Jets Colts: Thursday Night Football Breakdown

After a string of great Thursday night games, we are back to the usual stink-fest we see in the mid-week matchup. The Jets (2-5) travel to Indy to face the Colts (3-5) tonight, in a game that doesn't have a ton of fantasy relevancy.

Colts RB Jonathan Taylor, Photo: Zach Bolinger, Associate Press

The Jets have two wins this year, and both are improbable victories over opponents coming off huge wins themselves. They took down King Henry and the Titans week 4, and just last week backup QB Mike White led New York to a win over Joe Burrow and the Bengals after rookie starter Zach Wilson went down with a sprained PCL the week before.

The Jets are a very young team, going through a rebuild under new head coach Robert Saleh. They have a solid base to their defense led by CJ Moseley, and are trying to run the ball effectively while developing Wilson behind a talented (but also developing) offensive line. Mike White came in and threw for over 400 yards in his debut last week, but first-start flashes are common and no one expects him to replicate it on the road, on a short week. The Colts, unlike the Bengals, now have film on White to break down, and will look to exploit his weaknesses.

Indianapolis, for their part, is much better than their 3-5 record indicates. After a terrible start to the season, they picked up wins against the Dolphins and 49ers, while holding their own in a loss to the Ravens and finally last week, losing a heartbreaker to Tennessee in overtime. Carson Went on paper is having a decent year (his 11-1 TD/INT ratio was best in the league entering week 8) but when it comes to making the crucial plays he has been unreliable. Second year back Jonathan Taylor has lived up to expectations, topping 100 scrimmage yards in 6 of 8 games so far. Receiver Michael Pittman Jr has also been a surprise, getting double-digit targets three times on the year and posting four touchdowns in the last four games.

This matchup will feature a hungry Indy team at home, who needs this victory to right the ship and get back in their division race now that the Titans (who swept Indy 2-0 in their matchups already this year) lost their superstar Derrick Henry until the playoffs. The Jets need to keep the momentum from beating the Bengals rolling, and use the fiesty Mike White to get weapons like Corey Davis, Jamison Crowder, and Ty Johnson involved through the air while they pound the rock with rookie Michael Carter. The Colts do0n't have the best secondary in the league, and White should be able to take advantage of that if his offensive line can hold back the Indy pass rush.

Ball 'Em

RB Jonathan Taylor

WR Michael Pittman Jr

Indianapolis D

Sleepers

RB Ty Johnson

WR Corey Davis

QB Carson Wentz

RB Michael Carter

Bench 'Em

QB Mike White

RB Nyheim Hines

WR Jamison Crowder

WR TY Hilton

WR Paris Campbell

TE Mo Alie-Cox

Taylor and Pittman are must-starts, and probably the only ones who hold that status for tonight's game. Wentz has superflex value but not over traditional starters, and Mike White could easily post negative points in this matchup if Indy cues up the pass rush effectively. Nyheim and Hines and Jamison Crowder are too inconsistent to put in as a starter on Thursday, you definitely have someone more reliable on your roster you can wait on. Alie-Cox has been scoring touchdowns but even that hasn't made him startle in fantasy. Paris Campbell is always capable for a huge day over the top, but Pittman has cut into his opportunities making him a pretty risky flex unless you are super desperate.

Sleepers I think that could put up solid floor numbers with breakout potential are Corey Davis, Ty Johnson, and Michael Carter. Carter gets the workload on the ground and if White struggles he may see huge volume. Similarly, if White struggles Ty Johnson could be set up for a lot of receiving work out of the backfield. Corey Davis has the potential to shine if White backs up his performance last week through the air, but even if he gets beat up out there Davis is the primary target and should garner whatever targets downfield there are. These are solid floor guys in the 8-10 range that could be a top-24 at their position if they get into the end zone. It's unlikely all 3 will score however, so it's a little roulette deciding which one profiles to have the best day. For me it's Ty Johnson, with White under pressure and Carter having trouble gaining yards, I expect the Jets to resort to getting the ball out of his hands quickly and Johnson will be a primary bail-out option. Especially in PPR formats, Johnson could be the diamond sleeping in the rough for Week 9.

Never start TY Hilton.

Good luck in your matchups as week 9 kicks off tonight in Indy.

SportsLeaf Line:

Jets 17 Colts 27