New York Jets: Three keys to victory over the Oakland Raiders

Play a Clean Game

Bet it’s not too often that you see a penalty flag on a slide, huh?

Too often, teams that have younger talent shoot themselves in the foot. They don’t have the experience of the upper echelon teams and it shows. They have to learn by doing, just as many of us do. When it’s done on the football field, however, it presents itself as mistakes. Young teams beat themselves as often as they get beaten by other teams.

Last week for the Jets, it manifested in LeSean McCoy running wild through missed gaps. The defense didn’t set the edge and he was gone. There were dropped passes that we mentioned last page. There were also those things in the picture, the penalty flags. The number wasn’t huge as the Jets were penalized five times for 62 yards. But for the Jets to do anything resembling a victory, they have to be mistake free. They need to be clean, or at least as clean as possible.

Remember those weapons on the other side of the football. Derek Carr, Marshawn Lynch, Michael Crabtree, Amari Cooper and everyone else can beat you on their own. They don’t need the Jets to help them by making silly mistakes. Catch the passes that are thrown at you. Protect the football and don’t commit penalties. Don’t beat yourselves.