Denver Broncos vs. New York Jets Week 4 Pick

Denver Broncos (0-3 SU, 2-1 ATS) vs. New York Jets (0-3 SU, 0-3 ATS)

Week 4 NFL

Date/Time: Thursday, October 1, 2020 at 8:20PM EDT

Where: MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey

TV: NFL Network

Point Spread: DEN -3/NYJ +3 (BetNow – Best bonus of week 4! Deposit $100 to $500 and they’ll give you that same amount in free bets!!!)

Over/Under Total: 40

The Denver Broncos come to East Rutherford for a week 4 AFC showdown with the New York Jets. It’s an interesting matchup where thankfully, one of these teams will finally experience some success, barring a tie. Neither team has been able to secure a win in the young season. Denver has been slightly more-respectable, at least covering two spreads, while the Jets haven’t covered in three clunkers this season, including a 36-7 loss to the Colts on Sunday. It got ugly for Denver in week three, as well, with a 28-10 home-loss on Sunday to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Who can notch the cover at MetLife on Sunday?

Who is More intact?

That’s a tough question to be asking so early in the season, but something is clearly amiss with both squads. Denver has the stronger excuse, with a slew of injuries rendering them a shadow of what was envisioned by some in the preseason. With Drew Lock out, they are trying to make it work with Jeff Driskel, a good athlete, but hardly NFL starting quarterback material. They’re also without their leading rusher and receiver from last season with Phillip Lindsay and Courtland Sutton out of action. About six projected starters on defense are out, including Von Miller. It’s a disheartening situation for a team that looked like they had compiled a nice roster of talent heading into this season.

The Jets just stink. Sure, they have suffered injuries, as well. A bulk of their offensive firepower is sidelined. And with a lot of guys banged up in Sunday’s lopsided beating, the short week can’t be very welcome. But with three more picks on Sunday, Sam Darnold’s career is not progressing. Frank Gore is a legend, but if he’s your lead back, it’s not gonna be great at this point. The line is garbage. And their key playmakers on offense are guys that would struggle to get on the field with most teams. On top of that, their defense is among the worst in the league and appears to be already waning after getting thumped the last two weeks.

Hope for the Jets

Playing three winning teams in the first three weeks probably painted an overly-unflattering image of the Jets. At home, against a decimated Denver bunch, could find the Jets more in their wheelhouse. They’re going against a team that’s been ravaged by injuries, with a dilapidated offense that lost its most reliable weaponry, along with young players who have yet to live up to their billing. In other words, if they can’t compete in this context, they may as well pack it in.

Still, it’s fair to at least ask how into it mentally the Jets are at this point. Their level of fighting spirit is palpably-low. Head coach Adam Gase is on the hot seat, and there have been reports of a chasm in the locker room. He’s extracting shockingly-little out of this squad. And when you have the combination of a depleted roster along with plummeting morale, it makes it hard to pull the trigger on taking a position on a team like that.

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What Can the Broncos Do About It?

It’s fair to point out that Denver’s first three opponents are a combined 8-1 heading into week four. So we also need to account for their shifting context this week, as the Jets have shown about 2% of the fire that the Steelers, Titans, and Bucs have shown this season. On offense, the going should be easier this week. After getting benched in the fourth for Brett Rypien, one wonders what direction the Broncos will go at QB. But whoever it is, they’re going to have to make more use of what is still a decently-stocked offense with Melvin Gordon and Royce Freeman leading the run-game, with Jerry Jeudy, KJ Hamler, TE Noah Fant, Tim Patrick, and others through the air. And we’re starting to see some more life from rookies Jeudy and Hamler.

For all their issues on the injury-front and the lack of support coming from the other side of the ball, the Denver defense has been holding steady. There are a lot of youthful mistakes, with so many young guys having to fill in, but they’re not getting embarrassed and are still showing a lot of resistance, even as things aren’t going their way team-wide. Shelby Harris had two sacks on the day, and we saw Bradley Chubb starting to get more active, which would go a long way toward getting this “D” over the hump in this difficult time.

At root, the Broncos are just better. The only edge you can really identify for the Jets is they have a cemented quarterback, though Darnold isn’t exactly lighting the world on fire. It’s not all his fault, but that’s not the point. Other than the uncertainty at QB, most of the edges fall in the Broncos’ column. But that one thing is a big glaring thing. Darnold has at least shown the ability to do good things on the field, while neither Driskel nor Rypien has had much success in an NFL game.

Lay the Points on the Road Favorite

There is a definite feeling of discomfort when giving points on a winless NFL team in a road game. When that team is badly beating up by injuries, it makes it that much harder. There’s a good chance both of these teams will perform better in this less-heightened context. I just think Denver is in a better position to thrive. With their better balance and greater firepower on both sides of the ball, I see them crossing the finish line a nose ahead. I’ll take the Broncos.

Loot’s Prediction to Cover the Point Spread: I’m betting on the Denver Broncos minus 3 points. Note: A lot of sports gamblers are bitter over 5Dimes leaving the U.S. betting market. Did you know that you can still bet on games at reduced vig -105 at BetAnySports?  Same software! Same wagering menu! Get back to betting smarter TODAY!