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Week 17: Bills vs. Jets
 at 
Sunday, Jan. 1st
1:00pm ET
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Some decent intrigue for a meaningless game at the end of the regular season between two also-rans. It won't be another trip back home for Rex Ryan but it will be a "battle" between Ryan Fitzpatrick and the
quarterback that replaced him in EJ Manuel. The former first round pick will get one more shot at showing the Bills, or more likely other teams, what he can do as he prepares for free agency. It will be interesting to see how the players respond to Anthony Lynn being the interim coach after the popular Ryan was let go.
FACTS AND FIGURES
| Matchup: |
Buffalo (7-8) vs. N.Y. Jets (4-11) |
| Place: |
Met Life Stadium |
| TV/Radio: |
Network: CBS; DirecTV: 708; Sirius: 133; SiriusXM 381 |
| Announcers: |
Andrew Catalon, Steve Tasker and Steve Beuerlein |
| Spread: |
Bills by 6 |
| Series: |
Bills lead 59-52 (Bills 1-0 in playoffs) |
| Streak: |
Jets Won 1 |
| Last Meeting: |
Jets 37-31 in Buffalo (2016) |
| Jets Offense: |
Rush (13th); Pass (27th); overall (25th) |
| Jets Defense: |
Rush (14th); Pass (20th); overall (16th) |
| Bills Offense: |
Rush (1st); Pass (31st); overall (12th) |
| Bills Defense: |
Rush (28th); Pass (7th); overall (19th) |
INJURY UPDATE
The Bills will be without their lockdown corner as Stephon Gilmore suffered a concussion against Miami. Lerentee McCray has missed three games with a concussion of his own. Cordy Glenn has missed two games with a back injury.
The Jets are without QB Bryce Petty after he was placed on injured reserve this week. CB Juston Burris (Knee), RB Matt Forte (Knee), CB Nick Marshall (Hamstring), WR Brandon Marshall (Hip/Shoulder)m RB Bilal Powell (Knee), and TE Austin Seferian-Jenkins (Hamstring) all missed some practice time this week.
Check out our  Bills Daily Injury Page throughout the week for the latest updates on the injured players.
KEY MATCHUPS
RB LeSean McCoy vs. MLB David Harris:
McCoy will look to close out his fantastic season with a big game against a division opponent. The veteran Harris once again is the leading tackler for Gang Green.
LB Lorenzo Alexander vs. LT Ben Ijalana:
Alexander looks to put an exclamation point on a fine pro bowl season. He will lineup against the six year veteran Ijalana.
DB Ronald Darby vs. WR Brandon Marshall:
With Gilmore sidelined it will likely be up to Darby to shadow the Jets biggest offensive threat in Marshall.
QB EJ Manuel vs. QB Ryan Fitzpatrick:
The two obviously don't go head to head but it will be interesting to see these two battle it out after Manuel was brought in to replace Fitz.
KEYS TO THE GAME
1. Motivate Themselves: Can they get themselves up for a meaningless game when their coach was just fired and the GM decided the backup QB will play? It is the number one thing to watch for in this game. If they even get a little bit of motivation they should easily win against an unmotivated opponent.
2. Force Fitz Into Mistakes: Ryan Fitzpatrick has been awful all year except in the week 2 matchup against the Bills. One of the biggest problems this defense has had this year is the lack of takeaways. If they can force Fitz into turnovers they should win fairly easily.
3. Take Pressure Off Of EJ: They can't leave the game up to Manuel to win, they need to keep him as a game manager. That means they need to establish the run and run often.
BILLS DAILY PREDICTION
The Jets are a total disaster but it is unknown how the Bills will play after the upheaval of the week. Will they letdown because they are now out of the playoffs? Will they letdown because their beloved coach was fired? Will they be upset that Tyrod Taylor was benched? They could be very disinterested and still come away with a win, a sloppy one at that:
Bills 13, Jets 10
Season Prediction Record: (13-2)
Season Record Against The Spread: (11-4)
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