Third Down Improvement Important for Jets vs. Falcons

Can the Tim Boyle-led attack increase its success on third down in Week 13?

The New York Jets' offense improved slightly in one category with Tim Boyle at the controls in Week 12.

The Jets converted 5 of 14 third down attempts against Miami on November 24. Although hardly mediocre, the 35.7 percent conversion rate is more than 11 points higher than the team's bottom-ranked season average.

"Getting the ball out of his hands and making good decisions. I thought he did a lot of good things once we were out there for a while," said Jets' offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett looking back at Boyle's start on Black Friday. "For us, like we talked about is that it is about third down and to be able to get everybody on rhythm."

One week earlier against Buffalo, which marked Zach Wilson's final start prior to the benching, the Jets accounted for an 0-for-11 clip on third down. In six of Wilson's 10 starts, the Green & White were less than 19 percent effective in third down situations.

For the season, the Jets have totaled 35 third down conversions while succeeding at 24.14 percent. That conversion percentage is the lowest in the NFL since the 2005 San Francisco 49ers. Gang Green is currently the lone team under 30 percent in the league.

Sports Illustrated identified the third down aspect of Sunday's matchup against the Atlanta Falcons as a key factor that could affect the outcome. 

From NFL Week 13: Best Matchups:

Atlanta Falcons (5–6) vs. New York Jets (4–7)

Key matchup: Jets’ third-down woes vs. Falcons defense

New York has one of the worst marks on third down in modern NFL history, only converting a measly 24.1% of the time.

Atlanta shouldn’t help matters. The Falcons have been excellent getting off the field, ranking tied for sixth-best on third down at 35.2%.

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