The Buffalo Bills head down to East Rutherford, New Jersey to take on the New York Jets in a highly anticipated AFC East battle on Thursday night. The Bills are 4-4 and in third place in the East will the Jets are 5-3 and in second place in the East.
Despite the obvious implications this game could have on the playoff picture this game is huge because it's Rex Ryan's first game back at MetLife Stadium since being fired by the Jets. Ryan made headlines this week when he announced that he would make IK Enemkpali a captain for this week's game. Enemkpali was with the Jets in training camp but was cut after he punched Geno Smith and broke his jaw.
On the field the Bills came into this season with some pretty high expectations but they haven't exactly lived up to them yet. Running back LeSean McCoy has been dealing with injuries all season and got a new one last week when he injured his shoulder but he is expected to play in this game. Regardless of whether McCoy plays Karlos Williams will likely get some touches and he is coming off a 110 yard performance on just nine carries against the Miami Dolphins.
Quarterback Tyrod Taylor returned last week after missing two games due to a knee injury and he was 11-12 with 181 yards and a touchdown. Taylor's top receiver Sammy Watkins broke out last week with 168 yards and a touchdown but injured his ankle in practice this week. Despite the ankle injury Watkins is also expected to play.
The recent issue for the Bills has been on defense as in their two losses prior to last week's win they allowed 34 points. The big problem for the defense has been their inability to get to the opposing quarterback as both Jerry Hughes and Mario Williams have just three sacks a piece. Those two defensive ends need to step up moving forward for Buffalo.
The Jets have lost two of their last three games and barely squeaked by the Jacksonville Jaguars last week so this is a win they also must have. The offensive line is a big question mark coming into this game as it is unknown if center Nick Mangold will play as he is dealing with a neck injury and starting guard Willie Colon was placed on season ending IR.
Quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick will need the offensive line to protect him so he can get the ball to his playmakers Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker who are both having very good seasons. The offensive line will also be important to get the running game going as Chris Ivory has struggled to gain yards recently after he got off to a hot start. Ivory's yards per carry are all the way down to 3.9 this season but he does have six touchdowns.
The Jets defense, which was a major strength early in the season, hasn't been as great lately mostly because their secondary is depleted. Antonio Cromartie is unlikely to play in this game but he has had a down year anyway. At safety both Calvin Pryor and Dion Bailey may not play in this game either so that leaves Darrelle Revis as the guy that needs to carry this team and he may shadow Watkins in this one.
Both of these teams have certainly had their issues recently but this game is extremely intriguing and has playoff implications. With the Patriots looking like the best team in football and running away with the AFC East this game could be for Wild Card positioning and both of these teams are in that hunt, plus Rex Ryan wants nothing more than to go into New York and defeat the team that fired him, should be lots of fun.
The game kicks off at 8:25 P.M. Eastern time and to watch the live broadcast go here. For the Jets radio broadcast go here and for the Bills radio broadcast go here.
