Jets-Raiders Predictions: Will New York Take Advantage of Las Vegas' Injuries?

Over the past several weeks, the Jets have had opportunities to do damage against teams missing key contributors due to injury.

Rookie quarterback Tua Tagovailoa sat out last weekend against New York for the Dolphins. Then, remember when the Patriots were missing Stephon Gilmore on Monday night in Week 9 as well?

This week, New York matches up with a Las Vegas Raiders team that will be without both their leading rusher on offense and leading tackler on defense.

Running back Josh Jacobs and safety Johnathan Abram won't make the trip to MetLife Stadium due to ankle and knee injuries, respectively. Head coach Jon Gruden made that announcement on Friday.

That brings us to the question we've asked every week for the past month here at JetsCountry... Is this finally the week the Jets find a way to get the job done and secure their first win of the season?

As has been the case over the last several weeks, there are reasons to be optimistic. Yes, even for an 0-11 team.

New York is as healthy as this team has been in quite some time. Young playmakers, like Denzel Mims and Quinnen Williams, continue to steal the spotlight every week. And let's give some credit to New York's defense for an overall solid performance last week, giving Gang Green's offense every opportunity to beat the Dolphins.

Then again, entering Week 13, this is still the league's worst offense in points per game (13.8), yards per game (267.8) and passing yards per game (170.3). Last week was proof that even with Sam Darnold healthy, that won't necessarily correlate to a breakout performance by this offense.

That in mind, here's our weekly prediction as to how this game will play out for those in green and white:

Max Goodman's pick: Jets 13, Raiders 17

Before getting blown out last week, the Jets had two consecutive games where they lost by one possession. Nick Folk hit a game-winning field goal at the buzzer against the Patriots and then New York fell just short against the Chargers two weeks later.

Being that this is Darnold's second game back from injury, and second opportunity to play with all three of this team's starting wide receivers, I think he'll have marginally more success than he did against Miami's elite secondary in Week 12.

Sure, I predicted this last weekend (and it didn't pan out) but I can see Darnold ending his touchdown drought on Sunday. He hasn't thrown a TD pass since Sept. 27. It'll be Denzel Mims' first TD catch of his career as well this afternoon as the rookie continues to rack up targets and set personal milestones.

Last weekend against the Falcons, Las Vegas managed two field goals in a 43-6 romp. That was with Jacobs rushing for a total of 27 yards. On Sunday, Jacobs won't be available and while Gruden said he has faith in the rest of the Raiders' rushers, I'm expecting that will have a pretty big impact on Las Vegas' offense.

Quarterback Derek Carr should be able to find some success through the air, as New York's inexperienced secondary continues to gather more experience. Don't be surprised if this ends up being the fifth game in a row where the Jets surrender 250-plus passing yards to an opponent. I'm thinking two touchdowns for Carr as well.

At the end of this game, as we've seen multiple times over the last month, the Jets will have a chance to drive down the field and take the lead. Joe Flacco wasn't able to get the job done against New England and Los Angeles so it's hard to picture Darnold marching down the field with the game on the line considering how much he has struggled in 2020.

Then again, maybe Darnold can prove everyone wrong and bounce back. That would certainly boost his stock in auditioning for a role with another team next season should New York draft a quarterback next April...

Other than the Patriots in Week 17, it seems like this is the Jets' last good chance to win a game this year. It'll be close until the final whistle and Las Vegas has to be careful, but even with their injuries, New York will still be searching for answers postgame.

Related reading to get you ready for Jets-Raiders

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