Denver Broncos vs. New York Jets Preview (10/01/20): Betting Odds, Depth Charts, Live Stream (Watch Online)

The Broncos and Jets head into this Thursday Night Matchup both looking for their first win. While both teams deal with injuries all over the field, they will both see this game as a must-win. The Broncos will look to get back on track in hopes of giving Drew Lock a chance at a playoff run, once he returns from injury. While Adam Gase is fighting for his job in New York, with every loss ticking closer to the end of his reign as the head coach. It is the Broncos and Jets, the battle of the winless on Thursday Night Football.

For odds movement and full matchup history, visit the Denver Broncos at New York Jets Matchup Page.

TV Schedule

Date: Thursday, October 1st, 2020
Time: 8:20 PM ET
Location:MetLife Stadium – Rutherford, New Jersey
TV Coverage: NFLN

Broncos vs. Jets Live Stream

Where can you watch Broncos vs. Jets online? You can stream this game and many other NFL games live online with Hulu. Hulu has a 7 Day free trial and is cheaper than cable options at $5.99/month. Watch Broncos vs. Jets Free Online Now.

Injuries:

Denver Broncos:
New York Jets:

Denver Broncos Analysis

Jeff Dirskel or Blake Bortles? While coach Vic Fangio has been saying to the press that they would not force Bortles into the spotlight on such short notice if the Broncos want to really win this game that might be what they have to do. The Jets are not a good football team, but at the same time, a limited playbook with Blake Bortles would do wonders compared to Jeff Driskel.

The offense on the Broncos is full of weapons, even with Courtland Sutton out. Jerry Jeudy and KJ Hamler are a dynamic rookie pair of WRs that any QB would be happy to have. Then on the ground Melvin Gordon, and hopefully Phillip Lindsay, are a great one-two punch. As well as the fact that Noah Fant is an elite TE when it comes to being a receiving threat. Everywhere except for the QB position, the Broncos match up well against a poor Jets’ defense, and this is why I believe that they should go with Blake the Snake Bortles in their Thursday Night Showdown.

However, after saying all that Vic Fangio very well could pick former practice squad QB Brett Rypien as the starter for Thursday. There really is no telling who will be the QB for Denver. This all could be mind games by Fangio to confuse Gase and the Jets’ defense. We shall see.

Meanwhile, riddled with injuries, the defense has struggled to be as good as promised. The secondary is missing #1 CB AJ Bouye to IR and he will not return until around Week 6. Both Davontae Harris and Bryce Callahan are listed as questionable and Kareem Jackson also DNP during Monday’s practice. The saving grace for the Broncos is the fact that the Jets are dealing with just as many injuries to their playmakers. It will all come down to Bradley Chubb and the pass rush to disrupt Sam Darnold and pressure him into making mistakes. If the Broncos can do that then they can make up for the secondary’s downfalls.

Stopping Frank Gore and the ground game should not be hard for this solid front 7. They did an extremely good job against Ronald Jones and Leanord Fournette. Neither one of which really got going, and it helped to keep the game close by forcing Brady to pass and not allowing the Bucs to chew up too much clock. This game should be the same. I doubt that Frank Gore can average more than 4 yard per carry if that. This will force Darnold to be relied on more which should lead to a better pass rush and sacks.

Denver Broncos Depth Chart

QB: Drew Lock
RB1: Melvin Gordon
RB2: Phillip Lindsay
WR1: Courtland Sutton
WR2: Jerry Jeudy
WR3: KJ Hamler
TE: Noah Fant

New York Jets Analysis

This seems to be Adam Gase’s last chance at saving his job. His teams both in Miami and New York now have failed to ever really put together a truly good run of form and at the moment the Jets are the laughing stock of the league. Sam Darnold is really the only hope for Adam Gase. The weapons all around him are injured and the defense has yet to really do anything special.

The one bright spot for the Jets’ offense may be the return of Jamison Crowder who may return for Thursday Night Football. The combination of Braxton Berrios, Chris Hogan, and Jamison Crowder is not going to instill fear in any defense, not even one using practice squad CBs due to injury. However, it might just be enough for Sam Darnold to get something going in terms of rhythm. Short passes, dinking and dunking his way to points. It could also be a huge help if Chris Herndon finally gets going. The promising young TE has yet to really make an impact in any game.

Frank Gore and this run game is pathetic. La’Mical Perine is the secondary back and similarly to Gore, he was absolutely useless against the Colts’ front. The front 7 for the Broncos is still good and I suspect similar results. If the Jets want any kind of ground game they will need to pass effectively to open it up.

On defense, the secondary did pretty much nothing against a banged-up WR core for the Colts. They let Philip Rivers, one of the most error-prone QBs in the league, pass for 217 yards and a score on 17 of 21 pass attempts. They will get the benefit of playing a back-up QB in this game so this has to be the game where they step up. If they get burned once again there really is no hope with the Jamal Adam-less group of DBs.

The front 7 headed by Quinnen Williams is the strength of the entire team. They played decently well against Jonathan Taylor and co. when it came to stopping the run. However, this strength can only do so much when they are constantly getting picked apart in the passing game. What the front 7 needs to focus on against the Broncos is getting pressure and rattling Driskel or Bortles. Similarly to the Broncos’ defense, the only way the secondary can have an okay game is with the front 4 creating tons of pressure.

New York Jets Depth Chart

QB: Sam Darnold
RB1: Le’Veon Bell
RB2: Frank Gore
WR1: Breshad Perriman
WR2: Denzel Mims
WR3: Jamison Crowder
TE: Chris Herndon

Betting Corner DEN -2.5

Odds:
Spread: DEN -2.5
Moneyline: DEN -136 | NYJ +112
Over/Under: 40 points

Prediction:
Spread: DEN -2.5
Moneyline: DEN -136
Over/Under: Over

This is a gross game. However, I think that oddsmakers and the public are underestimating how bad the Jets are. The fact that the Broncos put up any kind of a fight without Lock shows me that they are already in a better position than this Jets team, no matter who the QB is. Melvin Gordon should be able to get going in this game, if not on the ground then through the air. I think that Jeudy and Hamler will have so much space in the secondary that it will be impossible to miss them. Meanwhile, Darnold should be able to put a couple of scoring drives together to push this point total over 40.

DEN 28-13 is my score for TNF.

Daily Fantasy Picks

Melvin Gordon is one of the few decent players in this game. However, he is priced very high at $6,900 on DK. Due to that price if Phillip Lindsay is active on Thursday I would pivot to him at $4,200. A very good price for someone who should get 40% of snaps, again if healthy, against an atrocious Jets’ defense.

I like KJ Hamler at $3,800, his playmaking ability makes him a threat to have an explosive day any game, no matter the number of targets. However, through two healthy games, he has had a total of 12 targets which is a great amount for such a cheap WR. I think that this could be Hamler’s coming out party against a weak Jets’ secondary. The positive is that with Hamler’s game-breaking speed he will not need deep targets from his backup QBs to make plays, he can easily take a slant to the house.

The Jets DST at $2,400 may not be the worst play. Whenever you get to face a backup QB for such a low price you may be blessed with some easy turnovers. It is a gross play but could work out in your favor.