Football Jets

We have to keep telling ourselves Mark Sanchez is just a rookie.

The problem is we were so caught up in the USC quarterback hype, the out of the gate 3 game win streak and the Sanchise that we seemed to have forgotten that Mark was just a rookie. Sanchez started just one season at USC. Basically he lacks experience and his learning on the job is giving him the experience he needs.

But wow, after that third game the defense and the running game made all of Jets Nation think that maybe, just maybe the stars were aligned and the Jets were going to do something special this season. Amazing things happen in sports all the time, and it just seemed like this was the Jets time.

At 4-6 and with Mark throwing 4 more interceptions against the New England Patriots this is obvious not the Jets time.

The New York Jets have to win football games. On Sunday they again found themselves playing catch-up and lost to the Jacksonville Jaguars 24-22 at home. This difficult loss to swallow against a very average NFL team puts the Jets record at 4-5 and really diminishes any playoff aspirations for the team.

With only four wins and seven games remaining, the Jets will likely need to go what is seeminly improbable 6-1 the rest of the way to get to 10 wins which possibly would be enough to make the playoffs as a wild card. This game on Sunday was tough, as Quarterback Mark Sanchez orchestrated a go ahead touchdown late in the fourth quarter to take the lead. The defense, which started the game very slow but was starting to produce results in the second half were unable to stop the Jaguars on their final drive. Big play after big play the Jaguars marched down the field. At the end was a Maurice Jones-Drew rush that looked like an easy touchdown run but he intelligently and unselfishly took a knee at the one yard line. By doing so, the Jaguars were able to drain the last couple minutes of the clock before kicking the chip shot go-ahead field goal as time expired. The brilliant heads up play prevented Sanchez from getting another opportunity.

This loss hurts and without going into details about how the Jets squandered opportunities within the game to get a must needed win Football Jets wants to cry.

But that is too late as Jets Head Coach Rex Ryan has already been crying about the game and the team. In front of the entire team during the morning meeting following this loss Rex Ryan had an emotional moment that brought him to tears. Ryan thinks the Jets are much better than their 4-5 record and the 5 losses over the last 6 games against mostly very average  opponents. Ryan will need to save any hope for the playoffs by going to New England and facing Bill Belichick, Tom Brady and a fan base which is still spinning from the Sunday night meltdown by the coach and team against the undefeated Indianapolis Colts. The decision to go for it on their own 28, up by 6 points and with just a couple of minutes remaining was hugely controversial and in my honest opinion borderline idiotic.

A two score lead was not enough for the New England Patriots to beat the upstart Denver Broncos. The ex-assistant coach under Belichick made his old master his bitch by winning the game. Broncos Coach Josh McDaniel then proceeded to celebrate by Incredible Hulk style ripping off his shirt and jubilantly giving high-fives to the entire locker room. Almost Jets Coach Rex Ryan-esque energy, enthusiasm, cockiness, and trash talking abilities. This was obviously not just another game.

Josh McDaniel Celebrates Beating Bill Belichick

Meanwhile, the old Bill Belichick put on that usual scour as he ran off the field after the overtime field goal by the Broncos sailed through the upright to the delight of a huge crowd in Colorado. You know he was pissed that Quarterback Kyle Orton outplayed Tom Brady. You know he was pissed his one time prodigy Coach McDaniel just beat him on national television. You know he was pissed the Jets can take a lead in the AFC East Division by beating the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football.

In other related news of AFC East foes struggling: The Buffalo Bills lost a game 6-3. Three points is a pretty piss poor performance, expect Terrell Owens not to be smiling anytime soon and his mouth to begin singing at any moment.

Rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez has been great and probably will be great for a number of years for the New York Jets. He just wasn’t great on this particular Sunday. Three interceptions and a fumble doomed the Jets against the New Orleans Saints.

The Jets played good enough to win (if you don’t count the turnovers). New Orleans high powered offense came to a crashing halt against he fearsome defense of the New York Jets. Drew Brees who usually throws for over 300 yards in his sleep met his match on Sunday, scraping by to manage only 190 yards passing and no passing touchdowns. The offensive juggernaut of the Saints was held to just one field goal through the first three quarters. The Saints had scored an average of 40 points the first three games. On Sunday they only scored 24. And most of those 24 points were gifts.

Mark Sanchez made the worst quarterback mistake, throwing an interception in the red zone that is returned for a touchdown. A 99 yard touchdown interception return that put the Jets in an early hole.

The defense made two 4th down stands. One of which was on the goal line which kept the score close. Until Mark Sanchez made another terrible quarterback mistake. A fumble in the end zone that was recovered by New Orleans for another touchdown. Another gift that put the Jets in a deeper hole.

However, the Jets made a game of it in the second half, after Mark Sanchez led a drive down the field which was finished by a Thomas Jones 15 yard rush up the middle through an outstanding hole created by one of the NFL’s best offensive lines. The Jets again stopped Drew Brees and got the ball back with a chance to tie but couldn’t get it done on their next drive. The Saints offense finally got going and they drove down the field for a Pierre Thomas 1 yard touchdown run, the Saints only offensive touchdown of the game.

The Jets 24-10 loss to the New Orleans Saints leaves them at 3-1, tied for the best record in the division with New England. New England beat the undefeated Baltimore Ravens following a win against the Atlanta Falcons. Despite reports that New England might be down, it appears that Tom Brady and Bill Belichick have other plans. The Miami Dolphins won their first game against division rival Buffalo Bills. Both of these teams at 1-3 appear to be playing for draft position, apparently leaving just the Jets and Patriots to fight for the division crown.

At Miami on Monday night is the next game for the Football Jets. We need to get our offense going as our defense should be able to stop the Wildcat offense led by backup quarterback Chad Henne who replaced ex-quarterback Chad Pennington following another season ending shoulder surgery.

Lets Go Jets.

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2009 NFL season starts today with the defending Superbowl Champion Pittsburgh Steelers playing the Tennessee Titans. The New York Football Jets open their season on Sunday at the Houston Texans.

Football Jets would like to make some fearless predictions that hopefully won’t be so wrong I will still have some credibility left after the season.

In the AFC, the Pittsburgh Steelers, New England Patriots, San Diego Chargers and the Indianapolis Colts appear to be the teams on top of their respective divisions come playoff time. For the wild card, the New York Jets will join the Tennessee Titans.

In the NFC, the New York Giants, Minnesota Vikings, Arizona Cardinals, and the New Orleans Saints are my season predictions for winning their respective divisions. Joining them in the playoffs I predict will be wild card teams the Philadelphia Eagles and the Chicago Bears.

That leaves out some serious contenders like the Seattle Seahawks, Dallas Cowboys, Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, Green Bay Packers, Houston Texans, Baltimore Ravens and the Miami Dolphins.

Playoff predictions are tough, but lets go with the San Diego Chargers upsetting the Pittsburgh Steelers after beating the New England Patriots and the New York Jets rolling over the Indianapolis Colts after beating the Tennessee Titans. The New York Jets would have to win another difficult road game in San Diego, but beating the Chargers in the playoffs is something the Jets have done before.

In the NFC, the New York Giants take out the Arizona Cardinals before losing to the Minnesota Vikings. The New Orleans Saints offense takes out the Chicago Bears defense and then shocks the world with a win in Philadelphia. The Vikings prove to strong for the Saints on both sides of the ball and advance to the Superbowl.

Minnesota Vikings verse the New York Jets. In an amazing year for rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez, the New York Jets somehow pull out a victory over Brett Favre and company in one of the greatest Superbowls in history.