The New York Jets offensive line is not filled with star names, and it could get the Chicago Bears back on track
In the last two weeks, the Chicago Bears pass rush has been not existent. A lot of people point to the injury to Khalil Mack as being the turning point in this pass rushing bunch. That certainly did have a lot to do with it. As we saw on Sunday, Mack was a non-factor who mainly dropped back into coverage.
Of course, some of it would have to do with the opponent as well. Against the Miami Dolphins, the theme of the game was to throw quick passes in the screen game. You can see the discrepancy in passing styles by intended air yards. While Osweiler trailed against Detroit and did open it up, his intended air yards through two games is 7.9. Sam Darnold has 9.2 intended air yards per throw. He is going to hang in the pocket more.
Tom Brady is one of the quickest in the NFL to get the ball out of his hands. Brady gets rid of the ball in 2.57 seconds on average. Darnold holds onto the ball for 2.78 seconds on average.
On top of that, the Jets offensive line is not doing Sam Darnold any favors. The unit does name have names to boast about, and it is reflecting in their effort.
The Jets rank 27th in adjusted yards lines. They are getting nothing going on the ground, and everything created is from the running backs.
The Jets do rank 16th in adjusted sack rate, but a lot of that has to do with Sam Darnold being very active in maneuvering the pocket to avoid sacks. The line has had issues.
Every single member of the line has been responsible for a sack. Three times a blitz a gotten, and three times a stung has thrown this line off.
This is a rookie quarterback with a poor offensive line on the road. He is going to struggle to read things and relay information to his group. After trying to break out for two weeks, players like Akiem Hicks and Leonard Floyd need to hear their name get called. The offensive line could be in for a long day, whether Khalil Mack is healthy or not.