5 things for NY Jets fans to watch on Bye Week Sunday

Enjoy this, New York Jets fans! It doesn’t happen often.

For the first time since Weeks 2-3 of the 2024 season, the Jets will go two straight weeks without losing a football game.

Unless they lose to the bye week, that is.

It’s never been done before, but the Jets are known for making that kind of history, so don’t rule it out.

The bye week is an annual respite for Jets fans. It is quite a different feeling compared to fans of many other NFL teams, who might loathe this day. For fanbases embroiled in the playoff race, the bye week entails watching hated rivals leapfrog their squad in the standings as they chomp (champ?) at the bit for their boys to get back into action.

For scarred New York fans, though, this is usually the most pleasurable Sunday of the year.

While Jets fans don’t have to worry about their team inventing a new way to lose this week, there is still plenty on the line for the franchise. The NFL is a heavily intertwined league. Many things will happen today that directly influence the Jets’ future.

Here are five things for Jets fans to watch closely on Bye Week Sunday.

San Francisco 49ers’ linebackers vs. New York Giants

Jets linebacker Quincy Williams has been a popular name on the rumor mill ahead of Tuesday’s trade deadline. Williams is most commonly linked to the San Francisco 49ers, who are a realistic landing spot for multiple reasons.

Not only did Williams reinvent his career under now-49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh, but San Francisco needs help at linebacker after losing superstar Fred Warner for the season. With the 49ers just a half-game back of the NFC West lead, they project as buyers at the deadline.

The 49ers have already played two games in Warner’s absence, going 1-1 after a 4-2 start. Today’s road trip to face the Giants will be their last chance to evaluate the Warner-less linebacker unit before the deadline.

Since Warner’s injury, the starting linebackers have been Tatum Bethune, a 2024 seventh-round pick, and Dee Winters, a 2023 sixth-round pick. The duo has struggled across the past two games, combining for six missed tackles, 159 yards allowed in coverage, and two touchdowns allowed in coverage.

If the 49ers’ linebackers have another rough game against an injury-ravaged Giants offense, San Francisco could become desperate to make an offer for Williams. The Jets would gain the leverage to negotiate a strong return.

Kansas City Chiefs’ running backs vs. Buffalo Bills

Breece Hall is another popular name on the rumor mill. The Jets reportedly want a third-round pick for his services, according to Dianna Russini.

That would be a strong return for a good-but-not-elite running back on an expiring contract. To get it, though, the Jets need someone to become desperate for running back help (similar to the 49ers at linebacker).

The Kansas City Chiefs could be in that boat.

The Chiefs (5-3) are in a tight AFC West race, sitting in third place behind the Chargers (5-3) and Broncos (6-2). A difficult test awaits them in Buffalo today; with a loss, they could be as far as two games back of the division lead, putting them in danger of failing to win the AFC West for the first time in Patrick Mahomes’ career.

That sounds precisely like a team that could be interested in buying at the deadline—and running back is one of their weakest positions.

The duo of Isiah Pacheco and Kareem Hunt has been mediocre for Kansas City, combining for 4.1 yards per carry and just 100 receiving yards on 26 targets (3.9 yards per target). Both players will be free agents after the season, so the Chiefs have a long-term need, too.

Pacheco is out today with a foot injury, so the Chiefs’ running backs will be put under an even greater microscope in a game that the entire football world will be watching. If the Chiefs lose and their running backs fail to impress, their desperation for a running back could be at a maximum on Monday.

With Hall looking like the most attractive running back available, the Jets would be positioned to take advantage of the Chiefs’ urgency. General manager Darren Mougey would have the leverage to coax Kansas City into giving up a mammoth package for Hall, perhaps significantly more than just a third-rounder.

Chicago Bears’ edge rushers vs. Cincinnati Bengals

Staying with the theme of watching teams that could target Jets players, the Chicago Bears are a team that could shop for help on the edge. New York has an intriguing trade chip at that position.

The Jets reportedly have no plans to trade Will McDonald, but they have listened to offers for Jermaine Johnson, with the reported asking price of a second-round pick.

Johnson is a talented player and a strong leader in the locker room, so the Jets would be silly to ship him off for whatever they can get. But as we discussed with Williams and Hall, if a desperate team comes around with an aggressive offer, it’s hard to say no when you’re 1-7.

Chicago could be desperate for Johnson.

The Bears are under pressure to maximize the rookie contract of second-year quarterback Caleb Williams. At 4-3 entering today’s road game in Cincinnati, Chicago is firmly situated on the playoff bubble.

Whether the Bears win or lose today, they will have the type of urgency that entices a team to be aggressive at the trade deadline. If they seek upgrades on the trade market, edge rusher is one of the primary positions on their shopping list.

First-year head coach Ben Johnson has the Bears ranked 15th in points per game. The main obstacle holding the Bears back is their defense, which ranks 25th in points per game allowed.

Within that struggling defense, the main issue is their weakness on the edge. According to Pro Football Focus, Chicago’s edge rushers have created pressure on just 8.5% of their pass-rush snaps, ranking 29th among edge units (one spot ahead of the Jets).

Chicago’s top pass rusher off the edge is Montez Sweat, who ranks 31st at the position with 23 total pressures. After Sweat, their next-best edge rushers are Dominique Robinson and Dayo Odeyingbo, who are tied for 90th with nine pressures.

The Bears are also atrocious at stopping the run, ranking third-worst with 5.3 yards per rush attempt allowed. This is an area where Johnson’s strong edge-setting would help.

If the Bears lose in Cincinnati today, and it’s partially because of lackluster production off the edge against the Bengals’ porous offensive line, the Bears could be desperate for edge help on Monday.

It’s easy to picture Chicago as a team desperate enough to give Mougey the type of package that would convince him to part with a player as good as Johnson.

Former Jets around the NFL

Whether you wish these guys the best or despise the idea of them succeeding elsewhere, it’ll be a huge Sunday for former Jets around the league.

Aaron Rodgers and the 4-3 Steelers are suddenly facing pressure in a division race that seemed like a foregone conclusion two weeks ago. They’ll host the best team in football this year, the Indianapolis Colts, in what will either be a statement win or a loss that seemingly entrenches Lamar Jackson’s 3-5 Ravens as the clear-cut AFC North favorites.

Until last Sunday, it was rare to see the Jets win a game that involved Joe Flacco. New York was 1-4 against Flacco and 1-8 with him as their starter. Then, in the same state where Flacco led his lone win as a Jet, the impossible 2022 comeback in Cleveland, the Jets returned the favor with a comeback in Cincy. Coming off the shocking result, the banged-up Flacco (shoulder) will try to keep his Bengals in the AFC North race with a home win over the Bears.

It’s gut check time for Geno Smith and the 2-5 Raiders, as they host Trevor Lawrence’s 4-3 Jaguars in Las Vegas. With the 35-year-old Smith owning the third-worst passer rating in the NFL (77.1), his days as a starter could be numbered if he doesn’t step up with a big win today against Jacksonville.

On Sunday Night Football, budding MVP candidate Sam Darnold and the 5-2 Seahawks will travel to Washington for a duel with the reeling Commanders. Darnold leads the NFL in yards per pass attempt (9.1). With a win, Darnold can improve to 24-8 as a starter since 2022; he went 13-32 over three years with the Jets.

In non-quarterback news, Robert Saleh will return to MetLife Stadium, a place that houses few positive memories for the former Jets head coach. Speaking earlier this week, Saleh said that coaching the Jets robbed him of his “signature joy.”

John Franklin-Myers and the Denver Broncos’ elite defense will look to pad their AFC West lead with a trip to Houston. Denver leads the league with 81 quarterback hits, 17 more than any other team, and JFM is a big part of it, ranking fourth on the team with 18 total pressures. Trading JFM for a 2026 sixth-round pick remains one of Joe Douglas’ greatest blunders as a GM; it marked the beginning of his downfall.

Franklin-Myers still doesn’t think his hit on Mac Jones in Oct. 2022 should have been flagged, overturning the recently-traded Michael Carter II’s pick-six.