Targeting Ryan Griffin among 4 keys to Jets offense vs. Raiders

Sam Darnold needs to look for tight end Ryan Griffin early and often against one of the worst pass defenses in the league.

The Jets have an opportunity to win their third consecutive game with a match against the Oakland Raiders this week, which would be the first three-game winning streak for them since Oct. 8, 2017. Their opponent is coming off three consecutive wins itself but features a highly susceptible defense that has given up the 14th-most yards per game (368.1) and the 12th-most points per game (25.0).

Sam Darnold is rolling the past three weeks with a 65.66 completion percentage and 261 yards per game with six touchdowns and only two interceptions. He gets another easy passing defense this week and should find ways to get the Jets down the field and into scoring position much like he’s done in back-to-back wins.

Here are four keys to the Jets offense in Week 12.

(Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports)

Lean on Sam Darnold’s arm

Darnold has been on a hot streak lately against some of the worst secondaries in the league. He gets another cupcake matchup in Week 12 against the Raiders’ 26th-ranked pass defense. Oakland allows quarterbacks to throw for 262.2 yards per game with a 102.8 rating and also allows a touchdown on seven percent of passing attempts (31st ahead of only the Dolphins). Darnold should have a field day against the secondary even after Oakland held Ryan Finley and the Bengals to only 115 yards this past week.

Besides the Cincinnati game, the Raiders haven’t been getting much pressure on quarterbacks, which should help Darnold’s ability to find his receivers. They rank 28th in quarterback hits with 45 and have only 25 sacks on the year. The Jets will need Darnold to build on his career-high four-touchdown performance against the Redskins this week against another lowly pass defense.