GREG COTE’S NFL WEEK 3 THURSDAY PICK

PATRIOTS (1-1) at JETS (1-1)

Line: NYJ by 6.

Cote’s pick: NYJ, 20-16.

TV: 8:15 p.m. Thursday, Prime Video.

Owing mostly to the bygone Brady/Belichick era, the Patriots had beaten the Jets 15 times in a row (!) before NYJ finally stopped that skid to end the 2023 regular season. Now it’s time for the Jets to start a little streak of their own. The rebuilding Pats struggle to score, and will again. And that supposedly stout NE defense just got torched for 327 passing yards by Seattle’s Geno Smith. So Aaron Rodgers must be licking his chops or drinking ayahuasca or whatever he’s doing these days to get to his ethereal head-space. Rodgers should make it a big night for fantasy owners waiting for a breakout game by Garrett Wilson. Still, the bet line feels a tad fat for a game with a low over/under (38 1/2) and in a series in which the past four meetings have cashed on the under. Pats workhorse RB Rhamondre Stevenson will run often and well enough to limit Rodgers’ possessions and keep the scoreboard from smoking. Bills-Dolphins last Thursday night was a good-looking AFC East matchup that turned into a dud. The other half of the division gets its Thursday shot now and should deliver a better game — in closeness if not excitement.

Note: Betting line courtesy ESPNBet as of mid-afternoon Wednesday.

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