Indianapolis Colts 2016 opponent preview: Getting to know the New York Jets

A week after hosting a primetime Thanksgiving game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Colts will travel to New York to face the Jets on Monday Night Football.

The Colts will have ten days in between the games, giving them plenty of time to prepare. It will be a tough game, however, as it’s never easy to play in New York in December and the Jets could be a good team once again. Last year, the two teams played on Monday night at Lucas Oil Stadium and the Colts lost 20-7, and this year won’t get much easier.

SB Nation’s site covering the Jets, Gang Green Nation, helped us out by providing a preview of the team entering the 2016 season:

New York Jets

Notable free agent additions:

Matt Forte, Khiry Robinson, Steve McLendon

Notable free agent departures:

Chris Ivory, Damon Harrison, DeMario Davis

Trades:

Jets acquired Ryan Clady from Denver for a late round pick.

Draft picks expected to contribute as rookies:

Darron Lee: The first round pick is expected to begin the season playing situationally on passing downs. Can he eventually take Erin Henderson’s starting job and show enough to be a three down linebacker? That is the question.

Jarvis Jenkins: The third round pick plays a position, outside linebacker, where the Jets do not have a single player with a proven track record in the NFL. He has a real chance to win a camp competition and begin his rookie season as a starter.

Biggest offseason addition:

Matt Forte is the most significant addition. The Jets offense took off in November as Bilal Powell emerged as the third option in the passing game. The Jets re-signed Powell to continue contributing out of the backfield, but they also added one of the most decorated pass catching backs in the league today.

Biggest storyline heading into training camp:

Who is the quarterback? After a career year, Ryan Fitzpatrick is still unsigned. There doesn’t seem to be interest outside of New York in his services, but he still isn’t happy with what the Jets are offering. Team management is on record saying the deadline for any deal is the start of training camp. Will something get done?

UPDATE: Since this write-up from Gang Green Nation, the Jets have signed Ryan Fitzpatrick to a one-year, $12 million deal to return as their starter.

Under-the-radar storyline heading into training camp:

Can Marcus Williams adjust to a bigger role? The third year cornerback impressed last season in his role as number four on the depth chart with six interceptions. There is a big leap in responsibilities between the fourth spot and the third spot in Todd Bowles’ defense, however. The number three corner is essentially a starter. Can Williams become more than a role player in this league? It will have a big impact on the team’s success.

Notable injuries heading into training camp:

Muhammad Wilkerson is recovering from a broken leg suffered in the season finale against Buffalo. Darrelle Revis is recovering from a wrist injury he apparently played through last season. Clady is coming off a torn ACL.