Game Preview, Week 16: Washington at New York Jets
December 22, 2023
by Steve Thomas
We’re almost there, folks. The end is in sight – we’ve made it to week 16 of this long, disappointing season. It’s just another year as a Redskins Washington Football Team Commanders Red Wolves? Washington fan. For those of you who are rooting for a win, as opposed to draft position, this week’s game is probably Washington’s best opportunity to chalk up a “W” in several weeks. In fact, considering Washington’s opponents in the final two weeks of the season, this is probably their final realistic chance at a win. The opponent, the New York Jets, are struggling nearly as much as Washington, with a 2 – 6 record since their bye in week 7. Amazingly, Aaron Rodgers is practicing again, at least in limited capacity, but he won’t be on the field this week. Furthermore, Zach Wilson suffered a concussion last week against the Dolphins, so it’s possible that Washington will face the third stringer, Trevor Siemian. This adds up to a legitimate shot at winning. We’ll see. Our game preview starts below.
Game time & location: Sunday, December 24, 2023, 1:00 p.m. ET, MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, NJ; Gates open at 11:00 a.m.; Parking lots open at 8:00 a.m.
Television: FOX
Television announcers: Spero Dedes, Adam Archuleta
TV broadcast map: click here
DC-area radio: BIG-100 (WBIG FM)
Washington radio network: click here
Jets radio network: click here
Satellite radio: SiriusXM: 229 (Jets broad.), 384 (Wash. broad.); internet: 831
Washington roster: click here
Washington depth chart: click here
Jets roster: click here
Jets depth chart: click here
Records: Washington 4 – 10 (away 3 – 5); Jets 5 – 9 (home 3 – 5)
All-time head-to-head record vs Jets: 8 – 4 (last 5: 2 – 3; streak: 0 – 3)
Last meeting: L, November 17, 2019, 17 – 34
Early odds: Jets, -3
3 KEYS TO THE GAME
Long, slow drives
The Jets have a quality defense that’s one of the better units in the NFL against the pass, and they are also a decent run team. This collectively means that Washington needs to game plan for long, slow drives featuring short to mid-range passes and screens. The Jets defense has had success at times this year, with just 287 points surrendered, and I don’t think Washington can rely on big plays this week. Whether (1) offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy has the ability to game plan like this, and (2) Washington’s offense has the ability to effectively execute such a plan is another matter, but regardless, that needs to be the offensive game plan this week. At least if you’re rooting for a win.
Slow down the Jets’ run game and force Siemian to beat you
New York is down to their third string quarterback this week, an outstanding young man named Trevor Siemian. Over the course of 37 games played in 7 seasons, he’s posted a 58.5% completion percentage and a 79.6 quarterback rating. That’s . . . suboptimal, if you’re a Jet. I don’t think Siemian is going to be able to take change and lead the less-than-stellar Jets offense to a big game, even considering Washington’s weaknesses. Running back Breece Hall hasn’t had a great year, but certainly has the potential to light up Washington’s outer rushing lanes. This week, Washington needs to focus on making Hall and the rest of the Jets’ running game ineffective and force Siemian to beat them in a passing attack.
Mistake-free secondary play
To put it simply, Washington’s defensive secondary has been atrocious at times all year, as highlighted by Cooper Kupp’s totally uncovered, walk in 62 yard touchdown last year. No amount of focus on the run game is going to help if Benjamin St-Juste, Cameron Curl, and company can’t figure out how to eliminate the undisciplined coverage busts that has resulted in touchdown after touchdown. Even the likes of Trevor Siemian can beat Washington fairly easily if the secondary doesn’t improve. We have little reason to think that something is necessarily going to change at this point, but this is certainly a major key to the game.
3 KEY MATCHUPS
2020 undrafted free agent Bryce Huff is leading the Jets with 8.0 sacks. Charles Leno will draft the primary job of facing Huff this week. Washington can ill-afford to have an already high-stressed Sam Howell under a ton of pressure, so this is one of the key matchups of the game. Within the context of Washington’s terrible offensive, Leno has been less bad than some others, but nevertheless, this isn’t a completely positive battle for Washington. Keep an eye out on how often Huff is in Washington’s backfield this week. As of Thursday, Leno hadn’t practiced due to a calf injury, this will turn into Cornelius Lucas vs Huff.
Tyler Larsen or some other guy vs. C.J. Mosley
The Jets’ middle linebacker, five-time Pro Bowler C.J. Mosley, is probably the highest-profile Jets defender, and he’s also leading the team in tackles. You’ll likely hear plenty about Mosley from the broadcast commentators on Sunday, and if he sticks to the middle of the defense, Tyler Larsen, if he plays, which isn’t guaranteed, is probably due to face him more often than anyone else. This probably doesn’t bode well for Washington, but you never know what might happen. Watch out for whether Mosley is able to make a big impact on the game this week. If he does, you’ll probably be able to blame Larsen, at least in part. If Larsen can’t go, thanks to his knee injury, that will leave Nick Gates on tap to face Mosley, and that’s a thing that’s sure to go wrong.
Terry McLaurin vs Sauce Gardner
This is the highest-profile matchup of the game: Washington’s best player versus the Jets’ brash second year corner. McLaurin finally broke out last week, mainly thanks to Jacoby Brissett, so now that Washington’s second-best quarterback is apparently going to be back at the helm. As a result, I don’t think that McLaurin will be able to post another career-type game this week, but McLaurin versus Gardner will be a highly-visible, big-name battle to watch.
OFFICIAL INJURY REPORT (active roster only)
LP – limited practice FP – full practice DNP – did not practice
NIR – not injury related Q – questionable O – out
D – doubtful NL – not listed
| Washington | Jets |
| C T. Larsen, knee; Wed: DNP; Thurs: DNP | DL J. Franklin-Myers, hip; Wed: DNP; Thurs: DNP |
| T C. Leno, calf; Wed: DNP; Thurs: DNP | QB A. Rodgers, achilles; Wed: DNP; Thurs: DNP |
| DE J. Pryor illness; Wed: NL; Thurs: DNP | QB Z. Wilson, concussion; Wed: DNP; Thurs: DNP |
| RB B. Robinson Jr., hamstring; Wed: DNP; Thurs: DNP | RB I. Abanikanda, ankle; Wed: LP; Thurs: LP |
| RB J Williams, concussion; Wed: DNP; Thurs: DNP | DB J. Whitehead, knee; Wed: LP; Thurs: LP |
| DT J. Ridgeway, foot; Wed: foot; Wed: LP; Thurs: LP | OL M. Becton, knee/shoulder; Wed: LP; Thurs: FP |
| DE J. Smith-Williams, hamstring; Wed: LP; Thurs: LP | WR Jason Brownlee, ankle; Wed: LP; Thurs: FP |
| LB C. Barton, knee; Wed: FP; Thurs: FP | DL J. Holmes, elbow; Wed: LP; Thurs: FP |
| CB E. Forbes, elbow; Wed: FP; Thurs: FP | OL M. Mitchell, neck; Wed: FP; Thurs: FP |
| DL S. Thomas, knee; Wed: LP; Thurs: FP | |
| OL J. Tippmann, shoulder; Wed: FP; Thurs: FP | |
| OL C. Warren, hip; Wed: FP; Thurs: FP | |
| LB Q. Williams, knee; Wed: FP; Thurs: FP |
Steve’s Prediction
Call me crazy, but I actually think that Washington is going to win this game. The Jets are at least as big of a mess as Washington, and I don’t think that Washington is going to lose 8 in a row to finish the season. That means a low-scoring Washington win, somehow. Gulp. 17 – 10, Washington.
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