Week Two Preview: Jets vs. Pats

[Maxman]

September 12, 2008

[Irish Jet]

I like the analysis but IMO the way to have success vs the Pats D is throwing early and often. I like our new, revamped O-line but I’d be lying if I said I’m not expecting them to struggle this week. The Pats have a huge, powerful front 7 and I can’t see us having much, if any success in the running game. One thing I noticed from last weeks Pats game that worried me, was Richard Seymour look DOMINANT. Something he hasn’t been for quite some time. I don’t think we’ll have much success running into Seymour, Wildfork and Warren to be honest. Now I know it was KC they were going up against but even so I was still impressed with the Pats up front.

Everyone knows were they are very weak, at DB. O’Neal actually looked good for them in week 1, but I still don’t rate him much. I’d be delighted if we could get him matched up with Cotchery. IMO it’s vital that Coles is ready to go in this game, he better make more of a contribution than he did last week. Favre should be more comfortable with the offence than he was last week, the offence is a work in progress and we should expect to see improvement every week. It won’t be easy and the Pats will be pumped in a big way for this game, we better be ready for the challenge. IMO we find out A LOT about how good we’ll be this season from the Pats game, even without Brady they present huge threats. If we can deal with them, I’ll be very impressed.

[00tonytone]

I think this game defines the season. How do the jets want to win the division if they cant beat the pats at home without brady . This is a pivital game if there ever was one. Who ever thinks pats will be lucky to win 4 games this year is crazy, they will be in the thick of things in December. They are not as good as they were with brady but they are still good. JETS are in for a battle.

[Garb]

1) The second game of a season never defines a season. That is silly - especially against a team that lost it's soul (Tom Brady).

2) Lawrence Maroney, eh? Nah - Sammy Morris will get more carries. Watch.

[Jack Straw]

Call me crazy but I have a feeling that Belichick is not going to change his gameplan much against the Jets. I can easily see Matt Cassell coming out of the gate and throwing upwards of 30 passes.

Interesting pick with David Harris vs. Lawrence Maroney as the matchup of the week.

In my opinion, this game will be won at the line of scrimmage. The Jets' offensive line has to control the Patriots front seven. I don't expect the Jets to gain much of push in the run-game, but they have to -- and i mean have to protect Favre. This game will be won in the air.

Let's get Dustin Kellen loose in the seam and test a shaky Patriots secondary.

Work the intermediate/short routes with Baker and expect a big day from Cotchery. I forsee a huge day from Favre -- close to 300 yards. You heard it here first.

[DMaynard]

Woody and D'Brick have to do a good job of pass protection against Vrabel and A. Thomas. If they do that, Favre will tear up the Pats secondary.

[Maxman]

Momentum. A quick score by the Jets, an early INT of Cassel, that would be good. This team has veterans but as a group they are just learning how to walk.

Setting the tone early would be a very good thing.

[lawngnome o-line]

Momentum. A quick score by the Jets, an early INT of Cassel, that would be good. This team has veterans but as a group they are just learning how to walk.

Setting the tone early would be a very good thing.

Not only that, but the fans in the Meadowlands would be deafening.

[joewilly]

Momentum. A quick score by the Jets, an early INT of Cassel, that would be good. This team has veterans but as a group they are just learning how to walk.

Setting the tone early would be a very good thing.

the only problem with a quick score is that most of you guys will miss it

[Maxman]

the only problem with a quick score is that most of you guys will miss it

I will be there in plenty of time for the flyover and pregame introductions. Wouldn't miss it!

[joewilly]

I will be there in plenty of time for the flyover and pregame introductions. Wouldn't miss it!

I don't get to many games but I luv gettin there early & watchin warmups.

[drago]

i want to see this game taken out of Brett's hands early. Have him open the run up like he did with Grant last year and tell him to sit back, hand off, mix in a few play action passes. If brett has under 27 attempts, the Jets win. If it's more, the game will be very close.

Remember last year when Leon got loose for a 50 yard gain off left tackle? Expect more of that. Leon is the back that the Patriots should fear much more than the bruising (LOL) thomas jones. Jones might be able to grind out decent yards but with leon going against an old linebacking corps and secondary, look for him to slip through gaps for big gains.

Prediction: Brett starts the game with a few drives of 75% passing and then is relegated to hand-off duty.

[Maxman]

I don't get to many games but I luv gettin there early & watchin warmups.

I always imagined that seeing grown men stretch while standing on fake grass was probably your thing.

[BroadwayJ667]

for the Jets to win they have to shut down NE ability to run, NE will be going to a more balanced offense, if the Jets take away the run, it will make things more difficult

[flgreen]

September 12, 2008

[Maxman]

Hey flgreen,

You are just figuring out this is a tough crowd now? Don't you know that if we fielded our top 11 men we would probably go like 13 and 3.

We choose to post because we can better help people with our words. But we are experts because we could play if we wanted to.

[SickJetFan]

Momentum. A quick score by the Jets, an early INT of Cassel, that would be good. This team has veterans but as a group they are just learning how to walk.

Setting the tone early would be a very good thing.

please lulliby me to sleep with sweet jets victories......

[flgreen]

Hey flgreen,

You are just figuring out this is a tough crowd now? Don't you know that if we fielded our top 11 men we would probably go like 13 and 3.

We choose to post because we can better help people with our words. But we are experts because we could play if we wanted to.

Well I know I could................For sure.

I would to, except I couldn't find a jersey big enough to fit over my belly

[war ensemble]

I suppose I'm the only one that views Harris' supposed "quiet" game as a positive. Other than the fact that he was really solid out there (11 tackles, no bad mistakes), it also shows we don't need our young MLB to consistently put up ridiculous stats to get a victory. I have no problem with letting Harris sit around the 11 tackle, no forced turnover mark if everyone surrounding him is playing at the same level. Last week it wasn't necessary for Harris to show up big time because now we have an overall solid D, last year we needed those big games out of him because the rest of the guys sucked.

Good article, as always by the way. Thanks for the read!

[rick34125]

nice job tom, but I'm with IJ. I think favre is going to come out throwing the ball alot to open up the running game. I also expect that Cassel will be scrambling a lot so the Jets will need to put a spy on him to keep him from gaining ridiculous yardage.

this is going to be a close game that will probably be decided by a turn over or a big play. interesting that both the jets and pats games last week came down to the wire. i expect it to be the same this week.

go JETS.

[DMaynard]

I suppose I'm the only one that views Harris' supposed "quiet" game as a positive. Other than the fact that he was really solid out there (11 tackles, no bad mistakes), it also shows we don't need our young MLB to consistently put up ridiculous stats to get a victory. I have no problem with letting Harris sit around the 11 tackle, no forced turnover mark if everyone surrounding him is playing at the same level. Last week it wasn't necessary for Harris to show up big time because now we have an overall solid D, last year we needed those big games out of him because the rest of the guys sucked.

Good article, as always by the way. Thanks for the read!

You are not alone. Neither is Harris this year.

[Irish Jet]

I suppose I'm the only one that views Harris' supposed "quiet" game as a positive. Other than the fact that he was really solid out there (11 tackles, no bad mistakes), it also shows we don't need our young MLB to consistently put up ridiculous stats to get a victory. I have no problem with letting Harris sit around the 11 tackle, no forced turnover mark if everyone surrounding him is playing at the same level. Last week it wasn't necessary for Harris to show up big time because now we have an overall solid D, last year we needed those big games out of him because the rest of the guys sucked.

Good article, as always by the way. Thanks for the read!

I thought Harris only had 5 tackles, anyways. As much as I love Harris as a player he did have one pretty big mistake, where he missed Ronnie Brown 1 on 1 in the open field, which then allowed him to get out of bounds (Although the call was questionable). Harris, along with any MLB, should make that tackle. I thought he was good on Sunday, not great but solid. He can't miss tackles like that though in clutch situations.

[BP]

1) The second game of a season never defines a season. That is silly - especially against a team that lost it's soul (Tom Brady).

2) Lawrence Maroney, eh? Nah - Sammy Morris will get more carries. Watch.

Sorry Garb, you'd be right if Brady was playing, but since Cassell is the QB, that's absolute horse****. this game is like Midway in WWII (Turning point). the Patriots don't know what they have in Cassell and this is a chance for the Jets to finally kick their ass and put them in a tail spin for the season.

[faba]

Sorry Garb, you'd be right if Brady was playing, but since Cassell is the QB, that's absolute horse****. this game is like Midway in WWII (Turning point). the Patriots don't know what they have in Cassell and this is a chance for the Jets to finally kick their ass and put them in a tail spin for the season.

We need to make a statement that the run of NE winning this division is over- starting sunday.

[slats]

Prediction: Brett starts the game with a few drives of 75% passing and then is relegated to hand-off duty.

Against the fish, the Jets almost played-not-to-lose right into a loss. I hope they don't go into the same shell against the Pats. I think the Jets -and everyone else in the league- should do what they can to run the score up on Beliprick's Tomless team.

[12over4]

Couldn't find a prediction thread so I'll just post it here:

I say 21-14 Pats

Close throughout

Predicted Stats

Cassel: 19-28

164 Yards

2 TD

Maroney.Morris combine for 120 yards and Jordan pounds one in from the goalline

Jets

Father time

20-30

210 yards

2 Td

1 INT

Thomas Jones 80 yards

As for the actual game. Cassel hits Randy with a toss to the back of the endzone to give us a lead with 4 minutes left. Favre leads the Jets to the 50 but throws one of his trademarked picks to Deltha O'Neal in the endzone to end the game.

Jets fans collectively pelt Favre with beer bottles

[Maxman]

Couldn't find a prediction thread so I'll just post it here:

I say 21-14 Pats

Close throughout

Predicted Stats

Cassel: 19-28

164 Yards

2 TD

Maroney.Morris combine for 120 yards and Jordan pounds one in from the goalline

Jets

Father time

20-30

210 yards

2 Td

1 INT

Thomas Jones 80 yards

As for the actual game. Cassel hits Randy with a toss to the back of the endzone to give us a lead with 4 minutes left. Favre leads the Jets to the 50 but throws one of his trademarked picks to Deltha O'Neal in the endzone to end the game.

Jets fans collectively pelt Favre with beer bottles

The Pats might win. But predicting that Favre will end the game with a pick while Cassel has a splendid day, well that is a ballsy prediction. But we will just talk about it on Monday.

[Pyper]

The key to this game, like many others, will be turnovers.

Both teams have the ability to exploit weaknesses in the other and create a bunch of turnovers, especially if the weather is bad as expected.

When the Jets have the ball:

- Favre has always been a turnover machine and right now he's far from comfortable in the Jets offensive system. His command of that offense is still relatively limited, especially in terms of what it likely will be later on in the season. The Patriots need to take advantage of that. You've got to figure that for a guy to learn the system on the fly like Favre has been doing, he's going to favor a small amount of audibles and play calls. Hopefully there is enough film of him from the Miami game and preseason to figure out what his preferences are. If the Pats can take those away and put some pressure on him, they should be able to exploit his recklessness.

When the Patriots have the ball:

- Cassel has the physical tools and supporting cast to excel this season. The question mark lies in his decision making. Can he avoid the costly mistakes and protect the football? Can he identify his 2nd and 3rd options and avoid locking in on only his primary receiver? There have been times in the past few preseasons where Cassel has looked very promising. There have been times where he's even looked very Brady like. But there have also been times where he makes mistakes and throws picks.

One of the interesting questions many have tried to guess at is the level of confidence that Belichick really has in Cassel. Many experts expect the Patriots to simplify their offense and focus on the running game. Depending on the weather, the game plan utilized by Belichick will be a clear indication of the level of confidence he has in Cassel. If the weather is fine, a confident Belichick would likely go against conventional wisdom and come out in an empty backfield and start throwing the ball all over the place. Whereas if the Pats try to go with a conservative offense then that basically is an acknowledgment that Belichick doesn't believe Cassel is ready.

Of course, if the weather is miserable, all of this is meaningless. If the weather is bad, it would only make sense to play it more conservatively.

[Maxman]

The key to this game, like many others, will be turnovers.

Both teams have the ability to exploit weaknesses in the other and create a bunch of turnovers, especially if the weather is bad as expected.

When the Jets have the ball:

- Favre has always been a turnover machine and right now he's far from comfortable in the Jets offensive system. His command of that offense is still relatively limited, especially in terms of what it likely will be later on in the season. The Patriots need to take advantage of that. You've got to figure that for a guy to learn the system on the fly like Favre has been doing, he's going to favor a small amount of audibles and play calls. Hopefully there is enough film of him from the Miami game and preseason to figure out what his preferences are. If the Pats can take those away and put some pressure on him, they should be able to exploit his recklessness.

When the Patriots have the ball:

- Cassel has the physical tools and supporting cast to excel this season. The question mark lies in his decision making. Can he avoid the costly mistakes and protect the football? Can he identify his 2nd and 3rd options and avoid locking in on only his primary receiver? There have been times in the past few preseasons where Cassel has looked very promising. There have been times where he's even looked very Brady like. But there have also been times where he makes mistakes and throws picks.

One of the interesting questions many have tried to guess at is the level of confidence that Belichick really has in Cassel. Many experts expect the Patriots to simplify their offense and focus on the running game. Depending on the weather, the game plan utilized by Belichick will be a clear indication of the level of confidence he has in Cassel. If the weather is fine, a confident Belichick would likely go against conventional wisdom and come out in an empty backfield and start throwing the ball all over the place. Whereas if the Pats try to go with a conservative offense then that basically is an acknowledgment that Belichick doesn't believe Cassel is ready.

Of course, if the weather is miserable, all of this is meaningless. If the weather is bad, it would only make sense to play it more conservatively.

Favre is a turnover machine. Cassel has all the physical tools to excel this season. Man this is getting better and better.

I will take Favre learning the plays vs a guy who was never good enough to play any day of the week.

[Pyper]

Favre is a turnover machine. Cassel has all the physical tools to excel this season. Man this is getting better and better.

I will take Favre learning the plays vs a guy who was never good enough to play any day of the week.

1) Favre has always been a high risk - high reward type of player. Sometimes that results in sensational plays and sometimes that results in 6 interception games like against the Rams in the '01 playoffs.

We're talking about a guy who threw 29 INT's just three years ago. He's thrown 21 or more INT's five times in his career and oh, by the way holds the NFL record for most INT's in a career.

2) Cassel does have the physical tools. He has a strong arm and he's a pretty good runner as well. Coming out of high school there were a few colleges that recruited him as a DB. At USC, he also played some TE after he got beat out by Leinart. He was also a pretty good baseball player and was drafted by the Oakland A's. He's an athletic guy. Yeah, he's got the physical tools. Only time can tell whether he's got the emotional poise, vision, and decision making skills as well.

[Maxman]

1) Favre has always been a high risk - high reward type of player. Sometimes that results in sensational plays and sometimes that results in 6 interception games like against the Rams in the '01 playoffs.

We're talking about a guy who threw 29 INT's just three years ago. He's thrown 21 or more INT's five times in his career and oh, by the way holds the NFL record for most INT's in a career.

2) Cassel does have the physical tools. He has a strong arm and he's a pretty good runner as well. Coming out of high school there were a few colleges that recruited him as a DB. At USC, he also played some TE after he got beat out by Leinart. He was also a pretty good baseball player and was drafted by the Oakland A's. He's an athletic guy. Yeah, he's got the physical tools. Only time can tell whether he's got the emotional poise, vision, and decision making skills as well.

I understand that about Favre. My point was that reading your little preview made it sound like the Patriots had some kind of QB advantage.

Cassel is 7 years away from his last start. He has great pedigree. The problem is he should have been playing baseball. His little league world series stats are almost as relevant because they were just as long ago.

Can the Patriots win? Hell yeah. The friggin team is stacked. I just laughed at the analysis of the QB position comparing the two, that's all. If the Pats win it will be because they are loaded (you alluded to this yourself). So we are in agreement there. Favre isn't a concern for the Jets in the least, interceptions aside. We have seen the alternative and we will take our chances with Brett.

[Pyper]

I understand that about Favre. My point was that reading your little preview made it sound like the Patriots had some kind of QB advantage.

Cassel is 7 years away from his last start. He has great pedigree. The problem is he should have been playing baseball. His little league world series stats are almost as relevant because they were just as long ago.

Can the Patriots win? Hell yeah. The friggin team is stacked. I just laughed at the analysis of the QB position comparing the two, that's all. If the Pats win it will be because they are loaded (you alluded to this yourself). So we are in agreement there. Favre isn't a concern for the Jets in the least, interceptions aside. We have seen the alternative and we will take our chances with Brett.

I never made any judgment about which team has the advantage at QB.

The Jets have the experienced QB who's inexperienced in their system.

The Pats have the inexperienced QB who's experienced in their system.

How it all plays out is anybodies guess. My expectation is that the QB who protects the football best will probably win. Not that that's ground breaking news or anything. That's usually how most games play out.

[Smizzy]

Matchup of the Week : Nick Mangold Vs Vince Wilfat

I don't see a bigger matchup on the field the Jets need to win.

[Irish Jet]

Couldn't find a prediction thread so I'll just post it here:

I say 21-14 Pats

Close throughout

Predicted Stats

Cassel: 19-28

164 Yards

2 TD

Maroney.Morris combine for 120 yards and Jordan pounds one in from the goalline

Jets

Father time

20-30

210 yards

2 Td

1 INT

Thomas Jones 80 yards

As for the actual game. Cassel hits Randy with a toss to the back of the endzone to give us a lead with 4 minutes left. Favre leads the Jets to the 50 but throws one of his trademarked picks to Deltha O'Neal in the endzone to end the game.

Jets fans collectively pelt Favre with beer bottles

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