Jets vs. Bengals: Willie Colon Will Be Alone

The Jets face a pretty good Bengals run defense on Sunday. Cincinnati is tied for 12th in the NFL allowing 3.8 yards per run attempt. In order for the Jets to get the run game going, Willie Colon is going to have to stand tall against a pretty good nose tackle, Domata Peko.

The idea for a nose tackle on defense is to not be pushed back at the line of scrimmage and force the offense to use two blockers to neutralize him. Using two blockers on Peko is probably not going to be an option for the Jets. The Bengals are likely to line up All Pro defensive tackle Geno Atkins across from rookie guard Brian Winters. Winters has brought a degree of stability to a position that saw Vladimir Ducasse struggle mightily in all but one start, but he is not ready to take on one of the most explosive and strongest athletes in the game on his own. The Jets are going to have to use Nick Mangold to help Winters almost all game. That will probably leave the job of getting a push on the nose tackle to one man, Colon.

Colon's ability to win against Peko will have a lot to do with whether the Jets can run the ball effectively and take pressure off Geno Smith against a good defense.