And suddenly, things look interesting.
It’s strange to say, but the New York Jets might have the best offense that the New England Patriots have faced all year.
Before Sam Darnold came back, the Jets seemed like they were cruising for a top-three pick in next year’s draft. Now, they look like they can compete against any team in the league.
In a thorough beating of the Cowboys last week, the Jets looked like a different team. Sam Darnold threw for 338 yards, aided by star turns from Robby Anderson and Le’Veon Bell.
While this is not a top defensive unit by any stretch of the imagination, when Jamal Adams is playing as well as he was last week, he takes the Jets D to another level. Adams had 9 tackles and an amazing play to halt what would have been a game-changing two-point conversion against Dallas.
Of course, the Jets have a tall order ahead of them here. The Patriots may be the best team in football, and stand with the San Francisco 49ers as the final undefeated teams.
New England’s defense is having an amazing season. They were number one in defensive DVOA heading into last week, and shouldn’t move much following a dominant performance against the Giants.
The Pats offense has struggled despite all of those victories. Wide receivers on this team seem cursed, as Phillip Dorsett and Josh Gordon have become the latest to fall to injuries.
The running game has been bland in New England. As usual, they feature a rotating cast of characters in the backfield who likely wouldn’t start elsewhere.
On top of the poor production, Tom Brady is taking more sacks than usual. It hasn’t been anything out of hand, but Brady is old and protecting him ought to be a priority in New England.
Since the Jets played well last week and the Patriots have faced weak competition, it is tempting to say there could be an upset here. But, the Pats have just been too good, and the Jets will need to see consistent play from Darnold following his lengthy time on the bench. Though the game could be competitive for stretches, this is not a matchup of equals.
Look for a Pats win here, but it could be closer than expected.
| HOW TO WATCH PATRIOTS VS. JETS WITHOUT CABLE | |
| HULU WITH LIVE TV | TRY NOW |
| SLING TV | TRY NOW |
New England Patriots vs. New York Jets
- When: Monday, Oct. 21 at 8:15pm ET
- Where: MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey
- Streaming: Monday Night Football airs exclusively on ESPN. You can stream ESPN on a number of streaming platforms.
Patriots vs. Jets live stream: How to watch MNF online
1) Hulu with Live TV
- Cost: $44.99 per month
- Hulu devices: Roku, Apple TV, Google Chromecast, Amazon Fire Stick and Fire TV, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Nintendo Switch, and iOS and Android devices
- Hulu local channels: ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC, the CW (check your local availability here)
Hulu with Live TV includes sports programming among its offerings, including ESPN and FS1, and as a subscriber to the service, you’ll get free access to Hulu’s sizable on-demand library. (Check out the full list of Hulu Live TV channels.)
2) Sling TV
- Cost: $25-$40 per month (40% off first month)
- Sling TV devices: Amazon Fire TVs, Android Fire Stick, Apple TV, Android TV, Roku, Xbox One, Google Chromecast, Oculus Go, and iOS and Android devices
- Sling TV local channels: NBC, Fox (check your local availability here)
Both Sling Blue ($25 per month) or Sling Orange + Blue ($40 per month) include NFL Network and a number of sports channels—like three ESPN channels and NBCSN—and it’s still a nice perk that Sling subscribers can order a la carte packages. Sling TV also offers a special Latino package for bilingual viewers. Sling TV is currently offering a deal where you can subscribe for 40% off the regular price for the first month of your subscription. That means Sling Blue would cost $15, and Sling Orange + Blue would cost $25. (Here’s a complete guide to Sling TV channels and our Sling TV review.)
For $10 extra per month, you can get NFL RedZone via the Sling Blue Sports Extra package.
How to use AirTV with Sling
AirTV solves one of Sling’s biggest problems: The inability to receive all of your local channels. By purchasing a basic AirTV for $79.99 or the AirTV Player for $119.99, you can merge those local channels into your Sling TV (or on your mobile device if you have the basic AirTV). As the Daily Dot wrote in its AirTV review, “It’s practically magic.”
The basic AirTV is a dual-tuner streaming device, while the AirTV Player is basically an upgraded Chromecast that has Netflix preinstalled. You’ll still need to own an HD antenna because even though AirTV gets you access to your local channels, it doesn’t actually physically show them to you.
But AirTV—which has no monthly fee—serves to strengthen one of Sling’s biggest weaknesses compared to other live streaming services like Hulu with Live TV, YouTube TV, and PlayStation Vue. All those services have plenty of local channels. While select NFL and college football games (on Fox, FS1, and FS2) are no longer on Sling, you can still catch Fox games with AirTV.
3) PlayStation Vue
- Cost: $44.99-$79.99 per month
- PlayStation Vue devices: PlayStation 3 and 4, Roku, Amazon Fire, Google Chromecast, Kodi, iOS and Android devices
- PlayStation Vue local channels: NBC, Fox, ABC, CBS (enter your ZIP code here to check your availability)
If you’d like to watch live NFL games directly from your PS4, PlayStation Vue is your best bet. PlayStation also works with streaming devices like Roku and Amazon Fire products, but what separates PlayStation from the rest of the streaming services is that it’s also compatible with Kodi. No matter how you stream, you’ll get to choose from four tiers of channels—all but the cheapest include NFL Network. From there, you can also add NFL RedZone as part of the $10-per-month Sports Pack, which also unlocks ESPN Bases Loaded, ESPN Classic, Longhorn Network, Outside TV, and NBCUniversal regional sports networks. You can see the full list of PlayStation Vue channels here. Two other great perks: You can stream on up to five devices at once, and there’s also unlimited cloud DVR.
4) YouTube TV
- Cost: $50 per month
- YouTube TV devices: Google Chromecast, Roku, Apple TV, Android TV, Xbox One, iOS and Android devices
- YouTube TV local channels: NBC, CBS, Fox, ABC, the CW (enter your ZIP code here to check your availability)
YouTube TV is a great option for college football fans, including ESPN and FS1. (Take a look at the full list of YouTube TV channels here.)
Fantasy football: Who should I start?
Patriots
Julian Edelman, Wide Receiver: As no other quality receivers seem to be able to stay healthy and the running game is filled with also-ran runners, Edelman remains the only dependable option in Pats offense that spreads the ball all over the place.
Jets
Le’Veon Bell, Running Back: Despite their stout defense, you can run on this New England team. Look for solid production from Bell even if Darnold gets rattled and some of his receivers disappear.
New England Patriots vs. New York Jets: Why it matters
No, this game won’t likely change the AFC East standings very much, but this is a meaningful game for both teams.
The more wins the Pats can stack before a high-powered offense outguns them, the better. New England shouldn’t lose this game, and an upset would shorten the distance between them and other top AFC teams like the Texans and Chiefs.
For the Jets, a win here would be huge. The playoffs may be out of reach at this point, but a solid back half of the season could mean that Darnold and this coaching staff will get a chance to make some improvements and try again next year. If New York implodes with Darnold back in the line-up, then we could expect bigger offseason changes in the Meadowlands.
Expect a Patriots win on Monday, but don’t be surprised if it ends up a close one.
READ MORE:
- How to watch NFL RedZone without cable
- How to watch NFL Sunday Ticket without a DirecTV satellite
- How to watch NFL Network online (without cable)
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