JETS ARTICLES - TUE 12/26

[SoFlaJets]

Dear Mark,

Pay more attention to the game and not the free press box buffet. Ben Graham does not punt for the Dolphins.

LOL hey it was really raing hard maybe he was wiping his glasses at the time-you should E-mail him DNA

[Sperm Edwards]

Post-Game Notes

Published: 12-26-06

By Jets PR Department

Regular Contributor

Article Permalink: http://www.newyorkjets.com/articles/post-game-notes-998

The Jets (9-6) clinched their fifth winning season in the last seven years.

The Jets are three games over .500 for the first time this year.

The Jets are 6-2 on the road and 4-2 vs. the AFC East.

The Jets are 6-4 vs. Miami on Monday Night Football and have won the last four Monday Night games vs. Miami.

The Jets win over Miami was the sixth for the Jets over Miami since 1998.

Chad Pennington finished the game with 237 passing yards on 14-for-29 passing and one touchdown. He now has 3,195 passing yards for the season, surpassing his previous season high of 3,120 passing yards in 2002. With the 42-yard pass to Justin McCareins in the third quarter, Pennington went over 3,000 passing yards for the second time in his career.

Chad Pennington’s 15-yard run in the third quarter was his longest run of the season.Pennington’s 26 yards rushing (four carries) are a new career high (previous high- 22 yards rushing – November 1, 2004, vs. Miami).

Mike Nugent’s 30 yard field goal with :14 left in the game, gave the Jets a 13-10 lead. The field goal was the first game-winning field goal of his career. The kick was also his 15th consecutive made field goal attempt. He has made 20 of his last 21.

Leon Washington’s 64-yard pass reception was the longest of his career. His 108-yard receiving led the team and is also a career best.

Jerricho Cotchery’s 32-yard touchdown reception (11-80-5:22) was his sixth of the season, tying him with Laveranues Coles for the team lead in touchdown receptions. It was Cotchery’s fourth reception of the night and the 100th reception of his career.

Nugent’s seven points (two field goals, one extra point) gives him 95 points on the season, eclipsing his total of 90 points in his rookie season (2005).

Victor Hobson’s sack of Cleo Lemon was good for a loss of three yards. It was Hobson’s sixth sack of the season.

Bryan Thomas’s sack of Cleo Lemon for a loss of six yards gives him 8.5 sacks on the season and the team lead.

For the second time this season, the Jets held their opponent scoreless for the first three quarters (9/10 at Tennessee).

The 0-0 first half is the Jets second of the season (vs. Chicago, 11/9).

The first quarter sack by Rashad Washington and Eric Barton was good for a loss of eight yards. It gives Barton 3.5 sacks for the season. It was Washington’s first ½ sack of the season, giving him 1.5 sacks in his career.

Mike Nugent’s fumble recovery in the first quarter was the first of his career.

The 0-0 first quarter was the first for the Jets since November 19 vs. Chicago and the fourth for the Jets this year (9/10 at Tennessee, 10/15 vs. Miami, 11/12 at New England).

B.J. Askew’s special teams tackle in the first half was the 68th of his career, moving him into fourth place on the Jets all-time list. Kenyatta Wright (2003-05) is third with 71.

[Sperm Edwards]

Jets Win 13-10 in Rainy Miami; Can Seal Playoff Berth Next Week

Published: 12-26-06

By Eric Allen

Eric Allen is the Senior Managing Editor of newyorkjets.com.

Article Permalink: http://www.newyorkjets.com/articles/jets-win-13-10-in-rainy-miami-can-seal-playoff-berth-next-week

Rookie running back Leon Washington helped the New York Jets celebrate a Green & White Christmas in Miami. Washington’s 64-yard fourth quarter reception set up Mike Nugent’s 30-yard field goal with 10 seconds remaining as the visitors claimed a 13-10 victory Monday night over the Dolphins at a saturated Dolphins Stadium. The 9-6 Jets can stamp an AFC Wild Card entry Sunday with a win over the 2-13 Oakland Raiders at the Meadowlands.

“That last play there was the biggest play of his young career,” said first-year Jets head coach Eric Mangini of Washington. “I am proud of him for that.”

The Washington dramatics followed a game-tying 25-yard Olindo Mare field goal. With the teams knotted at 10, New York quarterback Chad Pennington dropped the ball off to Washington and the 5'8", 202-pound back took control from there while leaving helpless defenders all over the field. He was eventually hauled down at the Miami 16, but the damage was done and Nugent had no problems connecting on the clutch kick.

For the second time this season, the Jets were involved in a scoreless first half. There wasn’t much room to breathe for either offense in a defensive struggle. Both Jets punter Ben Graham and Dolphins punter Donnie Jones kicked six times apiece over the opening 30 minutes. Players on each side had difficulty holding onto the ball at times as this contest was played in a driving South Florida rain.

“Collectively, there were a lot of things that we had to face and there were a lot of things we had to overcome,” Mangini said. “We did it together, and I’m proud of that fact.”

The teams traded four punts to start the game, but the Jets got something going on their third possession. Moving from their own 17 to the Dolphins’ 16-yard line, the Jets converted three times on third down including a nice Pennington 10-yard scramble and a 28-yard gain from Leon Washington after a shovel pass from the veteran passer.

“Twenty-nine is just unbelievable in space,” Pennington said of Washington, who caught four balls for 108 yards. “The guy just makes huge plays for us.”

But the visitors couldn’t convert a fourth time, bringing the field goal unit on the field. Nugent never got the opportunity to attempt a 34-yard field goal because punter Ben Graham couldn’t handle the water-logged ball and the first quarter ended 0-0.

Midway through the second quarter, the Dolphins delivered a couple of crunching defensive blows on consecutive plays. Washington grabbed a short floater from Pennington but was driven violently to the ground by defensive back Michael Lehan. Then middle linebacker Zach Thomas laid a punishing crack on Laveranues Coles. The ultra-tough Coles lay motionless on the ground before returning to his feet and the Jets’ bench. He was replaced in the lineup by Justin McCareins but returned in the third quarter.

Miami head coach Nick Saban had seen enough of Joey Harrington in the opening half and pulled the fifth-year vet after a seven of 15 performance for 42 yards. Behind center for the Dolphins to start the third period was Cleo Lemon, a third-year vet who had attempted 16 career passes entering this divisional battle. Lemon was almost intercepted on his first possession of the night and the Jets took over and went right to work.

With Coles back in the lineup, Pennington went long to McCareins up the right sideline for a 42-yard gain. Despite bobbling the ball, McCareins eventually collected and more than doubled Pennington’s first half passing total in the process. But the drive stalled and the chess match would continue as time ticked down in the third.

It was Graham’s eighth punt – a 40-yard boot into the South Florida evening – which was downed by linebacker Brad Kassell at the Miami one-yard line after a fantastic touchback saving deflection by Brad Smith. The Dolphins got a first down but Jones came on for another punt.

Taking over at their own 40, the Jets moved 56 yards on seven plays. Nugent finally put points on the board following forty-two minutes and thirty-five seconds of scoreless action. The critical play on the drive was a 28-yard pass interference call on Yeremiah Bell after the Miami DB knocked down McCareins on a deep ball.

But the score didn’t faze the home team. The Dolphins immediately answered with points of their own, grabbing the lead in the tight contest. Lemon stood poised in the pocket and connected with tight end Randy McMichael for a seven-yard score; it was Lemon’s first career touchdown pass.

Facing a deficit, the Jets began throwing haymakers off their own. Pennington found rhythm and led an 80-yard march, culminating it on a gorgeous 32-yard pass to Jerricho Cotchery. Pennington completed five of eight for 80 yards on the possession.

Moments later, Donnie Jones got off a poor punt on his tenth attempt. But the Dolphins caught a fortuitous bounce because the ball glanced off backup linebacker Brad Kassell, who was up field blocking. Long snapper John Denney got downfield for Miami and recovered at the Jets’ 42-yard line. That turnover set up Mare for a 25-yard field goal. Mare’s make created a 10-10 deadlock with 2:09 remaining in the fourth quarter.

"What do you expect? It was a Jets/Dolphins game. It always goes down to the end no matter what the records are," Pennington said. "It was an unbelievable game."

The stage is set for a huge game on New Year's Eve at the Meadowlands. If the Jets can take care of the struggling Raiders, they will return to the postseason.

“They are having some problems, but they still have a good team,” said veteran defensive end Shaun Ellis of the Raiders. “They have a good defense and they have some weapons over there, so we have to come ready to play.”

Scheduling Note: Next weekend's game between the Jets and the Raiders on December 31 will kickoff at 1:00 p.m. Eastern at the Meadowlands.

Post-Game Notes

Final Game Stats

[Sperm Edwards]

Leon Good for Late-Game Heroics

Published: 12-26-06

By John Beattie

John Beattie is a reporter for the Jets and contributes to newyorkjets.com.

Article Permalink: http://www.newyorkjets.com/articles/leon-good-for-late-game-heroics

On football’s primetime stage and in what was one of the most important moments of the Jets’ 2006 season, they turned to seemingly an unlikely hero. Rookie running back Leon Washington cracked the stout Miami defense in the closing seconds of a tied ballgame, setting the Green and White up for their ninth victory of the season.

Washington, who doubled up as the team’s punt returner, took his fourth reception of the evening 64 yards into the Dolphins’ red zone and Mike Nugent nailed a game-winning 30-yard field goal four plays later.

“We haven’t really completed a pretty good screen play all year long, and it was good to go out there and make that play. As an offense, we were really looking forward to hitting one,” said an excited Washington, who also accounted for 26 rushing yards. “Our offensive line did a great job selling it. We caught them in a blitz and Chad got me the ball. It was great play calling. All I was thinking was make a big play, and our kicker will make the field goal.”

Both offenses were slow out of the gates as the scoreboard remained fixed well into the third quarter. Washington and the rest of the Jets offense initially had trouble advancing the ball against the Dolphins defense on a waterlogged field, but the Florida native wasn’t about to disappoint.

“It was really good coming back home,” Washington said. “The last couple of times I came down here, playing Miami, we lost. Last year was my senior year in the bowl game, and we lost to Penn State.”

The Florida State product led the Jets with team-highs of 108 receiving yards and four receptions, but it wasn’t a completely easy homecoming for the Floridian. With less than ten minutes remaining in the second quarter, Washington absorbed a big hit from defensive back Michael Lehan after catching a lofted short pass from Chad Pennington. Courageously, the 5’8”, 202-pound back bounced right up and was in for the next offensive drive.

“Coach Mangini emphasizes this all year long that no matter who you are - you are obligated to make plays,” said Washington. “We understand the urgency and the significance of this game.”

Not only did the Christmas night win at South Beach give the Jets a sweep of the Dolphins for the season, it puts control completely in their hands when it comes to a postseason berth. By winning Monday, Jets’ fans don’t have to scoreboard watch next weekend because a win over the Raiders at home will automatically give the Green & White one of the two Wild Card spots.

“They’ve not just worked hard collectively - they’ve worked hard individually to get better with their personal preparations and to continually improve as a team,” Mangini said of his 9-6 Jets. “We focus on the things that we need to get better at and focus on making progress, and that is what we’ve done.”

Gameday Stats

Postgame Notes

[Sperm Edwards]

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/football/nfl/12/25/jets.dolphins.ap/index.html?eref=si_nfl

One for the road

Jets outlast 'Fins in quagmire, control playoff destiny

Posted: Monday December 25, 2006 11:52PM; Updated: Tuesday December 26, 2006 12:57AM

MIAMI (AP) -- Stymied for three quarters by steady rain, sloppy play and the Miami Dolphins, the New York Jets found even the simple task of catching a field-goal snap difficult.

But with the game on the line, and their playoff hopes in jeopardy, the Jets came up with the big plays they needed.

New York overcame the weather, a sputtering offense and two late scores by Miami to win 13-10 on Monday night.

"For us it was all about chipping away and waiting for our moment," Jets coach Eric Mangini said. "This was a game with tough conditions. We faced a lot of adversity."

All of the points came in the final 17:25. Miami kicked a tying field goal with 2:09 left, but on the Jets' next play, Leon Washington caught a short pass from Chad Pennington and broke loose for a 64-yard gain.

Four plays later, Mike Nugent kicked a 30-yarder with 10 seconds left. That meant the Jets (9-6) can clinch an AFC wild-card playoff berth if they beat Oakland (2-13) in their final regular-season game Sunday.

"We like controlling our own destiny and not having to rely on someone else to help us," defensive end Shaun Ellis said.

For the Dolphins (6-9), the defeat ensures the first losing season for Nick Saban in his 13 years as a college and NFL coach. Miami was eliminated from the playoff race a week ago.

"When it came to it, we just fell apart on defense," linebacker Zach Thomas said. "And they made great plays when they had to."

The rain resulted in a succession of errant and dropped passes -- and 18 punts. A mishandled snap spoiled a field goal try by New York. Dolphins cornerback Eddie Jackson left the game with a knee injury when he stumbled and fell on the slippery field without being hit.

When the Dolphins' scoreless streak reached six quarters, Cleo Lemon replaced Joey Harrington at quarterback to start the second half. A third-year pro, Lemon threw his first NFL touchdown pass and finished 11-for-16 for 104 yards.

"We decided to go with Cleo to see if he would give us a little bit of a spark," Saban said. "He did a decent job of moving the team a couple of times."

Miami's Ronnie Brown, back in the lineup after missing three games with a hand injury, rushed for 110 yards on 18 carries.

But in the fourth quarter, the Jets answered scores by the Dolphins with scoring drives of 80 and 68 yards.

"We didn't knock them out, but we might have scored a technical knockout," New York linebacker Jonathan Vilma said.

After Lemon hit Randy McMichael on a 7-yard touchdown pass to put the Dolphins ahead 7-3, New York regained the lead on Pennington's 31-yard scoring pass to Jerricho Cotchery with 7:51 to go.

Cotchery was initially ruled down at the 1-yard line, but the Jets challenged the spot, and following a review the play was ruled a touchdown.

A funny bounce then produced the game's only turnover -- and the tying field goal for Miami.

A short punt by the Dolphins took a backward hop before deflecting off the arm of Jets blocker Brad Kassell, and Miami's John Denney recovered at the Jets 42. Eight plays later, Olindo Mare kicked a 25-yard field goal.

Saban opted to kick rather than trying for a first down on fourth-and-1.

"Some guys wanted to go for it and some guys wanted to kick it," Lemon said. "When it's all said and done, Coach Saban's got to make that decision."

The game was an announced sellout, but because of the Christmas holiday, the bad weather and the Dolphins' disappointing season, the stadium was less than half full at the start.

For much of the game, the best plays for the Jets were scrambles by Pennington, who twice ran for first downs. His 15-yard gain in the third quarter sparked the game's first scoring drive, which produced a 22-yard field goal by Nugent.

Pennington finished 14-for-29 for 237 yards

The Jets mounted the best threat in a scoreless first half, driving 67 yards to the Miami 16. But when New York lined up for a 34-yard field goal try, the perfect snap slipped through the hands of holder Ben Graham and hit him in the helmet, giving the Dolphins possession.

Notes: Miami DB Eddie Jackson sustained a knee injury in the second quarter and was on crutches after the game. DB Andre Goodman aggravated a shoulder injury in the first quarter. DT Keith Traylor hurt his knee in the second half. ... New York CB Andre Dyson hurt his right leg in the third quarter. ... Former T Richmond Webb was inducted into the Dolphins Honor Roll at halftime. ... The starting time of Miami's game Sunday at Indianapolis was changed to 4:15 p.m. EST.

[Sperm Edwards]

http://blogs.trb.com/sports/football/jets/blog/2006/12/happiness_in_jets_land.html

Happiness in Jets Land

By Tom Rock

How tough is Laveranues Coles? I'll just leave it at that.

I was a little surprised by how happy the Jets were last night, and particularly surprised by Eric Mangini’s broad smiles. Yes, a win is a win. Yes, a December win in a meaningful game is even more special. And yes, beating the Dolphins in Miami is exhilarating. But there was a lot to frown about in this game, especially from an offensive standpoint. If Leon Washington doesn’t slip through the Miami secondary on a screen pass, the game could have gone into OT, where anything can happen.

Now it’s win and in, or to swipe the catchphrase from Sunday’s opponent, Just Win, Baby. There are some scenarios where the Jets can lose to the Raiders and still get in. But it gives me a headache thinking about all of the different scenarios. Besides, if the Jets lose to the Raiders in this game, they should forfeit their playoff berth. Traveling across the country on New Year’s Eve to finish a miserable season, I’d be surprised if the Raiders can find 45 players willing to get on the flight to New York. If I were a Raider, I might come down with a mysterious, season-ending injury right about now. I guess that’s why I’m on the other side of the press box glass.

I’ve been posting blogs the last few days but they haven’t been showing up. I guess the Blog Fairies were taking some time off for the holiday. Hopefully you can all read this one.

I was happy for Mike Nugent, the good-spirited kicker of the Jets who nailed his first game-winner. He’d missed his previous attempt last year against the Saints, a 53-yarder. Nugent’s leg seems to be getting strong and stronger as the year progresses, which is odd for kickers his size. They usually fade a bit down the stretch. Afterwards, Nugent said he just told himself it was any other kick before the game-winner. I always chuckle when players say that. By having to consciously remind themselves that it’s just another kick they are already admitting that it isn’t, trying to fool themselves. If it was just another kick, he wouldn’t need to remind himself of that. Anyway, just a pet peeve about one of sports’ many clichés.

Kevan Barlow played for the first time in a month in this game. Did you see him? He was the guy who kept running into the defensive wall. He said a few weeks ago that he felt as if he is playing on one leg, still recovering from the surgery he had during the offseason. He had 36 rushing yards on 18 carries, quite a lot of touches for a guy who wasn’t very productive.

Finally, Leon Washington said he was on his knees during Nugent’s last kick. As a player at Florida State, he’s seen his share of heartbreak on last-minute field goal attempts in Miami. This one went through, though, exorcising the Washington’s Curse of Bobby Bowden.

[SoFlaJets]

damn SE they're keeping you busy today......good job