The New England Patriots stomped on the Cincinnati Bengals a week ago and carry their momentum to the Meadowlands to face the somewhat humbled New York Jets. This matchup is considered to be a rivalry, but with the Patriots winning 11 of their last 14 meetings, I beg to differ. The only rivalry here is Randy Moss and Darrelle Revis, who some think are the best at their respective positions. Since many around the league think the Jets now own the division, Bill Belichick will have his team ready and try to put the Jets in a nice 0-2 hole. This isn’t to say 0-2 means the season is over, but in a competitive division, it can be a cause for concern. Let’s take a look to see who might come out on top here.

When the Patriots Run: Advantage Jets

The New England Patriots feature a plethora of running backs for various reasons. Kevin Faulk is used mainly as a third-down back, but is the most valuable of the bunch. He is very good in pass protection and can run the screen very well. Fred Taylor and Sammy Morris run between the tackles and eat up yardage to move the chains. Benjarvis Green Ellis doesn’t get much time on the field, but he provides fresh legs when called upon. The bottom line is, none of these guys scare opposing defenses. The Jets’ run defense is clearly one of the better units in the NFL. The loss of nose tackle Kris Jenkins will have an impact, but the Jets still have the advantage here.

When the Jets Run: Advantage Jets

The New York Jets feature Shonn Greene, who had a spectacular postseason last year. He’s not as good as Thomas Jones in my opinion, but he should have a productive year and bounce back from a horrible outing against the Ravens on Monday. Veteran back Ladainian Tomlinson was the primary ball carrier on Monday and raised some eyebrows with his good performance. He is said to have some quickness back in him, and that could be bad for the Patriots defense. The Patriots defense is much faster than in years past, but they’re not amazing at stopping the run.

When the Patriots Pass: Advantage Patriots

The New York Jets have a great defense and have arguably the most talented cornerback in the NFL. However, he was a contract holdout and has a hamstring issue at the moment. Randy Moss wants a new contract, and this could be the game where he makes or breaks himself. We have seen throughout his career how capable he is when motivated, so I feel he’ll get the job done. Antonio Cromartie is one of the best ball-hawking corners, but gets burned a lot too. Wes Welker is baaaaack. He’s wearing a brace, but looked good in week one, hauling in 8 catches for 64 yards and a pair of touchdowns. What makes this Patriots passing attack different from a year ago is that they have a few capable pass-catching tight ends now: Alge Crumpler (who can also block), Rob Gronkowski (red zone target) and Aaron Hernandez, who can stretch the field. The key here will be how well the Patriots offensive line pass protects for Tom Brady, who was barely touched in the win over the Bengals last weekend. If the Jets were smart, they’d put Revis on Welker to shut him down and put Cromartie (with safety help) on Randy Moss, but that isn’t likely to happen.

When the Jets Pass: Advantage Patriots

Carson Palmer did fill up the box score last weekend in New England, but don’t be fooled. The score was 31-3 after Brandon Tate opened the second half with a kickoff return for a touchdown. Carson did a good job padding his stats in case he has a shot at making the Pro Bowl. The young tandem of this year’s first-round pick Devin McCourty and second-round player Darius Butler looks really promising. The safety duo of Brandon Meriweather and Patrick Chung may turn into a problem for opposing defenses as the year unfolds. I am not touting the Patriots pass defense as one of the best in the NFL, because they’re not. I am giving New England the advantage here because Mark Sanchez is terribly mediocre. You can bet the Patriots will attempt to fluster him like they did last year in the second meeting. In that game, Mark never really found his rhythm and threw a few interceptions in a 31-14 loss. The Jets passing attack will be better once Santonio Holmes comes back from suspension, but he’s obviously a nonfactor for tomorrow.

Special Teams: Advantage Patriots

The Patriots had very mediocre special teams a year ago, as it seemed they couldn’t cover or return kickoffs well. Brandon Tate returned a kickoff for a touchdown a week ago and looked promising in the preseason as well. The Pats also feature one of the better kickers in the game, Stephen Gostkowski. The New York Jets have a good kickoff return man as well in Brad Smith. Nick Folk is a decent kicker, but not in the same league as Gostkowski.

Prediction: New England 23, New York Jets 13