N.Y. JETS Playoff Preview vs. COLTS

NEW YORK JETS:  GANG GREEN Takes Flight For a WILD TIME in INDY.

It's time for REX Ryan to stop being this team's propagandist and be The JETS COACH.

Because this is how REX will ultimately be judged; by winning or losing. While the Jets and Colts conduct their business on the field, the spotlight will be shining on him Saturday night.

REX Ryan's giant leap for JETS-Kind starts with a rematch of last year's AFC Championship Game.  Coach Rex and the Jets hope to be the ones doing the eliminating this time around in a Wild Card Round match-up.  Peyton Manning and the Colts ended the Jets' season last year as they fell one game short of making it to the Super Bowl.  For the first half, the Jets made a game of it, but Peyton Manning and the Colts eventually separated themselves in the second half and galloped-off to The Show while REX's Jets stalled in mid-flight.

Then, Jets GM Mike Tannenbaum aggressively brought in players during the off-season and some of those acquisitions were called into question.  As of this moment, none of Tannenbaum's signings have come back to haunt or hurt this team.  Instead, they all helped get the Jets into position for the final push towards Coach Rex Ryan's well advertised Team goal; winning the Super Bowl.  In fact, no Tannenbaum transaction has been more controversial that the Coach himself.  He is seen to be almost willing his team to victory brainwashing them with his bravado.  Coach Rex has charged himself with carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders, and left his team to concentrate on Football.

And so it is, this is not the same team the Colts played last year.  This Jets team will not fade in the 2nd half of the game like they did that last encounter.  They are better equipped to score points this time around because Braylon Edwards was here for the full season, the addition of Santonio Holmes, and Jerricho Cotchery and Dustin Keller complete a cachet of receivers for the still-emerging 2nd year QB Mark Sanchez to use.  If the young QB's shoulder is OK, The Jets should certainly be able to score more than 17 points against the Colts this time..  While on the ground, LaDainian Tomlinson still may have a playoff burst of "LT" in him, but Shonn Greene should be up to the challenge of carrying the load and doing well.

As a matter of fact, the Jets should keep pounding the Colts with Shonn Greene until the Colts prove they can stop him, which I don't think they'll do an adequate job of.  Rex and Schottenheimer should finally unleash their self-celebrated (if now infamous) GROUND and POUND on the Colts.  Run the ball, chew the clock, pick your spots for the deep pass, and keep Peyton off the field.  It's an old formula.  Keep Peyton off the field with the running game and Mark Sanchez won't have to get into a shoot-out with him.  Don't "RELY" on Sanchez to win this for you.  Dictate the game behind a fine Offensive Line and POUND the running game right up the middle; off Tackle.  But hey...that's just me.  Whatever Schottenheimer has in store for the Colts' defense, it should be enough to keep the Jets in a position to win the game, unlike last year's Championship Game.

The problem, as always when playing the Colts, is what to do about Peyton Manning?  The loss of JIM LEONARD may finally prove very costly to the Jets this game.  Against Peyton Manning, the position of Safety becomes a real conundrum for the N.Y. Jets.  It really won't matter who gets stranded on REVIS ISLAND.

We know the Jets' pass rush is lacking and getting their hands on Peyton without Blitzing is improbable.  If you Blitz him, he'll burn you.  He's the type of QB who loves and lives for the Blitz because it makes his life so much more easier.  There's no QB who renders a Blitz DOA better than Peyton.  If you don't Blitz him, he may bleed you in a slow methodical death.  And he does it based on the Safety; Just like REX's Blitz packages are Safety based.  You see what I'm getting at right?

Brodney Pool; Eric Smith; Dwight Lowery; Drew Coleman - You guys had better be on your game and don't let your eyes deceive you.  Football fans know what I mean.

Hey Mike!... What about Revis and Cromartie?!   Well...,  Did you see the Chicago game and how they attacked the Jets?  Did you see the Patriots game?  They attacked the middle of the field and stayed underneath.  Who else is as good as Peyton at neutralizing the Corners after it's already been shown how to attack the Jets Secondary?

One of REX's Safety's is going to have to play at a level he didn't know he could. The kind of help the Jets need against Peyton isn't something for the Linebackers and the Front has shown they can't get to QB's by themselves.

Like I said,  I think the Jets can score enough points to keep the Jets in a position to win the game.  But Rex's SAFETY situation might leak, then burst with too many points and put the Jets in a position to lose.

Yes,  Rex may lose with what he prides himself most with; his Defense.

Here's the good news regarding all that.  Peyton will throw interceptions.  And NOTHING..., nothing has come easy for the Peyton and the oft-injured Colts this year.  They have struggled for every yard gained or defended, and every game they won this season.  I see no reason for things changing for them now.  If they win, they will have to dig and mine deep down for any glory.

For every Blitz, there is a Foil.  The Jets play him Saturday night.  The loser has to go home and explain what went wrong.  That's not that dreadful in Indianapolis, I'd imagine.  But if it turns out to be REX who has to come home and do some 'splaining.....  !Aye Caramba!  He might get turned into the League's and New York City's biggest Pinata.

So, the bottom line here is Rex has to design something Peyton isn't used to seeing.  What?  I have no idea.  I'm not talking about re-inventing the wheel.  I'm just asking for what good coaches do, which is out-coach other coaches.  That is something Coach REX hasn't always done.

But it's something he needs to do now.....For his own sake.



Mike.BTB