Jets News 11-10

flgreen · November 10, 2011

Jets ‘D’ wary of struggling Patriots

JIM ROGASH/GETTY IMAGES

Tom Brady had three turnovers against the Giants.

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KRISTIAN DYER

NEW YORK

Published: November 09, 2011 7:56 p.m.

Last modified: November 09, 2011 8:04 p.m.

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With Peyton Manning out for the season with a neck injury, Jets head coach Rex Ryan called the Patriots Tom Brady the best quarterback in the league. But as good as Brady is, he’s still having a down year.

Over the past three games — two of them New England losses — Brady has thrown four interceptions and been sacked eight times.

New York is smelling blood and the target they’re circling is Brady.

“They spread you out; they’re real disciplined,” Jets cornerback Kyle Wilson said. “When a guy’s not doing their job, that’s exactly where they’re going to hit. We got to understand match-ups, because that’s a big aspect of the game for New England.”

There is frustration in Foxboro as they try to pinpoint why Brady is tossing so many more interceptions. Last season, he was picked off just four times. This year, that number is already at 10.

“I think you can look at each play and obviously there’s something that went wrong. A couple balls have been tipped, a couple balls I’m sure he’d like to have back. I’d say for the most part, I think he’s throwing to the right guy,” Patriots head coach Bill Belichick said.

The Jets made Brady look very ordinary in the divisional playoff game last year, completing 29 of his 45 passes for “just” 299 yards.

Brady was sacked five times in that game, a far cry from his effort in a Week 13 blowout win over the Jets when he completed 74 percent of his passes and had four touchdowns. He was flawless that night, but rather ordinary in the playoffs.

“It really just came down to communication, everybody being on the same page, doing their job. The first time up there, we didn’t play some things — technique — as well as we should have,” Wilson said. “[This time] everybody is going to know where they need to be.”

flgreen · November 10, 2011

Jets Rediscover Their Center

By BEN SHPIGEL

Published: November 9, 2011

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Many interviews with Nick Mangold begin with a smile and some sarcasm, and so it was on Wednesday afternoon when he was asked how his right ankle felt.

Bill Kostroun/Associated Press

Nick Mangold has been the center for 43 of Mark Sanchez's 45 starts.

The latest news, notes and analysis of the N.F.L. playoffs.

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“Good, thank you,” he said, tilting his head and narrowing his eyes to show interest. “How’s yours?”

Just fine, Mangold was told. Then again, the reporter did not have a high ankle sprain, the painful injury that befell Mangold in September. “Oh,” Mangold said. “You’re missing out.”

That was how the Jets felt about having to play two games — both losses, at Oakland and at Baltimore — without Mangold, their All-Pro center. His return Oct. 9 against New England, when he was still bothered by that ankle, coincided with a rebirth of the offensive line, a revival that has in turn resuscitated the Jets and sent them into a three-way tie for first place in the A.F.C. East.

“We’d like to believe so,” Mangold said. “I’d say that’s our own ego.”

The line has protected Mark Sanchez. It has helped to revive the rushing offense, which has averaged 130.7 yards over the last three games, all victories. A fourth straight win, on Sunday night against the Patriots, would shift the balance of power in a division — and possibly a conference — that the Jets urgently, desperately, want to win.

“He’s really irreplaceable,” tight end Dustin Keller said of Mangold. “You can get a guy in there and coach him up as much as you want, but you can’t replace all the knowledge and the time that he’s put in with these guys.”

Colin Baxter, whom the Jets coached up and leaned on those two weeks, now plays for San Diego, which makes sense. His long-term future with the Jets was bleak; backing up an in-his-prime Mangold is akin to being a minor league shortstop for the Yankees a decade ago. Since Mangold’s return, his impact has been far-reaching.

It allowed the Jets to abandon their preliminary plans of expanding their offense by throwing more, instead reverting to the ground game that defined their identity and that propelled them to consecutive appearances in the A.F.C. championship game. Their renewed commitment to running has instilled confidence and comfort throughout the team, from Shonn Greene to Sanchez. The Patriots’ ghastly pass defense, ranked 32nd in the N.F.L. for allowing 314 yards per game, is unlikely to change the Jets’ plans.

“We know what we want to do and we want to stick to that,” Greene said.

The improved rushing game has forced opposing defenses to at least consider moving up a linebacker or a safety to guard against the run. It also sets up more play-action opportunities, one of Sanchez’s strengths. According to ESPN Stats and Information, Sanchez completed 11 of 12 play-action passes Sunday against Buffalo for 125 yards and a touchdown, the 8-yarder to Santonio Holmes that extended their third-quarter lead to 20-3.

“I just think our team works this way,” Sanchez said.

Sanchez said that he meshed better with Mangold, his center for 43 of his 45 games, and that their chemistry had a calming effect on the rest of the offensive line. Benefiting from the continuity have been right tackle Wayne Hunter and right guard Brandon Moore, who neutralized Marcell Dareus, Buffalo’s impressive rookie defensive tackle.

“When we’re playing games, it’s just that — we’re playing, we’re having fun,” said Sanchez, who then spoke of Mangold’s effect on him. “Talking to him at the line of scrimmage, it’s not the same as it used to be where I was just terrified to ask, ‘Man, I really don’t know what’s going on, Nick, help.’

He’s just so good.”

Traditional statistics underscore Mangold’s value. After rushing for 239 yards in their first four games (2.6 per carry), the Jets have run for 489 in their last four (3.9 per carry), starting with the loss in New England.

Advanced metrics, which the Web site Football Outsiders employs to evaluate a team’s performance, also prove illuminating. In analyzing every play of the season according to down and distance, game situation and opponent strength, Football Outsiders identified the Jets’ running game as a primary source of improvement over those four games, going from poor to above average. Another Web site, ProFootballFocus.com, rates Mangold as the second-best run-blocking center in the N.F.L. this season among those who have played in at least half of their team’s offensive snaps.

“We never make excuses, but I wanted to,” Coach Rex Ryan said, when asked about Mangold’s two-game absence. “He’s the best center in football.”

On Sunday, the best center in football will re-engage Vince Wilfork, with whom he has shared some epic confrontations over the years. Perhaps he will show Wilfork what he was missing out on five weeks ago.

flgreen · November 10, 2011

Jets-Patriots Tug-Of-War Resumes Sunday

By REUTERS

Published: November 9, 2011 at 9:00 PM ET

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The tug-of-war between the New England Patriots and New York Jets resumes Sunday night when the Patriots come to the Meadowlands for another AFC East showdown.

The latest news, notes and analysis of the N.F.L. playoffs.

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The teams are tied with Buffalo with 5-3 records, but this time in their see-saw series the Jets have the momentum and the Patriots are struggling.

New York limped out of Foxborough a month ago after a 30-21 defeat to the Patriots that gave them a three-game losing streak and a 2-3 record.

Now New England and quarterback Tom Brady are struggling, coming off back-to-back losses to the Steelers and Giants, who handed the Pats their first regular season home loss after 20 straight wins.

Going against the National Football League's lowest-ranked pass defense, Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez could be the key.

"I've just been proud the last three weeks of the way we really worked through three tough losses at one point in the season," Sanchez told reporters on Wednesday.

"This is right where we want to be and there's no better team that we'd want to play."

With center Nick Mangold back from injury, the Jets have rounded into shape on offense with the running game revived and Sanchez getting comfortable with new receiver Plaxico Burress.

Still, questions remain over whether the third-year quarterback is ready to step into a starring role for a team that relies so heavily on its defense, the pride of defensive-minded head coach Rex Ryan.

"We're coming into our own as an offense," said Sanchez. "I don't care if we throw it 100 times or run it 100 times, as long as we're winning. We're in the winning business and we've got to win, so whatever it takes."

Jets-Patriots games have been hard to figure.

Last year, both teams were 9-2 when the Jets traveled to New England for a Monday night clash in December with an inside track to the AFC East title at stake. The Patriots won 45-3.

In the second-round of the playoffs, the wild card Jets returned to Gillette Stadium and beat the Pats 28-21.

Mangold was upbeat about their Sunday night date.

"I think we are really finding our rhythm. We were kind of missing that for a little bit, having that skid, the two-game skid going into (the last Patriots game)," he said Wednesday.

"(Now) we're just firing on all cylinders, we're executing, we're not missing assignments. We've worked very hard to correct those things."

Coach Ryan said he knew it was just a matter of time.

"I don't know who would've counted us out, but we certainly didn't count ourselves out," he said.

"We knew that our team could improve.

"We thought we could get better, and we have gotten better. So we'll see how much. This is the tops. If you want to win your division, you've got to beat these guys."

When Ryan took the Jets job three years ago, he said that while he respected the three-time Super Bowl champion Patriots, he was not about "to kiss the rings" of coach Bill Belichick.

"Both teams are going to be humming for this one," said Ryan. "You can sugarcoat it all you want, but they know they need it and we know we need it."

(Editing by Mark Lamport-Stokes)

flgreen · November 10, 2011

With rivals reeling, time for NY Jets to Gang up on New England Patriots

Jets catch Patriots at right moment

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Wednesday, November 9 2011, 10:21 PM

Corey Sipkin/New York Daily News

Rex Ryan and the Jets have their swagger back entering Week 10's match up with the Pats.

The Jets are streaking with three straight victories and are on the way up. The Patriots are slumping with two straight losses and are on the way down.

The Jets will create separation from New England and finally take control of the AFC East on Sunday night.

The swagger is back with the Jets. And all you had to do was watch the Patriots play against the Giants last weekend to realize New England, which lost the previous week to the Steelers, is still a

good team, but no longer an elite one. The Pats already have lost more regular-season games (three) than they did all of last year (two).

“We know what this game represents,” Rex Ryan said Wednesday. “We’re not afraid to talk about it.

It’s not one of these, ‘Well, if we don’t (win), there is still a lot of season left.’ No, we’re approaching it like we have to have this game. We want to win our division. We think it goes through New England.”

In August, Ryan implored teams on the Patriots’ schedule to step up and beat them.

“I think we have to find somebody out there to beat New England besides us,” he said then. “I think that would help. Anybody out there that wants to sign up for it — are you good enough as a team to beat the New England Patriots? I am challenging the league.”

The Bills, Steelers and Giants accepted the challenge and beat New England. The Jets lost to them last month. Now it’s time for them to take care of their own business.

The Jets and Pats are 5-3 and tied with the Bills for first place in the AFC East.

Remember, the teams were tied at 9-2 even later in the season last year and the Jets got smoked, 45-3. If the Jets win this game, they control their destiny the rest of the way as long as they keep winning. If they lose, the Patriots will have a one-game lead and the tiebreaker with the season sweep. Forget about the Bills; by the time they finish their three-game road trip against the Cowboys, Dolphins and Jets, they will be out of the playoff race.

Ryan has been obsessed with the Patriots since he arrived in 2009. The Jets had the second-biggest victory in their history when they eliminated New England in the playoffs in Foxborough last season. But they lost to Pittsburgh the following week in the AFC title game, the second year in a row the Jets were unable to get the elusive third playoff victory on the road and reach the Super Bowl.

It’s just too hard to do, although the Packers did it last year and the Giants did it in 2007, and both teams went on to win the Super Bowl. But beating Peyton Manning, Tom Brady and Ben Roethlisberger back-to-back-to-back on the road is too much for any team.

That’s why the Jets have to win the AFC East to ensure that they get at least one home game.

That’s why the rest of their season could be determined by what happens Sunday night. And I sense a changing of the guard coming this weekend.

“It’s our opportunity to win the division,” LaDainian Tomlinson said Wednesday. “That’s what we want to do, we always set out to do that. These last couple of years, these guys have won this division.

You can call it the changing of the guard or whatever you want to call it. It’s a good opportunity for us.”

The Patriots are vulnerable. Their No. 32 ranking in pass defense may not even do justice to how bad they are at trying to stop opponents in the air. They are giving up 314 passing yards per game

— an incredible 54 more than the Colts, who rank 31st.

Roethlisberger controlled the clock for nearly 40 minutes two weeks ago by throwing 50 passes.

Last Sunday, Eli Manning put together two 80-yard drives in the last seven minutes. What he didn’t pick up with completions, he picked up with crucial pass interference calls.

Brady has one weapon: Wes Welker. What about Chad Ochocinco? He has nine catches for 136 yards this season, the exact same stats Welker had against the Giants last week.

When teams make Brady uncomfortable in the pocket, as the Giants did last week, he can get jumpy. Bill Belichick has been exposed as something less than a personnel genius without Scott Pioli, who left three years ago to run the Chiefs. Same way that Bill Parcells made his share of personnel blunders when left on his own.

A fter the Patriots scor ed 38 points in the season opener, New England’s point production went down every week until it hit a low of 17 in Pittsburgh two weeks ago. The Pats scored 20 against the Giants.

“It’s a big game for us,” Darrelle Revis said. “It’s a game that we need and we want. Everybody knows that around here.”

The Jets have a chance to not only get a lead on the Patriots heading toward Thanksgiving, but send a strong message that they are going to take over the division. “To be the champ, you got to beat the champ,” Ryan said.

This is a good time for the Jets to be playing the Patriots. They’re on the way up and the Patriots are on the way down.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/jets/rivals-reeling-time-ny-jets-gang-england-patriots-article-1.975334#ixzz1dJKLJANn

flgreen · November 10, 2011

Rex Ryan to NY Jets fans: Home cook New England Patriots' Tom Brady

Rex calls on crowd to get loud

BY Stefan Bondy

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Originally Published: Wednesday, November 9 2011, 10:24 PM

Updated: Wednesday, November 9 2011, 10:24 PM

Howard Simmons/New York Daily News

With a victory Sunday night, the Jets can go a long way toward unseating Tom Brady and the Patriots in the AFC East race.

For a game that figures to go down to the wire — perhaps swayed by a false start somewhere along the way — Rex Ryan again called on Jets fans to do their part Sunday night at MetLife Stadium:

The more they can fluster Tom Brady and his line, the better.

“That’s the challenge I’m taking to our fans this week. That we’re here, we’re undefeated at home, and let’s make it miserable,” he said Wednesday. “See if you can’t make them burn timeouts. See if our fans can’t make them false start. I truly believe; I wouldn’t ask our fans to do this if I feel they couldn’t be the difference.”

Ryan credited the home crowd with his first victory against the Patriots in 2009, when he awarded the fans a game ball that went in the team’s trophy case.

“They were the difference. Two good football teams going at it, but they were the difference,” Ryan said. “It affected their communication, they had penalties, they had to use timeouts and all that.”

MOORE PRAISE

Brandon Moore has been a captain for the last four games, but it wasn’t until this week that anybody noticed.

As Ryan pointed out, “That’ll tell you about an offensive lineman because he could have gone the whole season and nobody would have known except his own family.”

The decision to promote Moore — made before the last game against the Patriots in Week 5 —was a no-brainer, said Ryan.

The only question was why he didn’t do it earlier.

“It was kind of an oversight on my part. ’s a guy I kind of lean on as much as anybody, getting feedback. I think he does a great job representing players. I was like, ‘Brandon should be a captain.’ ”

BELICHUCKLE

Bill Belichick actually made an attempt at humor when asked about Ryan’s role as a Patriots fan in an upcoming Adam Sandler movie.

“I’ll tell you, he’ll have to do some acting on that one,” the Pats coach said. “That’s a new one. I’m sure it’ll be entertaining.”

And we’re not sure if his response about being familiar with the Jets was also an attempt at humor. “It’s one of those deals where they know that we know that we know that they know that we know.”

Huh?

GETTING A SCHOTT IN NFL

WR Dexter Jackson, who played for offensive coordinator Brian Schotteinheimer’s dad, Marty, in the UFL this year, was signed to the practice squad. DT Jarron Gilbert was released from the practice squad. Plaxico Burress (back), Joe McKnight (toe) and Brodney Pool (knee) did not practice.

Marcus Dixon (shoulder) and Josh Mauga (back) were limited. Ryan felt good about all of them playing except “maybe” Poole.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/jets/rex-ryan-ny-jets-fans-home-cook-england-patriots-tom-brady-article-1.975335#ixzz1dJLAKhns

flgreen · November 10, 2011

NY Jets off and running for showdown with New England Patriots

Ryan wants to ground-and-pound Patriots

BY Manish Mehta

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Wednesday, November 9 2011, 10:09 PM

Jim Rogash/Getty Images

Jets look to leave Tom Brady and NE Patriots looking down and out.

Rex Ryan's executive decision last month to return to a familiar style of offense has made all the difference for the Jets as they prepare to face their nemesis with first place in the AFC East at stake.

Gang Green (5-3) started its rebirth as a plain, boring and effective ground-and-pound offense after its embarrassing prime-time loss to the Ravens in Week 4. It turned out to be a master stroke by Ryan, whose team has regained the confidence it lost during an early-season three-game slide.

“We’re a much more confident team playing this way (with) this style,” Ryan said in the run-up to the Jets’ prime-time showdown with the Patriots (5-3) on Sunday night. “I feel very comfortable and confident. This is what we know.”

The move didn’t pay immediate dividends. In their first game after the philosophical shift, the Jets had seven three-and-outs in 11 drives during a 30-21 road loss to the Patriots. Mark Sanchez & Co. had four consecutive three-and-outs to start that game and had a pivotal stretch of three consecutive drives without a first down in the second half. Ryan’s team went 3-for-11 on third down (27%), which led to a season-low 53 offensive plays.

Fast forward five weeks and the Jets look like an entirely different outfit.

During Gang Green’s current three-game winning streak, the offense has converted 51% of its third downs (20-for-39), extending drives and allowing the Jets to establish a running game. Although they have averaged a solid - but not spectacular - 4.0 yards per rush in the past three games, the renewed commitment to the run has helped ma ke the play-action passing game much more effective. Sanchez completed 11 of 12 passes with a touchdown last week off play action.

“It’s just kept defenses off balance,” Sanchez said of the ripple effect created by a successful rushing attack. “Early in the year, we were doing a lot of run action, (but) it just wasn’t getting the sell that we wanted because we weren’t running the ball as well. Once the running game becomes a huge factor like it is right now, teams are trying to get another player in (the box) to stop the run.

And that’s opened things up on the outside.”

Sanchez has completed 61% of his passes with seven touchdowns and two interceptions in the past four games. Ryan’s decision to morph the Jets back into a run-first team has been critical. After passing 62% of the time during the first month, the Jets have had a 53-47 run-pass distribution in the past four games. Ryan’s team has averaged 33 runs during its three-game winning streak. Last week, Gang Green gained 70% of its rushing yards in two-back sets. In other words, they’re back to playing classic Rex Ryan football.

“We feel like our old selves again,” fullback John Conner said.

For all the success on the ground in recent weeks, there is an obvious temptation to air it out against the Patriots’ 32nd-ranked pass defense that is allowing 314 yards per game.

“It is a balancing act,” Ryan said. “If you win, you balanced it correctly. If you don’t, then you were wrong. I can accept that.”

Sanchez is well-aware that his performance will play a significant role in the ultimate outcome.

“It’s always going to take a good game by the quarterback to beat that team and that defense,” Sanchez said. “It doesn’t mean that you have to go out and make a spectacular play. . . . Whether it comes down to a last drive or just being accurate all game, that’s what it takes to beat them.”

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/jets/ny-jets-running-showdown-england-patriots-article-1.975328#ixzz1dJLw9sLK

flgreen · November 10, 2011

Stapleton: Jets waiting for Sanchez to have that Eli moment

Thursday November 10, 2011, 12:03 AM

By ART STAPLETON

COLUMNIST

FLORHAM PARK — Mark Sanchez has watched film of what Eli Manning did to the Patriots, and not surprisingly came away impressed with just about everything his quarterback counterpart was able to do in that performance four days ago.

AP

Mark Sanchez has watched film of what Eli Manning did to the Patriots, and not surprisingly came away impressed with just about everything his quarterback counterpart was able to do in that performance four days ago.

Surely there is appreciation for the way Manning carved up New England in the waning seconds of a pivotal game for the victory, the way he answered a Tom Brady comeback with a remarkable drive of his own, on the road in the future Hall of Famer’s house, driving a stake through the heart of Gillette Stadium in the process.

The best thing about it was no one asked Sanchez about Manning’s masterful performance Wednesday – he brought it up himself when a reporter asked if a quarterback must outplay Brady to beat New England.

“You watch Eli’s drive last week, it was awesome; I mean, one of the best drives you’ve seen by a quarterback this season,” Sanchez said. “But he did the little things right. He took the underneath routes when he could. He got a penalty that got them down there and he took advantage of it. …

Whether it comes down to the last drive or just being accurate all game, that’s what it takes to beat them.

“And you just can’t give them anything. You can’t throw one to ’em.”

Although Sanchez never would admit it, there has to be some envy on his part.

Because this isn’t even about getting the chance to do what Manning has done numerous times in his career for the other team in town; rather, for the Jets’ quarterback, it’s the fact he’s still fighting questions over his ability to pull off something like that.

Sanchez has beaten the Patriots before, but that’s not really the issue here.

The Jets are waiting for Sanchez to deliver the Manning moment he was so wowed by.

At this point, critics from Broadway Joe to the average Joe who bleed for Gang Green every week have openly wondered if that time will come at all.

That’s why there’s no better opportunity than Sunday night for that to finally happen.

The Patriots have lost three games and are in danger of suffering their first three-game losing streak since 2002, should the Jets prevail in prime time at MetLife Stadium.

In each of New England’s defeats, the quarterback opposite Brady has outplayed him.

Ryan Fitzpatrick led a wild second-half comeback for Buffalo. Ben Roethlisberger controlled the game throughout in Pittsburgh two weeks ago. Then Manning went out and did what he did for the Giants, setting the stage for Sanchez and the Jets to get back into contention not just for the AFC East title, but so much more.

“It has a lot to do with [winning the division]. I don’t think this is the end all, be all,” Sanchez said. “It’s not the end of the world, but we don’t want to think about losing the game. We’re thinking about winning.”

When the Jets talk about winning lately, Sanchez’s name never seems to come up.

He was at the center of their struggles, however, when they were losing.

The Jets are clicking now and those Super Bowl aspirations don’t seem as far-fetched as they did when the Patriots handed them a 30-21 loss Oct. 9, sending them home from Foxboro with a 2-3 record.

Three wins later, Gang Green are confident the season has turned in their favor.

“If I’m going to hang my hat on something,” coach Rex Ryan said, “it’s going to be that offensive line, how we play defense and special teams. I feel good about where we’re at.”

It was curious Ryan failed to mention Sanchez, considering how much weight they previously had put upon his shoulders.

“We just want to win,” Ryan said. “I don’t care what [sanchez’s] rating is. I don’t care about anything else. I just want to win. … He’s done a great job of leading our group.

“Our team never lost faith in each other and belief, but it’s still a lot different than if you’re sailing along.”

To his credit, Sanchez admits he has plenty to learn about playing the position.

Despite the heat he has taken, the 24-year-old ridiculed as much for his GQ cover-boy appearance as he is praised for his four road playoff wins and two trips to the AFC Championship game, has managed to stay the course.

“That’s the world he lives in. He’s the quarterback. When things aren’t going well, it’s going to fall on him,” tight end Dustin Keller said. “But he’s the same guy in the huddle every single time. He hasn’t changed.”

Personality doesn’t change perception – results do.

Which is why until Sanchez proves he can take the football as Manning did, three points down with 1:36 remaining and rescue his team from defeat, there always will be doubt as to whether anyone actually believes he can.

“You just want to play well in those situations,” Sanchez told me Wednesday. “I’m not hoping the game comes down to that.”

It’s time for Sanchez to raise his game to the point where the Jets finally do.

flgreen · November 10, 2011

Jets 'C' reason to make Moore captain

Jets Blog

By BRIAN COSTELLO

Last Updated: 9:02 AM, November 10, 2011

Posted: 1:51 AM, November 10, 2011

When Jets coach Rex Ryan named his captains this summer, he made an oversight.

Ryan forgot about guard Brandon Moore, the longest-tenured player on the active roster. Ryan decided to correct his mistake in early October by putting the “C” on Moore’s jersey -- and no one noticed.

Moore has been a captain since the Jets faced the Patriots at New England on Oct. 9. But it only came to light this week.

“It was kind of an oversight on my part,” Ryan said. “Like here’s a guy that I lean on about as much as anybody, getting feedback. I think he does a great job representing the players.”

* Patriots coach Bill Belichick on Ryan appearing as a Patriots fan in an upcoming Adam Sandler movie: “I’ll tell you, he’ll have to do some acting on that one. That’s a new one. I’m sure it’ll be entertaining.”

Would Belichick ever appear as a Jets fan?

“I was there for a couple of years, so I was a Jets fan,” he said.

* WR Plaxico Burress (back), RB Joe McKnight (toe) and S Brodney Pool (knee) did not practice yesterday. Ryan said Pool’s injury is the only one that concerns him in terms of missing the game Sunday. Pool said he believes he will play. McKnight said he injured his toe in the second quarter Sunday against the Bills. He hopes to practice today. Burress did not speak to reporters. DT Marcus Dixon (shoulder) and LB Josh Mauga (back) were limited in practice.

* LB David Harris was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week for his performance against the Bills. The soft-spoken Harris delivered a good quote on Tom Brady’s 10 interceptions this year:

“He’s mortal,” Harris said. “He’s not an alien after all.”

* OLB Aaron Maybincalled the situation at Penn State, his alma mater, “sad.” He said it’s hard to imagine Penn State without coachJoe Paterno.

“Honestly, I don’t even know what to make of it,” he said. “As long as I’ve been alive and playing football Joe Paterno has been Penn State. Obviously, that’s going to be a major transition for them.”

brian.costello@nypost.com

flgreen · November 10, 2011

Mangold's return fixed Jets offensive line

Jets Blog

By BART HUBBUCH

Last Updated: 8:43 AM, November 10, 2011

Posted: 12:58 AM, November 10, 2011

Rex Ryan complimented Jets center Nick Mangold this week by calling him “the Darrelle Revis of centers.”

With the way Mangold is playing recently, it might be more accurate to call Revis the Nick Mangold of cornerbacks.

If there was any question about his value to the Jets offense as a whole and the running game in particular, Mangold has smashed it since returning from a high ankle sprain four games ago.

A “Ground & Pound” rushing attack that was stuck in the mud with Mangold on the bench for two games and undrafted rookie Colin Baxter starting in his place has come alive with their bearded grizzly bear of an anchor leading the way.

Ryan isn’t the only one who considers it a coincidence the Jets are averaging 123 rushing yards per game since Mangold returned, compared with an average of just 80 yards on the ground during his roughly 2 1/2-game absence.

“Everybody knows how good Nick is,” guard Brandon Moore said yesterday as the Jets prepared to play host to the rival Patriots on Sunday night with ownership of the AFC East lead at stake. “He’s solidified in the middle everything we’re doing. Anytime you get a Pro Bowl player back, it definitely helps you.”

Mangold -- who still isn’t fully recovered from the sprained ankle -- has another stiff test Sunday night at the Meadowlands in the form of Patriots Pro Bowl nose tackle Vince Wilfork, but the Jets don’t see why their guy should be the underdog in that matchup.

Mangold rushed back to action for the first meeting with New England last month, and even on one leg and with Wilfork getting relief from the since-released Albert Haynesworth, the Jets still rushed for nearly 100 yards (97) in the 30-21 loss.

Not that the typically modest Mangold is in the mood to take much credit, no matter how much it appears to be deserved. In particular, Mangold wasn’t ready to put himself in Revis’ class even though his head coach was the one making the comparison.

“Darrelle is in a league of his own, but it is kind of Rex [to say that],” Mangold said yesterday.

Mangold’s impact hasn’t been limited to the run game, however. Mark Sanchez isn’t exactly filling the air with footballs, but he is remaining upright a lot more with Mangold in front of him -- the Jets have allowed just five sacks combined in the past three games compared with 12 in the first five contests.

“It’s great to see him healthy,” Sanchez said yesterday. “He’s still working through a tough injury, but that’s a tough guy. The offense is kind of getting into a groove here. We just want to keep it going and keep taking care of the football.”

bhubbuch@nypost.com

Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/jets/mangold_solidifies_line_6xsUJFMyGbeEt3ENmwW97N#ixzz1dJRKe3pf

flgreen · November 10, 2011

Jets' Sanchez seeks perfect game against Patriots

Jets Blog

By BRIAN COSTELLO

Last Updated: 9:02 AM, November 10, 2011

Posted: 1:00 AM, November 10, 2011

Mark Sanchez knows this one is on him. He knows for the Jets to beat the Patriots on Sunday night, he has to be flawless.

Sanchez watched Ben Roethlisberger control the game in the Steelers’ 25-17 win over the Patriots two weeks ago. He watched Eli Manning march the Giants down the field in the final minute at Gillette Stadium last Sunday.

Now, it’s his turn. Like always, the Jets’ goal is to keep the Patriots offense off the field for as long as possible, limiting Tom Brady’s chances. That rests on how well Sanchez can keep drives alive.

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TIME TO STEP UP: Mark Sanchez—who has seven interceptions—said he knows he can’t afford to turn the ball over against the Patriots in their AFC East showdown on Sunday.

“It’s always going to take a good game by the quarterback to beat that team and that defense because Coach [bill] Belichick is going to have them in the right position,” Sanchez said. “It doesn’t mean you have to go out and make a spectacular play, but just understand the situation.

“You watch Eli’s drive last week and it was awesome -- one of the best drives you’ve seen by a quarterback this season, but he did the little things right. He took the underneath routes when he could. He got a penalty that got him down there and took advantage of it. ... Whether it comes down to the last drive or just being accurate all game, that’s what it takes to beat them. You just can’t give them anything. You can’t throw one to them.”

That has been a problem for Sanchez this season. The third-year quarterback has shown improvement in several areas this year, but he continues to turn the ball over. Sanchez has 12 turnovers (seven interceptions, five fumbles) this season.

Sanchez threw an interception in the red zone last week after the Jets put together a drive of 10:09, the second-longest in the NFL this year. The drive ended with no points because of Sanchez’s throw to Bills safety George Wilson in the end zone.

“You look at the seven interceptions, I think it is, and there are some dumb ones,” Sanchez said.

“We get rid of those and we’re really playing well.”

The Steelers and Giants both threw the ball against the Patriots more than the Jets like to. Roethlisberger had 50 attempts, completing 36 of them for 365 yards and two touchdowns. That helped Pittsburgh control the ball for 39:22 in its win. Manning attempted 39 passes last week, completing 20 for 250 yards, two touchdowns and an interception.

The Jets were letting Sanchez throw the ball around early in the season but have now moved away from that. He attempted 44 passes in two of the first three games but has been in the 25-33 range over the last four games.

Sanchez has played better since Rex Ryan recommitted to running the ball before their first meeting with the Patriots. His passer rating since that game is 94.7, second only to Roethlisberger in the AFC.

It will be interesting to watch how the Jets balance their return to running the ball with facing the Patriots, who rank last in the league against the pass.

“We have to maintain drives,” Ryan said. “When you look at it, Pittsburgh, what they did defensively, you look at their numbers and they played extremely well on defense, not taking anything away from them, but their offense really controlled the game. They punted once in the game, and that was with 30 seconds left. So I think that would obviously be what you want against a high-powered offense like [the Patriots’]. As good as our defense is, it’s not near as good as when we’re on the sideline.”

Sanchez turned the ball over twice last week , but it did not hurt the Jets. Do it again this week, and they might not be as lucky.

“I need to do whatever it takes for our team to win, and that’s get completions, convert on third down, put us in the right run checks, just be very accurate,” Sanchez said. “Don’t give them any cheap ones. That almost hurt us last week and our defense bailed us out, so just don’t give them anything and we should be OK.”

brian.costello@nypost.com

Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/jets/mark_big_test_UWSv4PJWo9c9DRkQaLMv0I#ixzz1dJS7AqrA

flgreen · November 10, 2011

Must-win game for Jets coach

Jets Blog

Last Updated: 9:07 AM, November 10, 2011

Posted: 1:03 AM, November 10, 2011

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Steve Serby

You asked teams around the NFL to rise up and beat the Patriots, and the Bills and Steelers and Giants obliged.

Now, Rex, it’s on you.

We are now 2 1/2 years into the Rex Ryan Era now. You mostly have entertained and amused us, infected the franchise with bravado and swagger, made the Jets loved here and hated away from here.

But we still are waiting for that Super Bowl you have promised and guaranteed every 10 minutes from the moment you barged into our lives.

Now, as the Jets begin the second half of their roller-coaster season, you officially are on the clock.

Anthony J. Causi

GET IT DONE! Coach Rex Ryan, who has talked a good game, needs to lead the Jets past the Patriots in this Sunday’s key AFC East showdown, Post columnist Steve Serby says.

Because it’s time.

Sunday night, the burden of proof is on you to convince us that you are not The Coach Who Cries Wolf.

“We know what this game represents. ... We’re not afraid to talk about it,” Ryan said. “It’s not one of those, ‘Well, if we don’t win, there’s still a lot of season left.’ No. We’re approaching it like we have to have this game. We want to win our division. We think it goes through New England.”

“That old saying -- to be the champ, you gotta beat the champ. They’re sitting right in front of us. ...

This is a measuring stick right here.”

He doesn’t need to remind us anymore that he isn’t in Bill Belichick’s class. He wasn’t in Belichick’s class last January when he beat him in Foxborough to get to the AFC Championship game with his second-year quarterback.

It means there are no excuses for him not to beat Belichick Sunday night in front of the Patriots’ bloodthirsty fans with his third-year quarterback.

The mission statement from the minute the Jets suffered their second straight AFC Championship game loss on the road was hosting the 2011 AFC Championship game. The statement becomes Mission Impossible if you fail to win the AFC East. If you let these Patriots sweep you, you will have no one to blame but yourselves if you do not win the AFC East.

The Patriots arrive for this crossroads first-place showdown on wobbly legs, which means there is no better time for the Jets to unleash a championship killer instinct now that they believe they have righted their ship. You better kick Belichick when he’s down, because he has proven that he will sure kick you when you are down. Ask Herm Edwards. Eric Mangini. Ask Chad Pennington. Ask all the teams who whined that Belichick was running up the score on them in 2007.

Suddenly Belichick and Tom Brady are staring at their first three-game losing streak in nine years.

Now that the Bills and Steelers and Giants have done him favors, it is time for Ryan to beat the Patriots on his own.

At a time when Brady is searching for weapons other than Wes Welker and Rob Gronkowski, when he is coming off a game in which his accuracy and decision-making was uncharacteristically suspect, Ryan’s beloved defense has a sneering, merciless air about it again.

At a time when the Patriots pass defense might get Tim Tebow salivating, Mark Sanchez appears to have established a rapport with Plaxico Burress, though he needs to start get to Santonio Holmes more.

Sanchez isn’t Brady, isn’t Eli Manning, but he doesn’t have to be with the team that surrounds him now.

“It’s always going to take a good game by the quarterback to beat that team, and that defense,” Sanchez said. “You just can’t give them anything, can’t throw one to them.”

At a time when Belichick is pressing desperately to improve his kick return production, Joe McKnight is channeling his inner Devin Hester.

“[Ryan] has a lot of confidence in us, and we want to make sure that the things that he says about us are true,” Nick Mangold said. “This is another big step in the development of his team, his Jets.”

But if the Jets lose, Ryan becomes The Coach Who Cries Wolf if his team, his Jets, are exposed as sheep in wolves’ clothing.

“He’s just told people what everyone’s goal is,” Mangold said. “[The] goal is to win the Super Bowl.

He’s just got the wherewithall to go out there and say it, put himself out there. And as a player who’s underneath him, I appreciate it.”

Nobody expected the Jets to beat Brady in the playoffs after beating Peyton Manning. Ryan came up with the mother of all game plans and all of a sudden Brady was anything but the Gisele Bundchen of quarterbacks. Except it turned out to be the Jets’ Super Bowl. They couldn’t come close to approaching that emotional peak the following week in Pittsburgh.

The Jets finally have turned MetLife Stadium into a deafening place no one wants to play. Ryan wants it to be the last place Brady, forced to burn timeouts, driven mad by false starts, and Belichick want to be Sunday night. The last place any quarterback and coach should want to be in late January.

Five months after he replaced Mangini, Ryan titillated Jets Nation when he announced he wasn’t here to kiss Belichick’s rings. If there is ever a game that could lead to Belichick announcing next season that he isn’t here to kiss Ryan’s ring, it is this one.

steve.serby@nypost.com

Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/jets/it_on_you_rex_axY8mCmM2omLfsW2nlzS3L#ixzz1dJSo8bkN

flgreen · November 10, 2011

Jets notes: What's wrong with Patriots?

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

The Record

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Struggling Patriots?

New England is in danger of losing three consecutive games for the first time since 2002 when it visits the Jets on Sunday, but wide receiver Deion Branch indicated Wednesday that nobody is panicking.

When asked on a conference call if doubt had crept in, Branch responded, "no doubts around here, and that’s me being honest. We see in the film what we’re doing wrong."

Perhaps fittingly, the call cut off at that point because of a power outage, kind of the way the juice for the Patriots’ offense has disappeared over the last three games. New England has been held to 20 points or fewer over the last three games after scoring 30 points or more in each of its previous 13 regular-season contests.

Branch added, once power and the call were restored, that "we’re all mad about the losses, but at the same time there are very coachable mistakes that were made during the course of the games.

And hopefully, we’ll try to go out and eliminate those things so we don’t go down that road again."

‘Moore’ captains

RG Brandon Moore recently was named the sixth permanent team captain by coach Rex Ryan for the Jets this season, joining QB Mark Sanchez, WR Santonio Holmes, NT Sione Pouha, CB Darrelle Revis and S Eric Smith.

"It’s an honor," Moore said. "I mean to have coach [Ryan] think of you that way, respect you in that way, being a guy that’s been here for a while and worked your way up. It’s a great honor."

Moore was given the honor before the previous New England game last month, so it happened before he and Holmes had a brief public dust-up over Holmes’ critical comments to the media about the offensive line.

Briefs

WR Plaxico Burress (lower back) sat out practice Wednesday, three days after playing through pain and finishing with five receptions for 79 yards in a win over Buffalo. Ryan indicated he believes Burress will be able to play Sunday against New England. … RB-KR Joe McKnight (toe) and S Brodney Pool (knee) also didn’t practice.

— J.P. Pelzman

flgreen · November 10, 2011

A rush to forget

Belichick not inclined to discuss Haynesworth’s disappointing performance

By Shalise Manza Young Globe Staff / November 10, 2011

FOXBOROUGH - Bill Belichick has been in the NFL for 37 years, long enough to learn that all players are different, and they respond to different things. Publicly, Belichick says that he treats every player the same, and in some ways, that is true.

But privately, some players do get special treatment - not necessarily favorable, but not always the same as every other guy in the locker room.

Albert Haynesworth got special treatment, not unlike many veterans the Patriots have brought in during Belichick’s tenure.

A league source said yesterday, “Bill probably sat him down and said, ‘I know you have back issues, I know you need days off. But in return, I want 100 percent. I’ll let you play 15 to 20 snaps a game, but I want full effort.’

“That’s how Belichick works. He pulls no punches.’’

Despite that, the source said, the big defensive tackle acquired from the Redskins for a 2013 fifth-round draft pick “didn’t put in any effort on or off the field.’’

So on Tuesday, after Haynesworth had a particularly egregious series against the Giants and then took umbrage when line coach Pepper Johnson took him to task on the sideline, Belichick cut his losses and released Haynesworth after eight games, six of which he played in, with 132 snaps, just three tackles, and two quarterback hits.

Haynesworth signs with Buccaneers. C3

Despite that output, the Buccaneers claimed Haynesworth off waivers yesterday.

The source’s point that Haynesworth didn’t put in any effort was underscored yesterday when one player in the locker room said players have to produce in New England. When it was noted that receiver Chad Ochocinco hasn’t really produced, the player countered that Ochocinco is putting in the work and trying to improve.

When Belichick strode to the lectern yesterday, he opened his press conference by addressing the move to release Haynesworth, though he didn’t say much when pressed for details.

“I’ll just say on the Albert situation, I thought that both he and myself, speaking for the staff, we really tried to make it work,’’ Belichick said. “He had a few physical limitations to overcome when he got here, but I thought he really tried to do what we asked him to do.

“We tried to work with him, and in the end, it just obviously didn’t work out. The best thing we can do is just move on.’’

After his opening statement, which also included a mention of the team’s move to place safety Josh Barrett on season-ending injured reserve and a quick overview of the Jets, a reporter brought up Haynesworth’s name.

But he was quickly interrupted.

“That’s really all I have to say about it,’’ said Belichick. “We’ll talk about the guys that are here. We’ll move on to the Jets.’’

Asked if it was the physical limitations - Haynesworth has long had knee problems and missed two games as well as several practices with back issues - that hampered Haynesworth, Belichick said,

“No. He missed some time early in camp. In the end, that all worked out.’’

Asked if the gamble to acquire Haynesworth was worth it, Belichick said, “It’s all done with. It’s on to the Jets.’’

One final question specific to Haynesworth came up, and that was whether the strong play of Kyle Love made it easier to send Haynesworth packing. Belichick said it didn’t play a role.

Translation: They wanted him gone, whether there was someone able to fill his spot or not.

The Patriots ended up not being impressed with Haynesworth, and neither was Jets coach Rex Ryan. On his conference call with local media yesterday, Ryan was asked if he was surprised that New England released the veteran.

“Nah. To be honest with you, our concern was not Albert Haynesworth,’’ Ryan said. “Whether you believe it or not, they have a lot of big guys.

“Vince Wilfork is the bell cow in that front. I’d say Andre Carter’s a pickup they had; I think he’s playing well. Getting [Jerod] Mayo back - he never played in our first game. He’s a tremendous player.

“But Haynesworth wasn’t like specifically we had to know where he was at. He’s just a big guy. But they have a lot of good ones.’’

“I think the Kyle Love kid is underrated and then they have the big kid from Boston College [Ron Brace] back, so I guess Haynesworth does have some good ability and things like that, but he wasn’t a guy that we were absolutely concerned with.’’

Before Haynesworth signed his mega-deal with the Redskins in 2009, Tampa Bay was heavily pursuing him. The Bucs had to place tackle Gerald McCoy on injured reserve recently with a torn biceps, so they are in need of help.

According to the team’s Twitter account, Tampa Bay general manager Mark Dominik watched film of all of Haynesworth’s plays with the Patriots twice and saw “a player that can still be disruptive.’’

Shalise Manza Young can be reached at syoung@globe.com.

flgreen · November 10, 2011

Jets vs. Patriots: Mark Sanchez is key to beating New England

Published: Thursday, November 10, 2011, 4:00 AM

By Jenny Vrentas/The Star-Ledger

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Ed Murray/The Star-LedgerJets quarterback Mark Sanchez stretches during practice Monday. He'll lead the Jets against the rival New England Patriots on Sunday at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford.

Jets' Sanchez on facing the Patriots again New York Jets QB Mark Sanchez talks about his team's performance that last time they faced the Jets. (Video by Ed Murray / The Star-Ledger) Watch video

Mark Sanchez thinks Eli Manning’s final drive against the New England Patriots last week was “awesome.” And not just because it pushed the Jets into a three-way tie atop the AFC East.

The Jets QB admired the way his Giants counterpart took underneath throws when he could, capitalized on a defensive pass interference call, and won the game on a 1-yard play-action pass to his tight end.

“It’s always going to take a good game by the quarterback to beat that team and that defense,” Sanchez said of New England. “Whether it comes down to the last drive or just being accurate all game, that’s what it takes to beat them.”

Beat them the Jets must, at least if they want to be in control of the division race. The 5-3 teams meet on Sunday night at MetLife Stadium in a game coach Rex Ryan considers “a measuring stick” for just how much the Jets have improved since their three-game losing streak.

Perhaps the biggest change is on offense, where the Jets re-established themselves as a running team. But since they made that shift before the last Patriots game in Week 5, this has also happened: The passing game has looked more in sync, and Sanchez’s efficiency is up.

Through the first four weeks of the season, Sanchez completed 55.1 percent of his passes and had a passer rating of 75.9. Over the four games since the switch back to ground-and-pound, Sanchez’s completion percentage bumped up to 60.7 and his passer rating was 94.7 — second in the AFC for that time frame, behind only the Pittsburgh Steelers' Ben Roethlisberger.

“We’re a much more confident team playing this way, this style,” Ryan said. “It’s crazy, but running the football opens up the passing game. That’s where we’re at now, we feel good.”

Sanchez right now “is the most accurate he’s been,” Ryan said. His completion percentage against the Bills (71.4) was his highest this season — and the third-highest of his career.

Sanchez explained that “our team works this way”: Runs set up the passes, and passes set up the runs. He said using similar formations for passes and runs, as the Jets have done of late, helps him and his teammates as they study because plays can be easily grouped into packages.

The Jets’ play-action game has blossomed with the return to their old formula — illustrated well by Santonio Holmes’ 8-yard touchdown catch in the third quarter at Buffalo last week. The Bills bit on a play-action fake to running back Shonn Greene (though Greene said the fake wasn’t even executed correctly), allowing Holmes to make a tremendous catch in the end zone.

“Early in the year, we were doing a lot of run-action and it just wasn’t getting the sell that we wanted because we weren’t running the ball as well,” Sanchez said. “Once the running game becomes a huge factor like it is right now, teams are trying to get another hat in there, another player in there to stop the run, and that’s opened things up on the outside.”

Tight end Dustin Keller said Sanchez’s targets are also helping him out more, making sure they’re in the right place at the right time. And certainly the presence of center Nick Mangold, who missed two games with a high ankle sprain and was still hobbled after his return, has been another boost.

“We never make excuses,” Ryan said of Mangold’s absence, likening him to the Darrelle Revis of centers. “But I wanted to.”

The team that faces the Patriots this time around appears to be one far more capable of keeping the league’s No. 2 offense off the field, a tactic which the Steelers rode to a 25-17 victory in Week 8. In October, the Jets opened the game with four three-and-outs, giving the Patriots too many chances.

But their opening drive against the Bills, though it ended with a red-zone interception, up until that point was a textbook example of ball control. Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer called eight runs and seven pass plays as the Jets drove 87 yards and drained 10:09 off the clock. It was the second-longest drive in the league this season, according to the CBS broadcast.

“As good as our defense is,” Ryan said, “it’s not near as good as when it’s on the sidelines.”

The Jets will continue running to set up the pass. They don’t have to go into Sunday’s game planning to air it out in order to take advantage of the league’s worst-ranked pass defense, but know opportunities in the air may result. Strong performances by the opposing quarterback —

Manning, Roethlisberger and Ryan Fitzpatrick — were a common thread in each of the Patriots’ three losses, so it’s a good time for Sanchez to have elevated his play.

“It doesn’t mean you have to go out and make a spectacular play,” Sanchez said, “but just understand the situation.”

For more Jets coverage, follow Jenny Vrentas on Twitter at twitter.com/Jennyvrentas

Jenny Vrentas: jvrentas@starledger.com

flgreen · November 10, 2011

Palladino: Time For Jets Fans To Make Some Noise

November 10, 2011 8:28 AM

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The Meadowlands’ stands chock full of fans — a sight that is in jeopardy with the NFL’s Collective Bargaining Agreement set to expire. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)

‘From the Pressbox’

By Ernie Palladino

Ernie is the author of “Lombardi and Landry.” He’ll be covering football throughout the season.

It gets real easy for Jets fans this week.

Get on out to MetLife Stadium Sunday, settle into your seats at about 8:15 p.m., and scream your lungs out like tomorrow will never come.

This is your chance to turn that big, gray stadium into a green-clad Bedlam, a cauldron where no opponent, much less a truly ticked off New England Patriots squad, would dare to tread without a good silent count at the ready.

The Jets will need all the sound and fury their fans can offer, for what will happen Sunday night is truly the biggest thing that these fans have seen in the new stadium’s one-and-a-half seasons of existence. This is a battle for first place in the AFC East, and a second half of the season battle at that. Last year bore none of that drama, not even in the playoffs since they went on the road for their entire postseason run to the championship game.

By this point last year, the Jets were a comfortable 6-2, having just beaten Detroit at Ford Field in their first of two straight overtime games. And by the end of Week 10, they were 7-2, and in a first-place tie with New England after their second overtime win in Cleveland.

Their next two games at what was then called the New Meadowlands Stadium hardly qualified as titantic matchups, though it did take some doing to get past Houston, dwelling in the AFC South’s cellar, that first week. And their 26-10 win over Cincinnati the following week, while it allowed them to keep pace with the 9-2 Pats, proved anything but exhilarating.

And then came that 45-3, Monday night disaster up in Foxborough.

The Pats were in first place alone, and would only put distance between themselves and Rex Ryan’s bunch the rest of the season. The only drama left for the Meadowlands crowd involved wildcard seeding. Hardly the stuff of legendary matchups.

This is far different. The Jets have a chance, right here, right now, to put the Patriots’ shoe on the other foot, so to speak. A win at MetLife could start the distancing of the Jets from the rest of the AFC East pack. A loss could consign them to another year of wildcard status, if that.

The next two home games come against the Bills, which the Jets have already beaten in Orchard Park, and the Chiefs, who could be headed downhill after a fast start. Key games, but certainly not sexy ones. And the next chance to get really excited after that will be Christmas Eve day, when they face their co-homies, the Giants.

By then, though, the Jets’ fate may already be determined, for better or worse.

Nothing will be easy about this, which is another reason for the crowd to get jacked. Perhaps hanging Fireman Ed off a blimp is in order here. But at the very least, the 80,000 PSLers need to get behind this team as it never has before. Not since they rocked the old joint in Ryan’s home opener in 2009, when they beat those same Patriots.

“As I look at it, the fans are coming off a bye week and they had a road game, so we’re rested,” Rex Ryan said. “Our fans are rested. We’re ready for a huge performance, and we need you. That’s what we talk about, that home-field advantage. That’s where I think our fans can be the difference again.”

So this is it. This is the time.

If not now, then when?

flgreen · November 10, 2011

Morning take: Will Bills rebound?

November, 10, 2011

Nov 10

7:00

AM ET

By James Walker

Here are the most interesting stories Thursday morning in the AFC East:

Buffalo Bills running back Fred Jackson said the team has to rebound against the Dallas Cowboys.

Morning take: Winning in Dallas (4-4) isn't impossible, but it won't be easy. The Cowboys are 3-1 at home this season. We are going to learn a lot about these Bills with three consecutive road games.

The New York Jets have improved their offense with a rejuvenated running game.

Morning take: Give Pro Bowl center Nick Mangold a lot of credit. The running game improved once he was back in the lineup from his ankle sprain. Tailback Shonn Greene also is playing much better than he did earlier this season.

Are the Jets catching the New England Patriots at a vulnerable time?

Morning take: The Patriots have lost two in a row and playing their worst football of the season. So, I agree with this column. No one would have projected the Jets to be favored in this rematch several weeks ago. But that is the case.

Here is an interesting question: Why can't there be a "Dolphin Way"?

Morning take: The team doesn't have an identity on offense or defense, and that's the problem. It will be up to the next coach to develop a winning formula and winning culture starting next season.

flgreen · November 10, 2011

Nick, O-Line Keep Building, Brick by Brick

By Andrew LeRay

Posted 2 hours ago

Three straight losses followed immediately by three straight wins. The ebb and flow of the NFL season works in strange ways. A loss to the New England Patriots on Oct. 9 sent the Jets to a 2-3 record. Now at 5-3, they share the AFC East lead with the Pats and Bills.

The sudden turnaround comes as no surprise to the Jets, as they have maintained high expectations throughout. With a consistently strong defense and superior special teams, the Gang & White offense has repaired itself after sputtering out of the gate.

According to head coach Rex Ryan, a healthy, motivated offensive line has made all the difference.

“Nick Mangold is the best center in football — having him out was a great loss to us," Ryan said.

"Brandon Moore is back to being that dominant right guard. Wayne Hunter is playing excellent.

Then with D’Brickashaw [Ferguson] and [Matt] Slauson, I love that group. If I’m going to hang my hat on something, it’s going to be that offensive line.”

The protection provided by the unit has helped the Jets average 320.7 net yards of offense over the three-game winning streak. With 130.7 of those coming on the ground in each of the wins, they have been able to return to their familiar style of attack.

“I believe our job up front, whether we run the ball or pass the ball, is going to determine how we do,” said Mangold. “Either we give Mark [sanchez] a chance to get the ball to some of our playmakers or we let LT and Shonn run around.”

Lately, the team has been able to do both. Mangold himself has been an integral part of the improvement since his return in Week 5 from a high ankle sprain. On Wednesday, Ryan called him "the Darrelle Revis of centers,” an accolade the humble pivot man found too strong.

And Greene said Mangold "is a very important part of our offense, not just for the offensive line, but he’s like a second quarterback for us. He makes a lot of calls, adjustments, and it’s good to have him back.”

Whether it’s due to Mangold or merely coincidence, Greene has averaged 86.3 yards rushing per game since the center returned. He averaged only 39.3 over the first four games of the season.

“It gives the other guys confidence up front,” said Sanchez. “We have such a great relationship on and off the field. When we’re playing games, we’re having fun. He’s a good leader on that offensive line, so we love having him back.”

Now that the line has been restored to full strength, the offense as a whole has also returned to the roots of its success. That is to say, a healthy diet of runs with a methodical aerial attack.

We’ve been balanced,” said Sanchez. “Whether it’s 30-plus pass attempts per game or in the 25-28 range, I just think our team works this way. Runs set up the passes, passes set up the runs.”

Heading into Sunday night’s tilt, the Patriots will bring with them the statistically worst pass defense in the league, surrendering an average of 314 pass yards per game. The Jets are now faced with an important question of whether to attack New England's weakness or continue to use what has worked over the last three victories.

“We’ll take our shots,” said Moore. “I don’t think we need to get away from what wins us games.”

At the end of the Jets’ losing streak, Ryan introduced a new team motto that implored his club to “Stack Bricks.” A new groundwork needed to be laid, piece by piece, day by day, to return to the win column. Those bricks have built a 5-3 record and a new sense of confidence. The bricklayers on the offensive line have certainly had a hand in that construction.

flgreen · November 10, 2011