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FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS - SEPTEMBER 12: Mac Jones #10 of the New England Patriots looks to pass during the first half against the Miami Dolphins at Gillette Stadium on September 12, 2021 in Foxborough, Massachusetts. Maddie Meyer/Getty Images/AFP (Photo by Maddie Meyer / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)

An AFC East clash sees the winless Patriots take on the Jets, who will get their first win of the season, and who will remain bottom of the division? Make sure to take a look at the NFL odds before making your pick.

New England Patriots vs. New York Jets

Sunday, September 19, 2021 - 01:00 PM EDT at Metlife Stadium

How Did the Two Rookie QBs Do Last Week?

I will admit I was a little shocked that the Patriots released Cam Newton and announced that Mac Jones would start in week 1. It was obviously going to happen at some point in the season but after Cam missed some time in the preseason Mac took his chance with both hands and showed enough for Bill Belichick to put his faith in the youngster.

He didn’t do much wrong against a very good Dolphins defense and he was unlucky to be on the losing side after completing 29 of his 39 attempts for 281 yards, a TD and zero interceptions on debut. Not a bad stat-line at all, but a late fumble from Damien Harris gifted the Dolphins the win and denied him a dream start.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbXTf8C3Tdw

Zach Wilson’s time with the Jets began with a loss in Carolina after throwing 2 TDs to Corey Davis for their 14 points in the game. Wilson accounted for 258 of their 303 yards as they failed to get any kind of running game going to take the pressure off of Wilson. You would imagine they’d be looking to establish the run going forward but left tackle Mekhi Becton is going to be on the sidelines for a few weeks which will hurt them.

Can the Jets Pull Off a Shock Win?

Unsurprisingly the recent history between these teams is massively one-sided with the Patriots winning the last 10 in a row, but that was with Brady, and this is a new dawn for both teams in the North-East.

The spread line is under a touchdown though, so the bookies clearly think there’s a chance of the Jets being able to keep this game close at least. A long way from the days of the being 21 point underdogs just a couple of years ago.

https://twitter.com/nyjets/status/1437934689768067075?s=20

It seemed in camp that Corey Davis would be the WR1 for teams after coming over in free agency and that proved to be the case in the opener. It seems likely that will be the game-plan again here with very little behind him in the pecking order. Former-Patriot Braxton Berrios actually finished last week the same amount of targets as Davis.

The offensive line issues are a worry for them though with the inability to help Wilson out with any kind of game on the ground something that would hurt a lot of teams let alone one with a QB playing in his first few games.

Will This Be Another Under Involving the Patriots?

The Patriots played out a 16-17 loss to the Dolphins and despite putting up considerably more yards failed to score the points needed to beat a tough opposition. They were very good on defense as you’d expect from a Belichick team and the returning players strengthened that area of the field.

But the lack of offensive talent hurt the team last year and after spending more than anyone else in free agency they will be hoping for better returns than they got in the first game of the season. The likes of Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith both came in with good TD records and they’ll be hoping to get off the mark as soon as they can.

Divisional games tend to be lower scoring due to the teams knowing each other so well and I think that will be the case again in this one, also add to that the fact the Belichick has an outstanding record against rookie QBs and it could be a painful night for the Jets.

So do I take the Patriots against the spread, or the under for my NFL picks? I think it would be a 24-7, 30-7 type win for the Pats here.

NFL Pick: (visit our Sportsbook Review)

*The pick reflects the line at the moment the writer made the play, the odds at the beginning of this article show the live line movement. Since the lines might vary, don’t forget to refer back to our live odds.