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NFL Week 15 Preview: Jets at Titans
By: Steve Bennett - StatFox
Published: 12/17/2012  at  4:16:00 AM
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NEW YORK JETS (6-7)

at TENNESSEE TITANS (4-9)

Kickoff: Monday, 8:35 p.m. EDT
Line: Tennessee -2, Total: 41.5

The Jets look to get back to .500 and remain alive in the playoff race when they visit Tennessee on Monday night.

This might be the least appealing matchup in Monday Night Football history, but the Jets are going to be playing hard, as they’re still entertaining playoff hopes. They’ve won back-to-back games, albeit against bottom-feeders Arizona (not a cover) and Jacksonville, but scored only 24 total points in those wins. The Titans, meanwhile, have crashed and burned. They’re just 1-3 SU and ATS since getting QB Jake Locker back in the lineup, and Locker has posted a 60.8 passer rating with seven interceptions during Tennessee’s current three-game losing streak. The Jets are 5-1 SU (6-0 ATS) versus the Titans since 1998, with the last meeting coming in 2009, a 24-17 New York victory.

Will the Jets be able to win for the fourth time in five games? For the answer, connect to The Platinum Sheet for all the StatFox Experts picks for every NFL game throughout the 2012 season and playoffs.

The Jets have totaled just 559 yards (216 through the air) during their two-game win streak. QB Mark Sanchez has completed just 22-of-40 passes (5.2 YPA) with 3 INT over these two victories. For the season, Sanchez has the third-worst passer rating (71.8) among all qualified passers, throwing for just 6.5 YPA, 12 TD and 13 INT. New York is hoping newly-signed WR Braylon Edwards will help Sanchez get back on track. Edwards caught 53 passes for 904 yards and 7 TD in his final season with the Jets in 2010, and should be ready to play after being claimed off waivers from Seattle earlier in the week. The Titans have allowed the seventh-most passing yards in the league (251 YPG), so the potential is there for a Jets passing resurgence. New York may just stick to running the football though, as the Titans give up 127 rushing YPG (24th in NFL). But even though the Jets have 147 rushing YPG in their past four contests, the Titans have limited their past four opponents to just 94 rushing YPG. The Jets RB duo of Shonn Greene and Bilal Powell has combined for 317 rushing yards during the two-game win streak. New York needs to take better care of the football to win this game, as it has committed 11 turnovers in the past three games.

Locker has struggled with his accuracy since his return, but he is running very well with 89 yards on just eight carries in the past two games. The Titans may try some trick plays in an effort to penetrate New York's defense allowing just 29 points in its past three wins combined. They will also look to throw deep to dynamic WR Kenny Britt who is coming off a season-high eight catches for 143 yards in the 27-23 loss at Indianapolis. Locker will not have the team's second-leading receiver in TE Jared Cook (44 catches), who is out for the rest of the season with a shoulder injury. The Jets rank third in the NFL in passing defense (196 YPG), but have surrendered the fourth-most rushing yards in the league at 137 YPG. That could equal a huge day for Tennessee RB Chris Johnson who has rushed for 827 yards (5.5 YPC) and 4 TD in his past eight games.


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