The Jaguars enter "Thursday Night Football" banking Trevor Lawrence's arm beating a stingy Jets defense. If the weather conditions are as bad as currently forecast, it may not be that simple.
These AFC contenders won't just be battling each other. Heavy rain and intense wind gusts are being predicted for Thursday night at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.
It won't be a snow game, but we've seen more than a few examples of rain and/or wind impacting the outcome of a game. In Week 1 this season, torrential rain soaked Soldier Field and forced the Bears and 49ers into a messy defensive battle. The Bears notched an upset of San Francisco as the conditions threw both offenses into chaos.
Last season, the Patriots defeated the Bills in extremely windy conditions despite only attempting three passes. Could the Jets or Jaguars be forced to embrace their inner Bill Belichick and run a similar game plan on Thursday?
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The Jets defeated the Bears in rainy conditions in November, though they had Mike White under center in that game. Zach Wilson is more prone to errant passes, so a running game that was shut down by the Lions in Week 15 might be forced to play a larger role against Jacksonville.
Lawrence, meanwhile, will face the lethal combination of a strong Jets pass defense and poor quarterback conditions. That could force Travis Etienne into an even larger workload after his bounce-back performance against the Cowboys in Week 15.
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It doesn't look as if the Jets and Jaguars will avoid rain or wind. The question will be how severe the conditions will be. Here's the latest on the weather conditions MetLife Stadium will experience.
Jets vs. Jaguars weather updates
Thursday, Dec. 22
7:50 p.m. ET
Keep an eye on this band of rain set to blow through New Jersey in the coming hours...
The fire hose of heavy rain that is lining up with the 850 MB jet streak is starting to line up and lift to the north. Intense rainfall and wind gust up to 50 mph will be a threat with this band of rainfall. pic.twitter.com/OMI7dMp0Wx
— NY NJ PA Weather (@nynjpaweather) December 23, 2022
6:05 p.m. ET
The conditions are fine so far, and radar shows a gap between bands of rain. We're still more than two hours out from kickoff, however.
Weather isn’t too bad right now at MetLife Stadium but it’s expected to get worse as the #Jaguars-#Jets game gets set to kick. @SteveSmithSr89 and I will have you on @NFLGameDay starting at 6p Eastern. pic.twitter.com/oTN89QV9G2
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) December 22, 2022
5:00 p.m. ET
Forecast: 1-2. inches of rain Thursday night, 15-21 mph wins (gusts as high as 45 mph)
The National Weather Service's forecast has been mostly steady since Tuesday, though winds are projected to be slightly stronger according to the latest update. In addition, a wind advisory is set to take affect for East Rutherford at 10 p.m. ET on Thursday night.
The forecast specifically calls for 0.96 inches of rain between 7 p.m. ET and 1 a.m. ET.
📍@MetLifeStadium
— NFL On Prime Video (@NFLonPrime) December 22, 2022
A cold and windy night in the Meadowlands for #TNFonPrime pic.twitter.com/vLHgnmThB9
Tuesday, Dec. 20
Forecast: 1-2 inches of rain Thursday night, 13-20 mph winds (gusts as high as 41 mph)
The National Weather Service is forecasting rain to begin in the early afternoon Thursday in East Rutherford and continue through the early afternoon on Friday. One to two inches of rain is forecast for the area Thursday night, though that includes the overnight period. The chance of rain is 100 percent.
More impactful than the heavy rain may be the wind. The National Weather Service is forecasting winds between 13 and 20 mph, with gusts as high as 41 mph.
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Last season's matchup between the Patriots and Bills in Orchard Park, N.Y., had sustained winds of 25-35 mph and gusts as high as 50 mph. The forecast for the Meadowlands isn't calling for conditions as windy as those, but the addition of the rain could make the night just as challenging for both passing games.
