Updated November 13, 2026, 1:47 p.m. ET
ORCHARD PARK — If there was ever a time when the team-wide frustration the New York Jets have experienced this season reached a fever pitch, it was last Sunday in Kansas City when quarterback Geno Smith momentarily lost his mind.
In the second quarter of what became their fourth straight loss, the Jets led 9-7 when Braelon Allen lost a fumble that was recovered by Chiefs safety Alohi Gilman. As Gilman began his comeback, Smith rushed and threw with intent and hit Gilman flat at the Jets 24, a superb display of physicality from a quarterback.
“It’s something you really don’t want to happen, but competitors are going to compete, so I’m not surprised it happened, but it’s something you don’t want from your starting quarterback,” coach Aaron Glenn said.
Smith knew the fumble was a huge mistake and, sure enough, the Chiefs scored two plays later and took a lead they never relinquished during their 35-12 blowout. Later in the game, following another failed Jets possession, Smith came to the sideline and slammed his helmet to the ground, the inevitability of falling to 2-7 clearly getting to him.
As usual in mid-November, the Jets are already in game mode, but they have a great chance to make a statement on Sunday when they host the 7-1 Buffalo Bills. There’s not much left to play for Upstate, but beating the AFC’s No. 1 team and hurting the Bills’ quest for the No. 1 seed would certainly provide some professional joy, especially considering the two 30-10 and 35-8 losses Buffalo handed to New York last year.
“We’re not going to hide the fact that we’re 2-7,” said Glenn, who is likely coaching at his position, so every possible win is crucial. “That’s on us, but man, we’re still working hard to make sure we fix this. We love that the players we have in the building can help us do that. When you look at the seven losses, and that’s just facts, five of the teams were playoff-caliber teams. I think five of them were one-score games. There’s a number of things we need to fix and improve, but we think, man, we’re on the right track. about to try to break through.
Joe Brady says he never pays attention to an opponent’s standings or record, but he knows the Jets are 2-7, and he also knows that a few plays here or there could have changed the course of their season. He and his team won’t take a divisional opponent lightly.
“It’s a divisional game on the road, it’s going to be as tough as possible, right?” » said Brady. “We showed we can go on the road and win a tough game (actually seven games in a row through 2025), we have to do it again. (Glenn) is going to prepare them the way he should. We know we’ll always bring the best out of everyone, like we should, and we’ll have to get there to be able to get a win. We know it won’t be easy, but we wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Here is my preview of the game, followed by my prediction:
The QB matchup: Josh Allen vs. Geno Smith
One of the reasons Allen continues to be perhaps the best QB in the league is how he has been able to adapt to whatever is necessary to win a game. Some weeks he had to throw the ball downfield and bite off big chunks, others he had to stay patient and work underneath it. In some games he had to use his legs to get the offense going, in others he had to rely on James Cook and the running game.
“It all starts with the quarterback,” Glenn said. “He’s playing at a high level, as he always does, so we’re looking forward to the competition.”
Allen is tied for the league lead with 8.6 yards per attempt and second in yards per completion with 13.0, but his passer rating of 99.3 is a bit lower than Smith’s which has been better than the Jets’ record would indicate. Smith’s 100.5 passer rating through nine weeks is the highest by a Jets quarterback at this point in the season since the 1970 merger. He completes 67.5 percent of his passes, which ranks fifth in the league, and his 1.1 percent interception rate is fourth best. It will therefore not be Joe Fagnano or Carson Wentz that the Bills defense will face.
Buffalo Bills who should impact the game
▶TE Dalton Kincaid: The best part of Kincaid’s season so far is that he played in every game, which had been a problem for him the previous two seasons. He has 30 catches for 429 yards and two touchdowns, but again, you want more. His 14.3 yards per catch are second best among TEs behind Travis Kelce (14.6), so Allen needs to start finding ways to get him the ball beyond the 38 targets he’s seen.
▶C Connor McGovern: The Jets defense ranks 26th in the league, allowing 128 rushing yards per game and has been ripped for 29 runs of at least 10 yards, tied for fourth in the league. McGovern and the rest of the Bills’ line have paved the way for the second-best rushing attack led by Cook, and given the Jets’ 39.9 percent blitz rate, sixth highest in the league according to Next Gen stats, the Bills would love to catch them with quick hitters through the A and B gaps.
▶DT Ed Oliver: He started to shake off the rust against Minnesota and played his best game of the season. He had seven pressures and for the season, Sumer Sports has him listed for 109 pass rushes and his 19.3% pressure rate is No. 1 among interior linemen. And although he only had 45 run snaps, he was very efficient with a run stopping percentage of 15.6%, which was second best. But Oliver and the rest of the D-line have a big test against a strong Jets offensive line.
▶CB Dee Alford: After a rough start to his career with the Bills, Alford played his best game in Minnesota and is part of why Wentz was so awful. But this will be a bigger test because the Jets have used impressive WR Omar Cooper in the slot on about half of his snaps and Cooper has been one of the best players in this rookie class. Alford will also come up against the two Jets TEs who have excelled thus far, Mason Taylor and rookie nightmare Kenyon Sadiq.
New York Jets expected to impact the game
▶RB Braelon Allen: He saw an opportunity while No. 1 RB Breece Hall was out for five weeks and in those games, Allen averaged 101 rushing yards, 5.4 yards per attempt, and caught 13 passes for 70 yards. Hall returned last week against the Chiefs and ran for 68 yards despite playing 10 fewer snaps than Allen, and that seems to be an indication that the Jets will use both players in a rotation and that gives them an opportunity to control the ball and keep the Bills’ offense off the field.
▶ WR Garrett Wilson: He leads the Jets with 43 catches for 527 yards and three touchdowns despite missing last week’s game due to a concussion, but his numbers would be even better if Smith used him more. Wilson has had five games in which he was targeted seven times or fewer, which isn’t ideal for a player with big playmaking ability. Part of that is because the Jets have two other WRs, Cooper and Adonai Mitchell, and TEs Sadiq and Taylor who have made nice contributions, but Wilson needs more targets and especially if Christian Benford doesn’t play — he’s questionable with a wrist injury — you can bet Wilson will get them.
▶ LB David Bailey: The No. 2 pick in the 2026 draft already looks like a star in the making and he’s going to present some problems out of the blue. He has 7.5 sacks and 31 QB pressures that lead the team, his 20 stops (plays that caused a breakdown for the offense) are second to LB Jamien Sherwood, and his five forced fumbles are the main reason the Jets lead the league with 13 total. Bailey lines up almost exclusively on the right side of the offense, so with RT Spencer Brown questionable and almost certainly not played, it will likely be Tylan Grable who gets another start. This is a problematic matchup given Bailey’s explosive speed, although Grable held up pretty well when he had to play.
▶S Minkah Fitzpatrick: He became a major rival of the Bills as he faced them eight times during his time with the Steelers and two stints with the Dolphins. Now he’s with the Jets and he’s still at the top of his game and that’s one of the reasons the Jets played pretty good pass defense. He’s allowed just six receptions on 12 targets, and his 33 snaps per reception allowed are fifth-best among all safeties.
Sal’s prediction: Bills 30, Jets 20
It’s hard to get to a point where I can think the Jets can pull off an upset. Of course, I felt the same way in 2022 when a 6-1 Bills team went to New Jersey and lost 20-17, and in 2023 when Aaron Rodgers got hurt on the fourth play of the game and the Bills still found a way to lose. Even in 2024, it was all the Bills could do to pull out a 23-20 victory on a late field goal from Tyler Bass.
My point is, division games on the road are tough. Remember last year in Miami? The Bills will have to be on top against a New York team that has a poor record, but has emerging talent on both sides of the ball, especially on offense. Ultimately, with the Bills offense operating at such a high rate, I don’t think the Jets, facing a red zone, can keep up.
Buffalo Bills 2026 Schedule
- Week 1: Sunday, September 13 at Houston Texans, W 36-31.
- Week 2: Thursday September 17 against the Detroit Lions, W 41-31.
- Week 3: Sunday September 27 against the Los Angeles Chargers, W 24-16.
- Week 4: Sunday October 4 against the New England Patriots, L 26-29
- Week 5: Monday, October 12 at Los Angeles Rams, W 37-34 OT
- Week 6: Sunday, October 18 at Las Vegas Raiders, W 33-30
- Week 7: bye week
- Week 8: Sunday, November 1 against the Baltimore Ravens, W 36-10.
- Week 9: Monday, November 9 at Minnesota Vikings, W 23-6.
- Week 10: Sunday, November 15 at New York Jets, 1 p.m.
- Week 11: Sunday, November 22 vs. Miami Dolphins, 1 p.m.
- Week 12: Thursday, November 26 against the Kansas City Chiefs, 8:20 p.m.
- Week 13: Sunday, December 6 at New England Patriots, 4:25 p.m.
- Week 14, Sunday December 13: at Green Bay Packers, 8:20 p.m.
- Week 15: Saturday, December 19 vs. Chicago Bears, 8:20 p.m.
- Week 16: Friday, December 25 at Denver Broncos, 4:30 p.m.
- Week 17: Sunday, January 3, at the Miami Dolphins, 1 p.m.
- Week 18: TBD vs. New York Jets
Sal Maiorana has covered the Buffalo Bills for four decades, including 37 years as a full-time writer for the D&C, has written numerous books on the team’s history and is also co-host of the podcast/YouTube show BLEAV in Bills. He can be reached at maiorana@gannett.com, and you can follow him on X @salmaiorana and on Bluesky @salmaiorana.bsky.social.
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