N.Y. Jets ~ 2012 Guaranteed to be a Memorable Season

NEW YORK JETS:  Write This In Stone; The 2012 Jets' Season Will Be One of the Most Tumultuous Campaigns in Team History.



Jet Fans, let's get right to the heart of the matter.  The triumvirate of Rex Ryan, Mike Tannenbaum, and Woody Johnson, are turning your team into a circus.



Let's lead off with the Head Coach, shall we?  In just speaking of this last season alone, Rex Ryan remained disconnected from the offensive side of the ball.  He antagonized his "little Brother" and paid a Big Blue price for it late in the season.  Then on the heals of back-to-back AFC Championship appearances, Rex's team failed to make the playoffs for the first time since taking over.  Once the season ended, certain players started airing out their dirty laundry to the Media.  And when questioned about his team's alleged grievances, Rex Ryan denied knowing problems existed amongst his players and pleaded ignorance to any simmering locker room animosities.  It just never occurred to him that his locker room was in dire need of an attitude adjustment.  And to me, that's a failure to capture the pulse of the team.  But how could he, when he himself was involved in a falling out with his offensive coordinator and was constantly jostling with the Media and creating his own controversies?



He remains unaccountable for a team that continues to lose it's identity - an identity (see Ground and Pound) that he never truly established, or, committed to, in the first place.  Over all, what the Jets have achieved so far under Rex has been arrived at more so through his words, than through deeds.



That's the outsiders view.  But I'm a local.  I get Rex Ryan and I like Rex Ryan, even though you folks know I'm a Giants Fan.  None of this should come off as hatin' either.  I understand Rex's in-game, and his methods.  He's cool with me.  But the record speaks for itself, and sometimes you need to be called on the carpet just to keep you honest.  I will say this though - his style has a short life span.  And a General Manager can only exasperate the situation by continually bringing in the wrong kind of players.



Mike Tannenbaum deserves his third-share of blame; if not more.  I believe Mike Tannenbaum bears the most responsibility for last season's disappointment.  And it is precisely because there has been no philosophical consistency from him.  I get no sense he has a coherent plan.  What I see is more of a Fantasy Football approach these last two seasons.  He also strikes me as a swinger.  When Eric Mangini was still coach, Tannenbaum operated with a more conservative and business like tact.  With Rex, Tannenbaum has again taken on his Head Coach's persona; if not in similar fashion to Rex's overt brashness, but through his splashy, risky, yet fearless transactions.



He put together a fine team in 2009, but has literally spent the last two seasons sabotaging it.  More and more he's proving himself to be exactly who Bill Parcells thought he was bringing to the Jets; a CAPologist - and nothing more.  He is nifty with numbers, and is extremely well spoken.  But with each passing season as GM, he's proving himself to be an inadequate team builder.  I say that because I feel he caused this team to take a series of backwards steps.



Somewhere in between Rex Ryan and Mike Tannenbaum lies the curious case of Braylon Edwards. By the time of initial his signing, Tannenbaum was already committed to taking chances on players with a checkered past.  As things worked out, Braylon would have run through walls for Rex in addition to working well with Mark Sanchez.  The Jets then decided Santonio Holmes was who they really wanted.  But with Santonio in, and Braylon, and Jerricho Cotchery out, Peace; Love; and Harmony; left the building.  That, if anything, seems representative of Mike Tannenbaum's plan.  And well, in two short seasons, his transactions have polluted the locker room.  And now the Jets are considering a return of Braylon Edwards again.  That's what you call a circle folks.



Look what the decent from 2009 has done to your quarterback.  Mark Sanchez took major strides backwards last season.  But if you dig a little deeper than just the prevailing opinions about him, you would know so many things around him failed or broke down; to include his offensive coordinator.  But only QB's get blamed.  While everyone is busy dumping on Mark Sanchez, a sub-par offensive line goes largely unspoken about.  And now through their actions, the head Coach and the GM have given every indication they are about to turn on their quarterback.  In football terms, the contract extension the Jets gave Sanchez was more like a kiss of death.  The organization can spin this any way they want.  Mark Sanchez is now walking a tight rope without a net.



Sometimes locker rooms get polluted because you populate them with the wrong kind of people for the wrong reasons.  There's always the business side of Football to contend with.  And that's where the owner comes in.  Many believe Woody Johnson is the instigator of some questionable moves made by the Jets.  After all, he has a brand to sell.  And many think he encourages his organization to conduct it's business in a manner that strikes me as more flamboyant, than fundamental.  Overt attention grabbers and trying to win the back pages of the tabloids are not what winning football teams are made of.  But this is exactly what the Jets are being accused of.  Starved for attention in the shadow of the N.Y. Giants, many accuse Woody Johnson himself for taking the team down this path.



THIS IS THE WORLD....  Tim Tebow is now a part of.  And the fact Rex Ryan, Mike Tannenbaum, nor Woody Johnson were on hand at Tebow's press conference was plainly and simply - negligent; if not laughable.



What starts now is something of a completely different matter.  What dynamics Tim Tebow will, or will not bring to the Jets' offense, remains to be seen.  It is only March, and what we already know is that the Jets' 2012 season will be one of the most tumultuous campaigns in the organization's history.






Mike.BTB

N.Y. JETS ~ REX's JETS get Grounded and Pounded

AFC CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL ~  Pittsburgh Steelers 24;  NEW YORK JETS 19


Bad ROAD TRIP:   Mind If We Dance With Your Dates? 

Not only didn't Otis Day and the Knights not "love" the Jets - They didn't even recognize the Jets when they walked in.  Showing up to that club was a bad idea from the start.  As soon as they walked in, the music stopped and all eyes were on them.  They settled in anyway for what was most likely going to be a very weird night. 

Once the music kicked-up again, one patron made it very clear he didn't want to talk and that he didn't go to college.  Another guy pulled out a switch-blade.  They had their tabled ripped out of the floor in front of them and to top it all off, had their dates taken away from them for a dance with strangers. 

When LEAVING! became the smart thing to do, they smacked up the car, along with a few others in the parking lot, in their attempt to flee and left the girls from Dickinson College behind to walk home alone.

Yes, the night was an unmitigated disaster; we know.


It's over Man; (Big Ben) Dean Wormer dropped the big one!  For Coach Rex Blutarsky and his Green Fraternity, I guess it IS seven years of College down the drain after all.  The Jets wound up tripping over their own marbles - all 10,000 of them.  The DeathMobile was really a Green Edsel in disguise.  And now,  there's no breaking beer bottles over Coach Blutarsky's head trying to cheer-up Flounder and getting him to stop crying about wrecking his brother's '64 Lincoln.

I think BOONE said it best and spoke for all, when he so eloquently said,

"You F%?#ed Up!...You Trusted Us!"


OK - So college was a complete waist of time for everybody, but Man! - wasn't it fun while it lasted?  Many of those characters from the movie all left Faber College behind to lead very different lives, just as free-agency will disperse some of this team's current players.  But the memory of their mayhem never went away and the memory of two great games against the Colts and Pats shouldn't either.  What the Boys achieved in one semester was Classic and something we who saw it, will remember for the rest of our lives.  When the pain subsides from this loss, Jet fans will look back on this season with endearment and acknowledge it for the Classic that IT was.

The horse, the toga party, the Mayor's daughter, the food fight, Dean Wormer's wife...  They were all worth it in the end even if they never got a chance to graduate.  So to Coach Blutarsky and the Boys..., Thanks for a great time.




NEW YORK JETS:  A Final Quiet Flight Home.

With a Better First Half, They Could Have Been
The TITANS of N.Y. Again!

So what happened out there?

Rex elected to defer the Kick-Off as is his custom.

Then, the Steelers proceeded to pounded out massive yardage running the ball and Big Ben capitalized on key downs by rumbling outside the Pocket. The Steelers went on a 9:06 minute drive ending in an opening possession touchdown.  Things went down hill from there for the Jets.  A Mark Sanchez fumble and return for a touchdown by Pittsburgh exacerbated the score and everybody went into halftime with the Steelers leading 24-3. 

The Jets Defense was plagued by poor tackling allowing over 100 yards rushing in the first half alone.  Offensively, the Jets could only gain ONE net positive yard running the ball and could not capitalize on a Big Ben interception.

In the second half, they gained back respectability.  Mark Sanchez, Shonn Greene and the Defense worked to get 16 more points on the scoreboard making the contest a 24-19 affair.  The Defense held the Steelers scoreless in the second half and scored two points of their own with a Safety.

And then the biggest point of contention of the night would be Coach Schottenheimer and what happened at the goal line.  Because after that, the Steelers got the ball back and Big Ben rolled out one final time to get one more first down and secure the win for Pittsburgh.

That's the game, basically in a nut-shell.


Of note is, in spite of a horrible QB Rating, Big Ben had a most remarkable and disruptive game out of the pocket.  He not only ran for yardage, he rolled out and threw accurately on the run and controlled third down for the Steelers.

He dared throwing Darrelle Revis' way, which I thought he would.  And Revis really should have come down with an interception.  But two Big Ben interceptions, in the end, didn't come back and doom the Steelers.  Instead, all his other work outshines the numbers he's credited with in the box-score.

The Steelers' Defensive performance in the second half?  How much of the Jets comeback can be attributed to Pittsburgh sitting on a 24-3 lead?  It's hard to say.  Rex said the Jets made zero half-time adjustments because he thought things would turn around as it was.  Well, they did.  I'd like to think Shonn Greene made a difference and again, Sanchez had a great game.  You can say...If It Weren't For The Fumble-6 and What Went Wrong Down On The Goal Line..., the Steelers' Defense could have potentially blown it also.  So, I do believe the Jets comeback was real and not something the Steelers allowed for the sake of an expiring clock.


BUT, WHAT REALLY HAPPENED OUT THERE?

Well, I'll start with my own Preview: ~ Steel City Showdown.  If you take a second and go through it, it's still what I feel today and now I'm just questioning why Schotty wasn't as aggressive as I think they needed to be.

These teams almost mirrored each other.  I thought both defenses would remain stout, tough and stingy.  I knew Sanchez and Big Ben would be main reasons either team won.  And we all knew both teams would try to impose the running game on each other.  Actually...blah blah blah.  I didn't anticipate the Jets tackling so poorly in the first half and that's as much the reason why they lost as any.  You can point to a myriad of things actually.

You want a short list?

* The Goal Line Stand
* the Roughing the Kicker penalty
* a huge Cotchery drop
* a Mark Sanchez fumble that went for 6 points the other way
* not capitalizing on the first Big Ben INT.
* Pittsburgh rushing for over 100 yards in the first half and the Jets only gaining ONE
* poor first half tackling
* continued devotion and false-hope in LaDainian Tomlinson and not pounding with Shonn Greene
* not one pass to Braylon Edwards for nearly the first three quarters of the game
* etc  etc

** But they did hold the Steelers scoreless in the second half.

Here's the real point I want to bring out of my Preview.  I thought the Jets needed to take numerous chances down field in order to shake loose the running game for them. 

Here's some of what I said in my preview:

"And now, against the Steelers, Mark Sanchez has to win a game for the Jets by his lonesome. Mark and his Receivers will become the focal point of the Jets Offense because I think the Steelers will hold true, and limit the Jets' running game to low yardage. Mark is going to be responsible for managing 1st and 3rd downs while they try and squeeze something out of their running game. This is not to say they shouldn't be trying to enforce the run-first tact, but I do think they'll be managed.

So how do you combat the Steelers defense?  Well, they are very aggressive.  So I say you meet it with aggression.  I say be bold.  You have to make then back off the run other wise they will take it away from the Jets and tee-off on Sanchez.

I think Schotty is going to have to get a little West Coast on Pittsburgh.  Use the Steelers' aggression against them.  Screen passes, draw plays, scatter-passes to Shonn Greene out of the back-field, and a whole bunch of slant and crossing patterns.  But I really think Schotty and Sanchez need to take a lot of chances over the top. As a matter of fact, the very first play the Jets have from scrimmage should be "The Bomb".  Honest!  I would take multiple gambles going over the top.  That's what you're going to have to do if the Jets want to shake their running game loose.  Then hopefully by the 2nd half, the running game can find some daylight and run with power.

.....So, against the Steelers, this Offense may have to get out of it's element.  What Jet fans can hope for is that Schotty's play sheet has everything on it that Mark does best and that a few of those plays find their way.  Because even though the Jets beat the Steelers in the regular season, remember two points came on a Safety and another touchdown was scored on a kick-return. So, Mark Sanchez will have to engineer more than 13-points this time around.

........On Offense, Nothing Ventured; Nothing Gained.  If I'm Rex I'm playing this game ultra-aggressively.  This is for the AFC Championship. Rex wants to win this time.  The Team wants to win this time. Their fans want them to win this time.

So I say TAKE IT! I say try and overwhelm them. I say launch a couple a balls deep early, and see if Braylon Edwards or Holmes can pull down a pass and inflict an early body blow. Because that's the way this has to be.   It has to hurt. The Jets need to make the Steelers think about something else other than the run......"

Well, that's what I said.  That's how they scored on Holmes' touchdown.  They tried only a few down-field passes in the first half.  Braylon Edwards I believe blew a route on one of them but more glaring is the fact he didn't have a reception for most of the first three quarters of the game.  But Coach Schottenheimer never really gave the deep threat a chance while the play was there waiting for them all night!  The Steelers secondary isn't great aside from that guy with a lot of hair.  And so what happened?  The Steelers took the run away from the Jets allowing them ONE yard rushing in the 1st half and they tee-d of on Sanchez causing a fumble-6.  Coach Schottenheimer didn't do enough to make the Steelers' defense think differently.  He needed to be more aggressive and pick on their corners with deep passes.  Why else did Mike Tannenbaum bring in Braylon Edwards and Santonio Holmes in the first place?  This was supposed to be the game where they improved upon the Offensive disappearance in last years' Championship game.  This was the game; not any other before this!

Then, there was The Goal-Line Stand.  Again, I believe Coach Schottenheimer got it all wrong.  Of course he got it all wrong.  People in Mongolia knew he got it wrong.  Every unborn Jet Fan will come to learn how wrong he got four plays that ran his team into the ground and kept them out of the Super Bowl.  Say what you will about the first half.  Yes it went bad, but too often we are reminded it's not how you start; it's how you finish.  Ask the Giants for a lesson in that (See Eagles). 

Why did this team and Coordinator rely so heavily on LaDainian Tomlinson based on greatness from years gone by?  Shonn Greene has been the young legs propelling the Jets running game ever since LT began to disappear mid-way through the season.  He should have been featured, not only in the first half, but on the goal-line hand-off that went to LT instead.  There were for downs, one yard, three feet and Glory to go.  Shonn Greene should have been choice one, two, three and four.  But Coach Schottenheimer elected to hand the ball off to someone who once upon a time would have flown over the pile, but this time couldn't use his walking cane to pole-vault onto a sidewalk.  Do we have to rehash the two pass calls?  Let's not, right?

Execution during the most critical, crucial moments of a game is the mark of a Champion.  But even great players need help.  Winners are still needy of a Coach putting them into position where-by they can make greatness transpire on the field.  Sanchez had himself a great day regardless of his coach and in that critical time, the QB needed and demanded more and better from his Coordinator.

Brian Schottenheimer didn't do that.  Instead, during those critical four downs near the goal line, I felt, I observed, someone who operated with a complete lack of urgency and didn't rise up to the challenge of the moment.  The play selection is a wholly different matter for which he deserves his very well deserved criticism.

I'm not a Jets fan so I'm perhaps not qualified to fan-dump someone's job.  But I do know you Jet fans have been complaining for years about this guy.  He drives you as crazy as Kevin Gilbride does me...and I don't blame you.



And what to make of the season now?

There's alot of opinions about players, Rex and the season to occupy space with.  Maybe a lot of that gets dealt with in the future. 

For now, I'll leave it at this:

If the Jets had not beaten the Colts in the first playoff game, Coach Rex and the Jets would have been pointed at, laughed at, ridiculed and mocked.  A decades' worth of new jokes and immature, but funny ways to manipulate J-E-T-S would have been arming a new generation of 13-year-olds' ridicule towards the team to use against their friends for a decade to come.

Had they lost to the Patriots, their fortitude would have been questioned; everything would have been questioned.  They, the verbal participants of Trash Talk Week, would have gotten destroyed by the media.  As a matter of fact, the whole thing would have been a complete disaster.  We'd still be sheltering ourselves from the fall-out.  A comprehensive, all-out media Blitz would have be brought upon JetsNation with a loss in Foxborough.

And now that the Playoff run has ended with a loss to the Steelers, I just want to reach into my pocket, pull out a pack of candy Life-Savers, and offer you one.  There's nothing to be embarrassed about.  No one should be receiving any more criticism than the routine Blah Blah blah...that usually follows a season that doesn't end with a Super Bowl.

Don't be so hard on yourselves.  Being in the Final Four is fun and the ride was great.  Sports, after-all, are more about failure, than anything else.



Mike.BTB

N.Y. JETS ~ Return to Foxborough - Rematch vs. Patriots

NEW YORK JETS:  It's Time To Pay "The BILL".

Bill Belichick is a Football Marxist in a hoodie.  He controls the means of Patriots' production and play distribution like a Pigskin Socialist.  Players who's contract situations or attitudes that become hindrances, disappear.  There is one master plan and you are free to follow it and contribute towards the benefit of the whole.  Play to your capabilities, and reap what you need.  The second you stray from the plan and rebel against uniformity will be the next time you wake up without having to put on a Patriots' Jersey for a living.


It will be Coach Belichick who will be the first one to recognize if the Jets came to play.  He'll know right away whether or not Rex brought enough cash to stack chips high enough to last the night, or if he spent all his money during the week like a drunken sailor on shore leave.


But, Bill Belichick also knows teams that refuse to stay down and continue to linger around are a problem.  He knows when teams have had everything thrown at them, to include the kitchen sink, and remain resilient and unfazed by adversity, those teams are hell to face.  Even after beating the Jets 45-3 the last time these two teams met in Foxborough, Bill Belichick knows, someone who repeatedly gets up after being knocked down never ceases being formidable, and become an even more dangerous opponent because they are numb to the pain and spit in the face of conventional wisdom. 

Bill Belichick knows more about Defying The Odds than just about anyone in Football today.  So he knows exactly where Rex Ryan is coming from.

Obviously, Coach Rex disturbed the hornets nest with the continued jabs he chose to take at his opponents. Aside from knowing a thing or two about Defense, as the Jets' Head Coach, running his mouth is what he does best.  I don't know why, but then again, he is Buddy Ryan's son.  Buddy Ryan once punched his own team's Offensive Coordinator in the face while on the sidelines during a TENN Titans game on Monday Night Football.  This apple didn't just fall and stay close to the tree.  Rex fell out of the sky like a piano and cracked the sidewalk.  Nothing about him is subtle and eveything that comes from Rex is big.  While it's unlikely Rex will take a page from his Pop's playbook and punch Belichick in the face, Coach Rex is like Bill Belichick in this regard; they were both born to work in Football and they both know how to make their teams jump in front of buses for them.  Rex, like Belichick, as an infant, pooped Football shaped pellets, but just in a much bigger diaper.  They are both Defensive minded coaches.  That's their background and forte'. They may both have had trouble in grade school grasping simple things like the alphabet, because all they know or care about are X's and O's.


Here's where the Coaches diverge.  It's all about Supply and Demand.  Coach Rex supplies his team with an environment he feels they can prosper in.  Coach Belichick demands every player adhere to a prosperous formula.

OK...,So Rex wrote a bunch of checks he asked his team to back; Big deal.  Players like to be put in that position by someone they like.  But a problem arose when the players joined the frenzy and started writing their own checks.  Who was backing them?  Does that sound familiar America?

Bill the Socialist, meet Rex the Capitalist.

Some would argue, economically, uncovered debt and deficit spending is the stimulus that allowed this country to become a dominant economic power among other things.  But there's another side of Capitalism; a darker more treacherous side.  The Jets have everyone asking if they're writing checks their butts can't cash?  Their leverage is all leveraged out.  Now they are, what they refer to as being Naked on the Street.  All kinds of uncovered and naked debt is what triggered the Great Financial Crash of '29 and the Depression that followed.  If the Jets aren't very careful, that's just the way they may find themselves Sunday night; Naked in the Street.

By 8pm Sunday evening, there's going to be a margin call and the big question is who's getting stuck with THE BILL?  Will Coach Rex's and his player's checks bounce and send JetsNation crashing into a state of Depression?  Or will Coach Belichick have to eat this one and just get to write it off as a LOSS to the State?



NEW YORK JETS:  The Time For Talking Has Ended;
LET'S GET IT ON!!!

While the other six teams participating in this weekend's playoff games spent their time practicing and preparing, the Jets and Patriots have been fighting it out all week, not bothering to wait for Sunday like two angry brothers at a Pub, who stopped in to tilt-back a few on their way to a fight.  Sunday afternoon's game will merely be the TV portion of this on-going scrap.

It wasn't only Rex talking.  Of course there was Antonio Cromartie's poetic words, but Wes Welker joined in.  Coach Belichick even offered a joke or two on the home-town radio shows.  Tom Brady had something to say as did Nick Mangold.  They've all done it.  If not this time, for sure during a time in the past someone from either side was always saying something (or pointing).  The only good that can come out of this, with all the Hot-Air blowing around, is the chances of snow up in Foxborough will be low. 

Hopefully, at some point during all the name-calling, bickering, cat-fighting, and trash talking, a Football Game will break out and all debts will be settled once and for all.


When The N.Y. JETS Are On Offense:

MARK SANCHEZ does not need to win this game for the Jets.  But he has to help and he can't blow it.  He WILL have to play Sunday like he has never played before in Foxborough however; and that would mean playing WELL.  He's played there twice in his short career and has 1 touchdown and 7 interceptions worth of memories to show for it.

How is that shoulder?  His passes have been off, wide, and high for a few weeks.  Mark Sanchez could always throw the long pass well.  With short throws, he's OK too.  His middle range pass has always been suspect.  The aching shoulder may be exasperating that fact.  But he was already predisposed to the problem.  That's Coach Schotty's problem to contend with, and for him to game-plan around.

Ideally, if the Jets play this right, Sanchez won't have to throw too often.  But it's crucial he be accurate with his passes none-the-less.  Completions, to the correct jerseys, are paramount.  Accuracy and completions are task number one for Mark this Sunday.  He doesn't need to be concerned with the big play.  What's needed from him is accuracy and completions for 1st downs!  The Jets' ability to gain 1st downs against the Patriots Defense will help keep the Jets offense on the field; the Jets defense off the field; and the ball out of Tom Brady's hands.  The Jets ability to gain 1st downs, especially late in the game, will go a long way towards determining if the Jets win or not.  The Jets failed to gain a 1st down late against the Colts with two consecutive three-and-outs, that almost cost them their season.

If the Big Play presents itself, then fine; you take your chances.  In the NFL.., Nothing Ventured; Nothing Gained.  But 1st downs will be the name of the game, and that means Dustin Keller and Shonn Greene must be targets off the line in Keller's case, and out of the backfield in Shonn's.  Those two will open up opportunities for Holmes and Edwards to make a big play.  But the Jets must be patient with their possessions and concentrate on 1st downs.

But what Mark Sanchez really needs to be, is complimentary to the Run Game.

Peyton Manning had two chances with the ball in the second half; TWO.  The Jets had three substantial drives versus INDY.  Their quality first-half first drive was short circuited by an interception.  But two more time consuming, Ground and Pound drives in the 2nd half were directly responsible for limiting Peyton's playing time.  One drive in particular lasted 17 plays and took 9:54 off the clock.  LaDainian Tomlinson scored two touchdowns to cap off those drives against the Colts.

The Jets must do this again.  They must commit to the running game and be patient with it.  Shonn Greene should be leading the rush.  Shonn Greene left; Shonn Greene right; Shonn; Shonn; Shonn; all night long.
Let LT give Greene a break from time to time.  But Shonn Greene must be the man rushing the ball and he must be utilized out of the backfield considerably if the Jets are to hold on to the ball.  They can do it behind a fine Offensive Line who really should be able to push a smaller Patriots' Front, backwards.

The Tight-End and the Running Game can make sweet music together if you know how to play 'em.  During half-time of the INDY game, I think Coach REX finally took a firm grip around Coach Schotty's "game-plan" and forced him to sell out with the Run.  Coach Rex is an Old Hand, and he knows the tune well.  Coach Rex wants to DJ this Boston Rave using the Run Game, but even he knows, Mark Sanchez still has to help out with the Mix.

If Sanchez stays patient, and sticks with the dump-offs to Greene and finding Dustin Keller, the Big Play will come screaming his name.  Then, it will be up to Sanchez to capitalize.  The opportunity will present itself where Braylon Edwards or Santonio Homes can come up big for the Jets; but they need to do it exercising patience.

Don't forget and more importantly, don't repeat the futility with how the Jets started the game against the Pats last time; by trying to open with a No-Huddle scheme.  Coach Rex recognizes the mistakes he made going into and during their last encounter.  He said himself, he's through trying to fool people after the Colts game.  From now on he's just going to line up his guys and try to be stronger than the other team.  That's something that maybe even Bill Belichick can't over-come or out-coach.  Getting man-handled is a state-of-mind.  And Coach Rex has his guys in a lather.  If the Jets can prevent themselves from getting out-technique'd and out-thunk...., if they get primitive, so to say, I think they have a chance to actually smack them around a little bit, behind their Offensive Line (even with the loss of Woody).

Of course, no turnovers, no penalties...Blah, Blah.  Sell-out with the Run; hit your Tight End and let the big play come to you.  It's up to Coach Schottenheimer to set up Mark Sanchez correctly.  But it's up to the Offensive Line and Shonn Greene to control the clock.  Run to Daylight!  For this game, the Jets best defense against Tom Brady is their Offense and it's ability to stay on the field.


When The N.Y. JETS Are On Defense:

With no Jenkins and no Leonard, the Jets' interior is akin to a shark's Soft White Under-Belly.  Bill Belichick and Tom Brady avoided the tooth of the shark (Darelle Revis) and attacked their soft belly the last time they met at Foxborough.  Rex's team was gutted and filleted 45-3.  The Patriots attacked the Jets, and in particular their Safety's with Tight-Ends, Slot-Receivers and a running game that kept them off balance all night long.  There is absolutely no reason for the Patriots to stop picking on the Safety's now.  That means Brodney Poole's name will be mentioned a lot Sunday.

But what was most damaging to the Jets in that 45-3 drubbing was falling behind too early and by too many points.  If the Jets fall behind early again and have to play from behind over the last three quarters, then all the best laid plans will go to waste.  I think they can still afford to be patient with the running game while managing a 7 point deficit.  Anything more, and they will be in big trouble.

The Patriots haven't lost at home since...the Bush Administration?  In order to change that, the Offense will have to stay on the field, but on Defense, the Jets will have to make stops.  Tom Brady and the Patriots will score at some point.  The Jets just need to make him a little less successful that normal.  If the Offense can keep the ball out of Brady's hands and the Defense can make some critical stops, the fourth quarter might present the Jets with a chance for victory.

The Pass Rush the Jets lack?  Well, they're not going to find one now.  With Brady's three-step drops, you really have to be clever if you blitz him.  So, To Blitz or Not Top Blitz?  That is the question.

If you blitz him from the outside, it just takes too long to get there with three-step drops.  And quite honestly, I don't think they should commit anyone from the Secondary to the Blitz.  The Blitz will have to come from the Linebackers, and it needs to come up the middle where the rush gets to him quickest.  I think the Jets should disguise, but then rush only two and three after Brady.  Let 8 defenders cover and punish receivers.  It's a ploy right out of Belichick's play-book.  Every Patriot receiver (Welker) must be punished for going across the middle.  Period.  Getting your hands on Brady is a tough task, so Plan-B should be to pound the receivers instead.  The Jets need to trust the one-on-one coverage and protect the middle of the field.  They can do it with less pass-rush.

This is another area where Coach Rex's team can really exert some brutish physicality upon the Patriots Offense.  Disrupting the passing game and being mindful of the run, just might clear a path to Tom Brady himself.  If the Jets can plant a seed into New England Receivers crossing over the middle, how does Bill Belichick out-coach that?

Tom Brady hasn't thrown an interception since....Prohibition?  He's thrown four interceptions all season and two of them came against the Jets in Week 2.  That's something to believe in I guess.  But don't count on it.  Instead, if he notices there's no pass rush, he may do something foolish, like run, and present the Jets Defense an opportunity to pound him in the open field (I'm trying here...OK?).

Maybe not.  But like I said, protect the middle of the field and MAKE TACKLES.  They will make catches.  Just limit their yards-after-catch with good tackles.  If Revis and Cromartie are great tomorrow, maybe the guys in the middle can keep that soft white under belly protected.

Don't count on turnovers.  Just make stops..



Etcetera...

If the Jets' Special Teams can keep giving them the effort and results they've been supplying, it would be a huge bonus.  They will need it!  They will need excellent punting.  You just can't give the Patriots good field position.  If they can manage to score points on Defense, even better.  Use your Challenges wisely and don't trip anybody on the sidelines.


FINAL WORD:

Mike Tannenbaum built this team to win now.  Their ultimate moment will be upon them Sunday afternoon.  The Coach he hired isn't afraid to fail.  That's a trait of great coaches and great players.  I'm not calling anybody great.  But I know Rex isn't afraid to fail.  Coach Rex has generated a lot of heat since he took over as Head Coach, and maybe just enough to burn the Patriots for a day.  That's all Coach Rex said he's looking for; A Day.  He wants to be better than Belichick for one day.  It's not far fetched.  The guy knows Football.

The REX DAY is the same as Tannenbaum's NOW.  With a Jets loss, there will be that problem of some bounced checks and a lot of explaining to do by both the GM and Head Coach.  The Media might be just a tad bit more forgiving because they weren't an in-and-done team.  It still will be rough going though.  And if the Jets lose miserably, well, then...., there's going to be Hell to Pay as Rex will be viewed as having stepped in his own mess.

For the Jets, there's an awful lot riding on this game.  The aftermath of a Jet loss can be brutal for them and especially Coach Rex.  However, on the other side of Doom, a Jets' win can be glorious and Green.



P.S. - I'm still witholding my pick till tomorrow because I just don't know yet.

Saturday's Line Is:
PATRIOTS -8 1/2 Jets



MORE:
http://thebrooklyntrolleyblogger.blogspot.com/2011/01/nyjets-rexs-plan-calls-for-brute-force.html
http://thebrooklyntrolleyblogger.blogspot.com/2011/01/ny-jets-rex-vs-belichick-iii-its.html
http://thebrooklyntrolleyblogger.blogspot.com/2011/01/ny-jets-rex-gives-indy-nag-boot.html
http://thebrooklyntrolleyblogger.blogspot.com/2011/01/ny-jets-what-makes-coach-rex-smile.html




MIke.BTB

N.Y. JETS ~ What Makes Coach Rex Smile

NEW YORK JETS ~ TAKE ONE:

This was an old fashioned school yard fight.  What a great game.  And for Coach Rex, the perfect "finish".


The only thing missing from this game was the visible clash of huffing and puffing cold breath being snorted-out the nostrils of opposing Linemen at the line of scrimmage and perhaps some snow falling from the sky.  The Drum..as they call Indy's downtown Stadium, would provide no such backdrop for this Wild Winter Melee.  But after the first quarter we all new exactly what kind of game this was going to be.  We were all in for one serious Stone Cold Affair.  So maybe a burning Oil Drum was the perfect place for this street fight after all.

At the 5:25 mark of the second quarter, Peyton Manning finally drew First Blood.  He connected with Pierre Garcon on a 57 yard touchdown.  Jet Safety Brodney Poole blew coverage and Antonio Cromartie never had a chance keeping up with the play.

The Jets would go into halftime suffering the only serious blow struck by either team, behind 7-0.

The Jets opened the second half having made adjustments.  In the second quarter they got stymied by a Sanchez INT during a mounting 60 yard drive.  So, they decided counter-punching would be their preferred method of fighting playing this fight game over the last thirty minutes.  They opened the third quarter by doubling and tripling up on the jab...I mean, run.  After 5 minutes and 12 seconds and a series of flurries, the Jets fought through 10 plays good for 63 yards on their way to scoring the Jets first knockout touchdown of the game.

JETS 7;  COLTS 7  9:48 left in the fight game.

The Jets kept Peyton Manning guessing and so Adam Vinatieri showed up to implement Plan B for the COLTS.  At 4:53 of the third quarter, he put the COLTS up by three.

COLTS 10;  JETS 7.

The Jets went into counter-punch mode again.  For the next NINE MINUTES and Fifty-Four seconds, the Jets threw left jabs and hooks, upper-cuts and combinations, POUNDING AND GROUNDING the COLTS' Defense with seventeen plays for eighty-seven yards, before LT knocked the COLTS down for the second time of the night with a Straight Right.

When the bell rang ending that round, the judge's scorecard scoreboard said 14-10 JETS, with 9:48 left in the fight game.

Somewhere around the 7th minute of the fourth quarter, Peyton Manning picked on Antonio Cromartie again, burning him on a third-and-eight conversion that took INDY to the Jets' 18 yard line.  But the Jets' defense held firm again as Brodney Poole continued to tighten up his game with good solo tackles.

With 4:37 left in the fight game, Adam PLAN B Vinatieri chipped another three points off the Jets lead.

JETS 14;  COLTS 13.

With 2:57 left, I thought the Jets had fallen for the Ol' Rope-A-Dope.  They failed to control their next possession and were faced with a three-and-out PUNT.  One of my pet-peeves is a team's inability to secure 1st downs late in games when you need them most.  It now failed the Jets and left them exposed for a Peyton Manning KNOCKOUT comeback.  But from somewhere, somebody, something, sprinkled magic dust on the moment and the COLTS were called for a Roughing the Kicker giving the Jets a new set of downs.

First Down and Ten became Second Down and Eight.  That became Third Down and Five.  The Colts called for their second Time-Out when the clock hit 2:51.  Two minutes, fifty-one seconds and a first down on their next play were all that stood in the way of the Jets wrapping up this return grudge match against the Colts.

Mark Sanchez took the next snap from Center and lofted The School Yard Bomb Braylon Edwards' way.  The play was there but the pass was over-thrown, like many passes that missed their Mark this game.  The Barometric Pressure over New York City dropped like a piano out of the sky when JETSNation collectively gasped, "Oh NO!" because they were about to go three-and-out again!

This time there was a punt without the Miracle Penalty Flag thrown in.

The JETS were left with this:
* Indianapolis ball at their own 20 yard line.
* Peyton Manning.
* 2:36 left in the game.
* Colts have one Time-Out left and the two Minute Warning.
* Plan B sitting on the sidelines.
* The Jets one point lead.


Ladies and Gentlemen, What you are about to read are the accounts of a SAD FINISH as they played out on the field in Indianapolis.

2:36 left in the game ~ INDY Ball.
Peyton Manning pass ~ 15 yards to own 35 yard line.
Peyton Manning pass ~ 10 yards to own 45 yard line.
Run ~ 6 yard gain.
TWO MINUTE WARNING
2nd down and 6 to go; Peyton Manning pass to NYJ 36 yard line.
Two yard run to NYJ 34 yard line.
Two yard PASS to NYJ 32 yard line.
1:27 left in the game.
Third down and six to go represents roughly a 50 yard Field Goal.
JETS Call TIME-OUT.
Third down and six at NYJ 32 yard line; Peyton Manning pass attempt ~ Incomplete.
FOURTH DOWN   0:57 left in game.
Plan B ~ Adam Vinatieri, attempts a 50 yard field goal on fourth down and NAILS IT!...right down the middle with 0.53 left on the clock.  The score ~ COLTS 16;  JETS 14.

If you're into tear-jerkers, there it is; Read it and weep.  Find the door that says SAME OLD JETS  and walk through it.  Don't let it swing back and hit you in the ass on the way out because that's REX's job; to stick his FOOT where the sun don't shine!

For the rest of you, the game's NYJ beleaguered player, Antonio Cromartie received the Colts' kick-off and returned it all the way back to the NYJ 46 yard line.  On first-and-ten, Sanchez passed for 9 yards to Edwards.  The play went under review for a completion/fumble.  Before the review, Coach Rex called a Time-Out he was subsequently charged with.

On second-and-one, Mark Sanchez passed the Jets to the Colts' 34 yard line.  With 0:29 left, LT ran for two more yards and INDY called for a Time-Out.  At this point the NYJ were faced with their own 50 yard field goal attempt.

On second down and eight, Mark Sanchez hit Braylon Edwards again for an 18 yard gain down to the Colts 14 yard line.  The Jets called for their last Time-Out with 0.03 left on the clock.

Coach Rex called upon his own PLAN B; Nick Folk, to stick his FOOT into that Pigskin and send the Jets off to New England.  Nick Folk obliged.  He nailed a 32 yard field goal to win the Game for the Jets.  And when this Classic FIGHT game was over, while everyone at ringside was rushing in the ring, everyone in Rex's corner had their arms and hands raised high in triumph.

.....And for this Coach, who ran off the field on the buoyant strength of Both Feet?   He was last seen smiling from ear to ear because at the end of an exhaustive week,  Coach Rex the Freak likes to enjoy a very HAPPY ENDING.

That's REX;  he likes to Crush A'lot.



Mike.BTB