Ryan enjoyed a successful first year as head coach of New York after replacing Eric Mangini with a 9-7 record and led the team to the AFC Championship game against Indianapolis. The media has already anointed the Jets one of the top teams in the NFL even though they needed a lot of help to get to the postseason a year ago, starting with a regular-season road win over the Colts.
However, the Ravens have a much better offense at this point with third-year quarterback Joe Flacco, running back Ray Rice and new wide receiver Anquan Boldin leading the attack. Flacco will look to test New York cornerback Darrelle Revis, who missed the entire preseason due to a contract dispute. Revis finally signed his new deal last week, and Baltimore fullback Le’Ron McClain went so far as to say he will be happy to see #24 on the field because the Jets will not have an excuse if they lose.
New York finished last season with the top defense in the NFL, holding opponents to just 14.8 points and 252.3 yards per game. The Jets also had the league’s best secondary led by Revis, holding teams to only 153.7 passing yards per game. Baltimore ranked third defensively in points (16.3) and yards (300.5) allowed per game but struggled a bit with the passing game due to the absence of former All-Pro safety Ed Reed. Injuries have also taken a toll on the Raven defensive backs this preseason, making them even more susceptible to giving up big plays.
Second-year quarterback Mark Sanchez has plenty to improve on from his rookie year in New York after throwing for 12 touchdowns and 20 interceptions. Sanchez also completed less than 54 percent of his passes, fumbled 10 times (losing three) and was sacked 26 times last season. He is coming off a knee injury as well that limited his mobility and requires him to wear a brace.
The Jets have acquired a couple top targets for Sanchez over the last year, but only one of them will be in uniform. Wide receiver Braylon Edwards arrived in a trade with Cleveland after the fourth game of last year while Santonio Holmes was picked up in a deal for a fifth-round draft pick but will miss the first four games of the regular season due to a suspension.
We have released our Monday Night football picks and this happens to be a game we have isolated as our 20 Unit NFL Total of the Month. It should be an easy winner and would advise all reading to get on board and end your week 1 with a winner. You can get on board for this expert pick by viewing our NFL football picks page.
