarterback. He gets a dream matchup against Oakland who has allowed the 18th most points to opposing running backs and should be in for another big game. I love the combo of McCaffrey and Henry locking up a solid base of 50 points for both your cash games and tournaments in Week 14.
WIDE RECEIVERS
DEANDRE HOPKINS- $7400 DRAFTKINGS, $8300 FANDUEL
DeAndre Hopkins is an elite wide receiver who is coming off a tough matchup versus the Patriots and Stephon Gilmore. I hope that drives down ownership on Hopkins this week. DeAndre has been consistently good all year and I’m expecting a breakout game at home in the dome. If the Broncos can keep this game close we can see fireworks out of Hopkins here at home.
DEVANTE PARKER- $6900 DRAFTKINGS, $7200 FANDUEL
DeVante Parker was one of the main reasons I will be heading to the FanDuel World Fantasy Football Championship in Puerto Rico next weekend, so I will be sure to play him in a nice matchup versus the New York Jets. Parker is coming off 37 point game and gets to face the Jets who rank 22nd against opposing wide receivers. I love the stack with Fitzpatrick in tournaments.
TIGHT ENDS
JACK DOYLE- $4600 DRAFTKINGS, $6300 FANDUEL
Jack Doyle has seen an uptick in targets and receptions with Eric Ebron put on injured reserve. I want to pay down at tight end and Doyle is one of the best value tight ends of the slate. Doyle should be heavily targeted again this week and the Buccaneers struggle to cover the tight end. They rank 31st against opposing tight ends and allow 281 yards passing per game. I see Doyle with at least 5 receptions for 55 yards and I believe he finds his way into the endzone again this week. Lock Doyle in for the best value tight end of the slate.
VANCE MCDONALD- $4300 DRAFTKINGS, $5800 FANDUEL
We can keep this one short. Play the tight end every week against the Arizona Cardinals. It’s a written rule that you can pair with locking Christian McCaffrey in your lineups. The Arizona Cardinals haven’t been able to cover the tight end for years and the trend continues this week. If you need proof go look at the last 20 games of tight end matchups against the Cardinals and you will be shocked by what’s been done. McDonald should be a safe value play for both cash games and tournaments.
DEFENSES
GREEN BAY PACKERS- $4000 DRAFTKINGS, $5000 FANDUEL
Let’s keep it short and sweet with our defenses. We will be targeting two home teams facing off against weak offenses. The Packers get to face off at home in harsh temperatures versus a rookie quarterback and a lackluster offense. This should be a statement game for this Packer team and hopefully the defense steps up and makes some big plays.
HOUSTON TEXANS- $3300 DRAFTKINGS, $4600 FANDUEL
It’s the same strategy here. Let’s lock in the home team versus a rookie quarterback. This Texan defense has looked better and is coming off an impressive win verse Brady and the Patriots. I think the Texans make for a strong play on DraftKings at $3300 and I will sprinkle in shares of this defense in both cash games and tournaments.
Jason Mezrahi has been a professional, top-ranked Daily Fantasy Player on FanDuel and DraftKings for more than seven years. He has won FanDuel’s $155,555 King of the Diamond competition and placed second in DraftKings’ Fantasy Basketball World Championship, earning him $300,000. He owns and operates WinDailySports.com, which supports the DFS and Sports Betting community with resources such as tools, projection models, in-depth written analysis and podcasts, plus much more.
In a move that will only make sense if Ryan Fitzpatrick helps him have his first career 100-yard game, Mack Hollins is now a member of the Miami Dolphins according to Cameron Wolfe.
Hollins logged six offensive snaps and 10 special teams snaps against the Dolphins on Sunday, so it’s hard to believe that he was claimed off of that game tape. Miami likely will utilize Hollins on special teams and go from there.
Quinnen Williams hasn’t performed up to the level the Jets expected him to when they draft him third overall this summer.
When the Jets took Quinnen Williams third overall in the 2019 draft, they wanted him to become a force in the middle of their defensive line. Not necessarily Aaron Donald, but someone along those lines and just as menacing.
Through 13 weeks of his rookie season, Williams hasn’t been what the Jets hoped he’d become. He’s tallied only 1.5 sacks, 23 total tackles, three tackles for a loss and four quarterback hits in 10 games (he missed two weeks with an ankle injury) and hasn’t yet lived up to the pre-draft hype as the best player on the board. It’s still early in his career, but Williams is at risk of turning into yet another first-round mistake for the Jets, especially considering players like edge rusher Josh Allen and defensive tackle Ed Oliver were also available with the third pick.
Williams needs to step up now as his rookie season winds down to prove to the team and the NFL he was worth the high investment. The Jets have spent five of their last 10 first-round picks on defensive linemen since 2011, and only Williams remains on the team after New York traded 2015 first-rounder Leonard Williams at the trade deadline.
Williams has talent. He’s shown it in flashes throughout the season. There’s a good amount ofimpressive reps from Williams on Twitter, including this play against Raiders center Rodney Hudson and this pressure on Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz. Williams is a huge reason why the Jets have the No. 1 run defense as well – he has five solo run stuffs on the year which is fifth in the league – but that isn’t enough.
The Jets need production after investing such a high draft pick on Williams. It doesn’t matter if he’s getting penetration or thwarting rushes if offenses are still beating the Jets. Dominant interior defensive linemen can change the game. Guys like Donald, Ndamukong Suh and Fletcher Cox made names for themselves with game-wrecking plays throughout their careers.
So far this season, three of the four defensive tackles picked ahead of Williams – Oliver (Bills, 9th), Christian Wilkins (Dolphins, 13th) and Dexter Lawrence (Giants, 17th) – have either more sacks, tackles or quarterback hits than Williams. Oliver has him beat in all three categories. Jerry Tillery, the fourth tackle pick in the first round (28th by the Chargers) is tied with Williams with 1.5 sacks. Stats aren’t the be-all and end-all for player evaluation, especially for a player who does most of his work in the trenches, but they are important for a defense like the Jets who lack a true playmaker on the line. The Jets drafted Williams to be that player. They traded Leonard Williams away because he didn’t turn into that type of player. Quality reps are nice, but it won’t be enough for the Jets to turn into a truly dominant defense.
This isn’t meant to disparage Williams as a player – he’s very good and has a lot of potential. But something needs to change down the stretch, either from Williams or the Jets defensive scheming. With so many injuries across the board, defensive coordinator Gregg Williams needs to unlock the beast in his young defensive tackle. Or, Williams needs to take it upon himself to move into another gear in the final four games of his rookie season.
Williams can do it. He’s shown the ability to blow up runs and pressure the quarterback. What he’s lacked so far is that play that sets Twitter ablaze. His sack on Ryan Fitzpatrick in Week 8 displayed all the skills that make Williams special, but it was against the Dolphins in a loss. If Williams can take the next step from a quality defensive lineman to a dominant one, he can shake off the bust moniker that’s slowly creeping into his professional evaluation.
Following an impressive comeback win over the Lions, Bears QB Mitchell Trubisky has been nominated for FedEx’s Air Player of the Week.
Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky has been nominated for FedEx Air Player of the Week following his impressive performance in a 24-20 comeback win over the Lions on Thanksgiving.
Trubisky completed 29-of-38 passes for 338 yards with three touchdowns and one interception for a passer rating of 118.1.
But most impressive was how Trubisky led his team back from a 10-point deficit, including leading them down the field on what was a nine-play, 90-yard game-winning drive. He came up clutch with two third down conversions of 35 and 32 yards to Anthony Miller that set-up a 3-yard touchdown pass to David Montgomery.
Also nominated for FedEx Air Player of the Week include Dolphins quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick (27/39, 365 yards, 3 TDs) and Rams quarterback Jared Goff (32/43, 424 yards, 2 TDs).
Miami Dolphins quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick has been nominated for the FedEx Air Player of the Week for his play in Week 13.
Miami Dolphins quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick has had some great performances this season for Miami. But this past Sunday was the first “Fitzmagic” performance the Dolphins have seen this season, as they put on an impressive aerial assault against the Philadelphia Eagles en route to a 37-31 upset victory at Hard Rock Stadium. Now, Fitzpatrick his being recognized for his efforts in Miami’s third win of the season — he’s been nominated as the FedEx Air Player of the Week for Week 13 of the NFL season.
The competition? The Rams’ Jared Goff and the Bears’ Mitchell Trubisky, both also putting up impressive numbers on their way to wins this past weekend.
Dolphins fans have two days to have their voices heard before voting closes and a winner is announced. Given the gutsy performance Fitzpatrick provided Miami fans while under pressure, it seems like the least everyone can do is throw a vote or two in his direction in hopes that a weekly honor could be bestowed upon Fitzpatrick before the end of the season. Eight quarterbacks have won the award through the first 12 weeks of the season.
Doug Pederson says Dolphins played harder than the Eagles on Sunday
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For the Philadelphia Eagles, the playoffs started last week after the team fell to 5-6 on the season after a tough loss to the Seattle Seahawks.
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The Birds faced a stretch of games that would allow them control of their own playoff destiny by simply winning out. On Sunday, in a game that should have allowed Philadelphia some breathing room, the Eagles were outplayed by a Dolphins team that was supposed to be preparing for the NFL Draft.
After the game, Pederson called the Dolphins “a good team” and remained optimistic that his team has one more run left in them. On Monday morning during his weekly appearance with Angelo Cataldi, Pederson gave some more insight into the disappointing effort in Miami.
In a statement that’s sure to draw the ire of fans around Philadelphia, Pederson indicated that he felt the Dolphins “played harder” than his team.
“They played harder than we did. …They wanted it more than we did.”
The Eagles blew a 28-14 third-quarter lead to the Dolphins and turned a would-be walkthrough another crisis for a team that started the season with Super Bowl aspirations.
The path to the playoffs is still favorable, but now questions have to be asked in regard to whether this team is even worthy of a spot in the postseason?
Ryan Fitzpatrick dominates Jim Schwartz again in Dolphins 37-31 win over the Philadelphia Eagles
Ryan Fitzpatrick is one of the streakiest quarterbacks in NFL history and if every team had Jim Schwartz as their defensive coordinator, it would be “Fitzmagic” and not Tom Brady as the GOAT.
Fitzpatrick has had an up and down NFL career, but anytime he faces the Eagles and mainly defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz, he takes his game to another level.
Fitzpatrick has been in and out of the Dolphins lineup this season, but on Sunday, he gouged the Eagles secondary for a season-high 365 yards and three touchdowns, two of them to DeVante Parker, who looked like an All-Pro against Eagles cornerbacks Ronald Darby and Jalen Mills.
After the Dolphins 37-31 upset of the Eagles in Miami, Fitzpatrick is now 4-0 against Schwartz, with a 106.1 passer rating. Over his last eight quarters played against Schwartz led defenses, Fitzpatrick has accounted for over 750 yards of total offense.
In those meetings, Fitzpatrick has nine touchdowns against four interceptions (106.1 passer rating) in those games.
Last year with Tampa Bay, Fitzpatrick went 27 0f 33 passing for 402 yards and four touchdowns in a 27-21 win over the Eagles.
In breaking down Fitzpatrick’s dominance of Schwartz, it appears that the Eagles defensive coordinator tends to get overconfident and complacent in battle. Against any other opponent, Schwartz tends to blitz about 23.2 percent of the time this season.
That 23.2 percent of blitzing is the highest of Schwartz time with the Eagles. When he faces Fitzpatrick though, he tends to dial up the pressure even more.
Last season during the loss to Tampa Bay, Schwartz dialed it down, blitzing on seven of his 35 pass plays.
On those blitzes, Fitzpatrick went 6-for-7 for 152 yards and a touchdown. Fitzpatrick gets rid of the ball quickly and as you saw all day Sunday, he gives his wide receivers an opportunity to make a play on the football.
Fitzpatrick doesn’t know any better and loves to take deep strikes down the field. That, unfortunately for the Eagles, is Philadelphia’s biggest weakness over the past two seasons.
Eagles fall to 5-7 after embarrassing 37-31 road loss to the Dolphins
It’s hard to have a glass-half-full mentality when you watched your team give up 37 points to a Miami Dolphins franchise in the midst of tanking. That’s exactly what happened as the Eagles fell to 5-7 on the season after an embarrassing 37-31 debacle in Miami, that saw Ryan Fitzpatrick once again shred the Philadelphia secondary.
It’s the third loss in a row for a team that still has aspirations for an NFC East title after allowing 37 points to a team that was averaging less than 15 per game.
For Miami, Ryan Fitzpatrick looked like a franchise signal-caller, going 27 of 39 for 365 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception.
The Eagles defense looked formidable over the past few weeks but on Sunday, they allowed 20-unanswered points in the second half, with one drive going for 96-yards.
DeVante Parker dominated the Eagles secondary, catching seven passes for 159 yards and two touchdowns while looking like a man among boys while facing the Birds secondary.
Miami’s final drive was a 13-play, 50-yard drive that took six minutes off the clock and gave the Dolphins a nine-point lead with less than three minutes remaining.
For Philadelphia, it’s a game that Carson Wentz can be proud of, as the Eagles star went 28 of 46 for 310 yards, three touchdowns and an interception on the games final play.
