• Jets QB Aaron Rodgers makes his return in primetime: The 2024 campaign will begin on a much higher note for the Gang Green, starting with Rodgers' return from injury. In the veteran quarterback’s last full season in 2022, he ranked second in the league in big-time throw rate (6.1%).
• FB Kyle Juszczyk, San Francisco 49ers — Over 4.5 receiving yards: The news of McCaffrey’s uncertain health heading into this matchup has made this line intriguing. If McCaffrey were to play, as he stated is his intention to reporters Friday, he wouldn’t be 100% but would draw the attention of an aggressive Jets defense, letting Juszczyk leak out for a few easy dump-offs.
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Estimated Reading Time: 3 minutes
New York Jets vs. San Francisco 49ers (-3.5) [Total: 43.5]
Game Overview
The Jets opened the 2023 season full of promise, having acquired MVP passer Aaron Rodgers to head a talented roster. But in a cruel twist of fate, those hopes were dashed before they even really began, as Rodgers suffered a season-ending Achilles injury on his first drive at the helm.
The 2024 campaign begins on a much higher note for the Gang Green, starting with Rodgers' return to the lineup. In the veteran quarterback’s last full season in 2022, he ranked second in the league in big-time throw rate (6.1%), a number that could have been even higher had his receiving corps not dropped 30 passes, tied for the fifth most in the NFL. This time around, Rodgers has a pair of young weapons in Breece Hall and Garrett Wilson, both of whom finally get to showcase their talents without being hampered by subpar play under center.
Even with the addition of Rodgers, this team’s success still runs through its vaunted defense. In 2023, they ranked in the top three in expected points allowed per play. Elite cover cornerback Sauce Gardner leads the unit, powered by his phenomenal 90.8 PFF coverage grade.
For the 49ers, 2024 hasn’t gotten off to the smoothest start. Contract holdouts, injuries and depth plagued the team in camp, and with Week 1 finally here, it’s time to see if those pitfalls will have an effect in the regular season.
All-Pro left tackle Trent Williams and high-priced wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk were noticeably absent from camp due to contract holdouts. Those issues eventually got handled with little time to spare before Week 1, but it remains to be seen if the extended time away from the team will affect the 49ers' offensive cohesion.
Niners breakout quarterback Brock Purdy was undoubtedly happy to get two of his key teammates back, but just when things were looking up, more problems crept up. While it was known that running back Christian McCaffrey (ankle/calf) had been dealing with an injury in camp, alarms started ringing with the release of the weekly injury report, with the All-Pro back listed as questionable for this matchup.
Despite these questions, the defending NFC champs are still potent following a deep playoff run and have eyes to win the big one this year.
FB Kyle Juszczyk, San Francisco 49ers: Over 4.5 receiving yards (-110) 9.8% PFF Greenline Edge
“Juice” is the Swiss Army knife of Kyle Shanahan’s offense. The 33-year-old, do-it-all weapon may not have flashy box-score numbers, but he’s proven to be an invaluable piece of this offense, and that showed in spades down the stretch.
Despite Juszczyk seeing only 20 targets in 2023, more than half of them came in his final seven games. Over that span — from Week 15 onward — Juszczyk managed to surpass this line in five games, including twice in the playoffs, where he totaled 64 receiving yards.
Kyle Juszczyk | 2023 Receiving Stats and PFF Grades
Shanahan deploys Juice in a variety of looks, ranging from two-back sets to in-line tight end to even out wide to the boundary. That allows this offense to create matchup problems for defenses all over the field with unique personnel.
The news of McCaffrey’s uncertain health heading into this matchup has made this line intriguing. If McCaffrey were to play, as he stated is his intention to reporters Friday, he wouldn’t be 100% but would draw the attention of an aggressive Jets defense, letting Juszczyk leak out for a few easy dump-offs.
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