Without a doubt, the most disappointing aspect of the New York Jets’ Week 3 loss to the Detroit Lions was the pass protection.
After a Weeks 1-2 stretch in which they had a case to be the best pass-blocking unit in the NFL, the Jets’ offensive line collapsed in Week 3. Geno Smith was sacked five times and pressured on a season-high 43.2% of his dropbacks, even while averaging a season-low 2.87 seconds to throw.
Smith overcame the shoddy protection with an unbelievable display of under-pressure passing, completing 12 of 13 pressured attempts for 157 yards and nine first downs. Still, the protection came back to bite the Jets at critical junctures, as multiple promising New York drives were stalled by sacks. Those mistakes were costly in a 31-24 loss.
One of the main culprits was center Josh Myers, but that should be expected, as the Jets willingly signed up to start a backup-quality center. However, the team certainly expects better from their two first-round tackles, Olu Fashanu (LT) and Armand Membou (RT).
Fashanu was credited with allowing six total pressures, including three sacks, per Pro Football Focus. Membou did not allow any sacks, but he gave up three pressures, bringing him to seven over the past two games after pitching a shutout in the season opener.
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A Week 4 trip to the Windy City could be exactly what the doctor ordered for New York’s young tackle duo. If Fashanu and Membou are the type of tandem that the Jets need them to be, they should be able to handle the Chicago Bears’ subpar edge-rushing unit.
Jets’ tackles vs. Bears’ edge rushers
Under defensive coordinator Dennis Allen, the Bears rely heavily on the blitz to create pressure. They have the second-highest blitz rate in the NFL at 39.8%, according to Pro Football Reference.
Chicago’s individual pass rushers, though, have not been very prolific, especially off the edge.
The Bears’ top three edge rushers are Montez Sweat (77 pass-rush snaps), Dayo Odeyingbo (69), and Austin Booker (67). Among 71 qualified edge rushers across the NFL (min. 50 pass-rush snaps), none of them ranks in the top half of PFF’s pass-rush grade.
- Odeyingbo: 63.9 (38th)
- Sweat: 53.2 (66th)
- Booker: 52.9 (67th)
The trio simply has not recorded many high-quality wins off the edge. Odeyingbo is 31st with a 12.3% pass-rush win rate, while Sweat ranks 59th at 6.8%, and Booker is 67th at 4.5%.
Overall, the Bears’ pass rush has still managed to generate plenty of pressure thanks to Allen’s blitzes. They have the ninth-highest sack rate (7.7%) and the fourth-highest pressure rate (32.7%). A lot of that is thanks to Devin Bush, who ranks third among off-ball linebackers with eight total pressures. It goes to show how much stress will be placed on the Jets’ interior line and running backs in this one.
As for the tackles, though, the one-on-one matchups are favorable. The Bears lack consistent winners on the outside. Fashanu and Membou should be expected to bounce back in the pass-blocking department, finishing the game with impressive numbers in terms of individual pressures allowed.
Chicago’s pass rush undoubtedly poses an all-around challenge for the Jets’ pass protection. Most of the challenge, though, lies in the blitz-pickup game. New York’s communication, chemistry, and recognition will be put to the test.
But the Jets should not have to worry about Geno Smith dealing with much pressure around the corner when Chicago brings a four-man rush—at least, that is a fair expectation for two first-round tackles matching up with one of the league’s weaker edge-rushing units.
The Jets and their fans should hold Fashanu and Membou to high standards this week.
