Date: Sunday 4:30 EST
Location: Qualcomm Stadium -- San Diego, CA..
Matchup: AFC #2 Seed Chargers (13-3) vs AFC # 5 Seed Jets (10-7)
Round: AFC Divisional Playoffs
Current Winning Streaks: The Chargers have won their last 11 games, while the Jets have won 6 of 7.
Matchups to Watch
Darrelle Revis vs Vincent Jackson:
There is a strong possibility Revis will win the DPOY come Tuesday. What more is to be said about the guy who has held opposing WR1's to under 35 ypg this season? He gives new meaning to the term "shutdown corner", and has been excellent in defending against the deep ball this year. He has also been phenomenal in holding WR's to little, if any, yards after a catch.
On the other side of the ball, Jackson has been a great big-play guy for the San Diego offense this year. He averages 17.2 YPC, and 4.5 catches/game. He may be playing with a chip on his shoulder, as he was snubbed of a pro-bowl mention.
Kerry Rhodes vs Antonio Gates:
The Jets have been excellent in defending against receiving Tight Ends this year, and Rhodes has been playing the best football of his career over the last couple weeks. This week he will have his hands full, as he will be pitted up against one of the top 3 receiving TE's in the league. Norv Turner has said he thinks Gates is hands-down, the #1 TE. Gates is a huge red-zone threat and the Jets will need to clamp down when San Diego gets within scoring range.
Dustin Keller vs San Diego Safeties: (this matchup via our man Crackback)
The Chargers safeties have been inconsistent in defending opposing TE's this year. If they choose to blitz out of the secondary, Keller could find running room and have a big game on Sunday.
While SD has completely shut down a couple of TE's this year, it should be noted they had the benefit of facing some bad teams with extremely ineffective TE'.s. Good, Receiving TE's have burned them bad this year.
Opposing TE's that have had success against SD:
Oak- Zach Miller has torched them twice. 148 total yards (96 & 52)….
Denver – Scheffler 101 yards/1 TD…. But then only 12 yards next meeting.
Pitt – Heath Miller 70 yards… 2 TD’s. Rape.
Bengals- Foschi 82 yards
Clev- 80 yards to evan moore?!?!
Philly – Celek 47 yards, 1 TD
Dallas – Witten 49 yards
Skins- 48 yards (46 davis/2 yoder)
Jets Stout, Veteran Defense vs High-Octane Chargers Offense:
The Jets field the #1 defense in PPG (14.7) and also YPG (253.3)
The Bolts have scored 20+ points in 22 consecutive games.
IMO, they field the most balanced offense in the NFL, and this attack is very hard to stop. They have so many weapons that can beat you -- even more-so then the Colts.
Jets Pass Defense vs Phillip Rivers:
Rivers has had an exceptional year and was a front-runner in MVP voting. He is easily playing the best football of his career. He averages 8.8 yards per pass... and has an incredible TD/INT ratio of 3.11 (28 : 9). What makes him so good, is how smart he is with the football, and the decisions he makes.
The Jets secondary has been exceptional this year with all the looks Pettine has thrown at opposing QB's.... and are the #1-ranked pass defense giving up a ridiculously-low 150 ypg.