Jets vs Panthers – Three Things to Look For

In this week’s edition of “Will the NY Jets simply win a football game?”, we have the Jets taking on the Panthers at home. It may be comforting to know that the 3-3 Panthers are 3-0 at home and 0-3 on the road, but when you remember the Jets are the Jets, all that comfort quickly dissipates. So far, the Aaron Glenn Jets are known as being the most spectacular losers in the history of a franchise known for losing. Let’s look at some keys for the Jets vs Panthers game later today.

From botching endless 2-minute drills to their inability to get to opposing QBs to their own QB being terrified to simply throw the football, it appears we’ve hit rock bottom as a franchise. Still, life goes on, and we move to Week 7. Aaron Glenn is still confident in his team and his teachings, and it doesn’t appear like he has lost the locker room yet. If we’re collecting moral victories (since we have no actual ones), it should be noted he’s not the only coach to start winless, and it does appear the defense flipped a switch last week. Let’s explore the three things work looking at this Sunday:

Taylor Made

My favorite pick of the Jets’ 2025 draft, Mason Taylor, has shown glimpses of the immense potential he possesses in that 21-year-old frame. We knew we were getting an athletic specimen who was coming into the league with good hands and a larger route tree than his peers. The projections were more based on size and strength, two things I’d expect to naturally increase with age and unlimted access to professional facilities.

Combining his god-given abilities with the TE-friendly scheme of Tanner Engstrand, I figured Mason Taylor was going to quickly become a fan favorite in this offense. While he started slow, for three straight weeks he was top 2 in targets on the team and for two of those weeks he had 60+ yards. Not quite Travis Kelce, but last year’s TE1 Tyler Conklin (who I love and miss) only had one game over 60 yards in 16 games played last year while Mason has already had two in six games.

With Garrett Wilson out, a whopping 34% of the team’s total targets are now up for grabs. Of course, there’s a chance a wide receiver randomly ascends to assert themselves as WR1, but given the personnel in the locker room I believe the much more likely scenario is Engstrand getting creative. Mason is currently second on the team in targets while Breece Hall is third, and I imagine both of these guys will be busy on Sunday in the passing game.

The best part about this is that regardless of Garrett’s injury, this was always going to be a fantastic matchup for Taylor. The Panthers have struggled to defend the Tight End position all year. Kyle Pitts is the only tight end they faced this season who didn’t get either 59+ yards or a touchdown against them. Two weeks ago, Darren Waller did both, getting 78 yards and a touchdown in a game where he and running back De’Von Achane combined for 11 catches. This is what I think we can comfortably expect from Taylor and Breece Hall with Garrett out with injury.

When you consider the Panthers’ weaknesses defensively, the strengths of Engstrand’s scheme, and the comfort of Fields’ field vision, I will gladly bet the over on Mason Taylor receptions this Sunday. Also seems like a great day for him to get his first NFL touchdown – the Panthers have allowed a TD to a tight end in each of the last three games.

Jermaine Johnson

Last week I said on my podcast how impactful I thought it was that Jermaine Johnson II and Kene Nwangwu were coming in to give a boost to two of the weakest areas of the Aaron Glenn Jets: kick returns and pass rush. Kene was incredible, picking up where he left off en route to a 72-yard return to set up his offense in perfect field position. I was expecting Jermaine to have a similar impact on the pass rush but what I saw from the defense exceeded my expectations.

The defense had their first good game of the season! They took a Broncos team that had scored 20+ points in every single game this season and held them just 1 touchdown, 13 points total. Bo Nix was under pressure in both halves and forced their first turnover of the entire season. The Jets finished with their most QB hits in a game since Week 1, which coincidentally was the last game Johnson played. Is it all a coincidence though? Or has Johnson given indisputable proof that he is a leader of this team and source of inspiration that DC Steve Wilks was ill-equipped to provide without him.

Last week Johnson was the only Jet to get a sack. He also got a tackle for less, a QB hit, and was third on the team in solo tackles. Johnson came back in full force last week and I’m curious to see how he follows up that magnificent return. The Panthers’ offensive line is good, they’ve done a fantastic job opening holes for their running backs but their pass protection is nothing to write home about. Bryce Young has been sacked at least once in every game this season and I’m curious to see if Jermaine can start a sack streak of his own.

Was his return the catalyst for the defense renaissance last week? Or did we just see a random glimpse of hope in a season that is destined to be defined by disappointment?

No Rush

The biggest takeaway from Sunday’s loss against the Broncos was how blisteringly obvious it was that Justin Fields is struggling. Tanner Engstrand dialed up plenty of pass plays for him but Justin froze in the pocket consistently. He refused to throw, refused to scramble, and took a whopping 9(!) sacks as a result. After three games of solid execution and a combined five sacks taken in those games, Fields took five in just the Cowboys game alone and then followed it up with nine.

There are only seven QBs this season who have been sacked 14+ times, and Fields managed to reach that number in two games. Aaron Glenn offered his own explanation for this sudden ineptitude but Fields’s answer made much more sense. He said he’s been too conservative and insists he will be more aggressive this Sunday. With his favorite target Garrett Wilson out this may seem like poor timing to change his mindset but the Panthers might help make this transition much easier for Fields.

There is only one team in the NFL with a lower sack percentage than 3.4% – it’s the Panthers who hover at 2.6%. Carolina is also the only team in the league with a pressure rate less than 10%. Quite simply, they cannot pressure the QB or get in the backfield. This is the perfect matchup for the league’s leader in time-to-throw who is trying to be more aggressive. He should have the 3-4 seconds he needs to process the field and make the necessary reads to throw the ball.

His first attempt at being more aggressive as a passer and getting the ball out quicker will be against a unit who allows QBs the most time to throw in the NFL. The Bengals are bottom six in both of those rates as well so it will be a gradual build for Fields working his way back to a challenging defense. If Fields gets sacked a bunch here, I need you to know it is not on the offensive line but it will be the clearest indictment possible that signing Fields in the first place was a mistake. He has shown no development from the player we’ve come to know the last few years.

If there is indeed hope for him and his career, this would be a great way to show “at least I can get it out on time when I’m not being pressured right away”. I don’t envision them benching Fields, but if he throws another dud and gets sacked 4+ times against a team that only has 5 sacks in six games then there is serious reason to panic. Panic about Fields, Aaron Glenn, Tanner Engstand, everybody. I’m expecting a solid bounce back that more closely resemble his performances against Pittsburgh or Miami.

Let’s go Jets!