What more is there to say about the New York Jets that hasn’t been a hot button media issue all summer long? A disappointing 8-8 season after two straight AFC Championship losses, and innumerable amounts of Super Bowl guarantees by head coach Rex Ryan, has led to an offseason overhaul of the way the New York Jets go about their business.

Offensive Coordinator Brian Schottenheimer was replaced by former Dolphins head coach Tony Sparano, who plans to reimplement a run heavy offense akin to the style the Jets used with backs Thomas Jones and LaDainian Tomlinson in Ryan’s first year at the helm. Third year running back Shonn Greene is primed for a breakout season with the workload shifting entirely in his favor after Tomlinson’s retirement, but questions remain about his durability and the offensive line in front of him.

Speaking of that offensive line, this Jets squad is a far cry from the 2009 crew that boasted five of the league’s best. Despite the presence of pro-bowlers D’Brickashaw Ferguson and Nick Mangold, the offensive line struggled mightily last year and into this preseason. This prompted Ryan to bench starter Wayne Hunter in favor of undrafted rookie Austin Howard, leading to Hunter’s jettison to St. Louis in return for former first-round draft pick, but all around underachiever, Jason Smith. Quarterback protection and forward push in the ground attack will be a major issue for the Jets this season.

That brings us to the quarterback situation. Beleaguered starter Mark Sanchez has had his ups and downs as a pro since being the Jets first pick in the 2009 draft. After riding the Jets stellar defense and potent running game to the playoffs for two straight seasons, Sanchez’s flaws were highlighted last season, coughing up three straight losses to close out the season with far too many turnovers from their franchise quarterback. It didn’t help that a public squabble with star receiver Santonio Holmes lasted well into the offseason.

Despite the shaky play, Sanchez earned a contract extension after the Jets unsuccessfully flirted with the opportunity to bring in Peyton Manning. Shortly after, the Jets brought in a backup quarterback by the name of Tim Tebow, you may have heard of him. The Jets management have stayed true to the idea Tebow is Sanchez’s backup thus far, and was brought here to help the team win in that capacity alone, but owner Woody Johnson may not have accounted for the deafening chants their much heralded backup will receive after Sanchez’s first costly interception.

The Jets garnered more attention on the issue after operating their wildcat packages with Tim Tebow in secrecy, shrouded from the media and their preseason opponents.

After three preseason games, the Jets are the only team in the NFL to not score a touchdown, an unenviable accolade. They are the first team in 35 years to go three preseason games without scoring a touchdown. Whether they’re saving their big play moments for the regular season, or are simply an anemic offensive unit remains to be seen. One thing remains consistent however: Love ‘em or hate ‘em, you’ll certainly be seeing a lot of Jets coverage this upcoming season.

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The Miami Dolphins (6-10) refused to pass up a golden opportunity to end the season of the hated New York Jets (8-8), on New Year’s Day. A 19-17 victory by the Dolphins knocked New York out of contention for the sixth and final AFC postseason seed – meaning there will once again be no Super Bowl title for Gang Green, despite coach Rex Ryan’s preseason prediction.

But that didn’t sway Ryan to take the high road for a change. “I’m always going to chase the Super Bowl,” said Ryan. “I know I get criticized for it beyond belief, but if you don’t, then you’re probably a loser, OK? I’m not a loser.”

Two straight losses following an 8-5 start put the Jets in a position where they needed a significant amount of help to make a playoff run for the third consecutive season under Ryan. New York understood that a win against the Dolphins would be meaningless unless it was accompanied by losses for Tennessee, Cincinnati, and Denver/Oakland.

Scoreboard watching was unnecessary once this one was all said and done. New York had a slight advantage coming into the ball game, as 1,000 yard runner Reggie Bush and Pro Bowl offensive tackle Jake Long were both unable to play due to knee and arm injuries, respectively. Bush’s 5.0 yards per carry was the highest average among 1,000 yard rushers this season.

Fourth year running back, Steve Slaton, replaced Bush and had 55 yards on 11 carries. The Jets had the upper hand on the ground with 129 combined yards in comparison to only 82 for the Dolphins. LaDanian Tomlinson made history yet again, as he passed former Steeler great, Jerome Bettis, for 5^th on the all time rushing list with 56 yards on the day.

A 44 yard Dan Carpenter field goal gave Miami an early 3-0 lead with 9:31 remaining in the first. Mark Sanchez responded with a one yard play action touchdown pass to tight end Justin Keller to put the Jets ahead 7-3 with just under 6 minutes in the quarter. The drive covered 77 yards in 8 plays.

Unable to take advantage of an Antonio Cromartie interception later in the quarter, the Jets defense would nonetheless hold Miami at bay and allow their offense to extend the lead to 10-3 with a 31 yard field goal late in the second quarter. Safety Brodney Pool’s interception with 25 seconds remaining in the half set the Jets up at their own 45, giving them a chance to take a two possession lead before entering the locker room.

A crucial interception by defensive lineman Randy Starks quickly erased Matt Moore’s interception. Miami suddenly cut the lead to 10-6 with a 58 yard field goal as time expired. It was an atrocious first half passing-wise. Sanchez and Matt Moore had a total of just 106 yards while throwing the 3 interceptions.

Miami took their first lead of the game in the 4^th with a record-setting drive. It was the longest possession of the season in regards to both time and amount of plays. The Dolphins went 94 yards downfield in 12 minutes and 29 seconds. A one yard 3^rd and goal touchdown pass to Charles Clay on the 21^st play put them ahead 13-10 with 10:27 remaining in regulation.

“I didn’t realize how long it was,” said Moore. “It was unbelievable, just a great job on everybody’s part.” Not since 1993 had the Jets given up a drive consisting of 21 plays. A 41 yard field goal made the score 16-10 Miami with 7:11 left to go following another Starks interception of Sanchez.

New York moved the ball all the way down to the Miami 10 on the next possession, but Sanchez’s third interception of the afternoon cost them mightily. Linebacker Marvin Mitchell recorded the pick and returned the ball back to the Jets 36. Miami tacked on another field goal to take a two possession lead, 19-10 with 2:32 on the clock.

Brandon Marshall sealed the win for the Dolphins with an onside kick recovery after a late Jets touchdown. Receiver Santonio Holmes appeared to quit on his team and was benched during the drive. This marked the first time in 95 career games where he did not record a reception.

New York finishes the season at .500 and goes into the offseason with several unanswered questions concerning their leadership and identity. The Dolphins now know what they’re capable of, winning 6 of their final 9 after an 0-7 start.

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Aside from having to call a timeout before ever running an offensive play and losing safety Jim Leonhard to a potential season-ending knee injury, the New York Jets got exactly what they needed on Sunday. The team won an easy game over the Kansas City Chiefs and got help from the rest of the N.F.L. as Cincinnati, Oakland, and Tennessee all lost, putting the Jets in control of their playoff destiny with three weeks remaining.

Aside from the timeout, the Jets offense came out firing and never stopped. For the second straight game, the Jets offense scored on their first drive and put up 30+ points, cruising to victory over the Chiefs 37-10 to move into the final wild card spot. Mark Sanchez became the first quarterback in Jets history to throw for two touchdowns and run for two touchdowns.

The Jets have been slow starters all season rarely scoring in the first quarter let along their first drive, but were able to rebound after an inexcusable timeout was called due to the wrong personnel being on the field at the start of the first drive. They scored 28 points in the first half and the defense dominated the hurting Chiefs holding them to just four total yards in the first half,

Sanchez finished the game 13 of 21 for 181 yards before Mark Brunell came in to finish the game. Shonn Greene led the way on the ground rushing for a season-high 129 yards and a score while catching three balls for 58 yards. LaDainian Tomlinson and Santonio Holmes caught touchdowns from Sanchez and the Jets won their third straight improving to 8-5 overall and 6-1 at home.

Tyler Palko got sacked five times and finished 3 of 8 for 11 yards in the first half and 16 of 32 for 195 yards, one touchdown and one interception. During the worst part, the Chiefs got flagged five times for 81 yards during the Jets’ final touchdown drive. One of the flags was on head coach Todd Haley for unsportsmanlike conduct.

“That generally gets you beat,” said Haley, who wouldn’t elaborate on what he said to the officials. “The one thing we can’t do is lose our composure on calls.” Sanchez capped the first drive with a one-yard touchdown run and the Jets never looked back. He finished an 11 play, 77-yard drive to set the tone for the rest of the game.

After Leonhard made an interception, was injured, then carted off the field, Sanchez found Greene for 36 yards. Two plays later, Sanchez found Holmes for a four-yard strike to make it 14-3.Greene’s seven-yard touchdown run gave the Jets a 21-3 lead and Tomlinson made it 28-3 less than two minutes later on a screen pass from Sanchez near the end of the half.

The Chiefs’ lone scoring drive came when Jerheme Urban caught a 24-yard touchdown pass to make it 35-10, but the Chiefs didn’t have much else to smile about. Sione Pouha finished things off by tackling Jackie Battle for a safety late in the game.

New York is now in control of its destiny with only three weeks left in the season. They travel to Philadelphia to face the Giants and finish up on the road against Miami. Kansas City heads back home to face the undefeated Packers, and then finishes the season with games against Oakland and at Denver.

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Don’t let the score fool you; this game was closer than it appears on paper. For the second straight week, the New York Jets played three quarters of mediocre football and picked things up to win the game in the fourth quarter. Led by Shonn Greene’s three touchdowns, the Jets managed to win another close game to put them right into the thick of the AFC Wildcard race.

It took a big play from Aaron Maybin to spark the team when he sacked Rex Grossman, and forced a fumble that set up one of Greene’s two touchdowns. The other big play came on the series before when Mark Sanchez found Santonio Holmes for a 30-yard touchdown pass to put the Jets ahead for good with just under five minutes to play.

With the Jets needing to win out to make the playoffs, Sanchez again came up big when it mattered most. The win keeps the Jets in the hunt for the last wildcard spot as they got some help with Oakland and Cincinnati losing. ”It tells us we have to get better,” Rex Ryan said. “Sometimes, you don’t like it to come down to that.”

Getting better is an understatement, as the Jets only had 168 total yards after three quarters against the Redskins, a team that has lost seven of eight games. Sanchez only had 165 yards on 19 of 32 passing and one touchdown, but didn’t throw an interception for the first time in five games. For the second straight week, the offensive line didn’t allow a sack.

Greene contributed with 88 yards on 22 carries and saw much of the workload despite LaDainian Tomlinson returning after missing two weeks with a knee injury. ”It was rough the first half,” Greene said. “But we just kept together and kept plugging away.” Grossman ran 19 of 46 for 221 yards, and had one interception and afumble that halted any chance of Washington mounting a comeback.

The fumble was recovered by Calvin Pace, and Greene turned it into six with a nine-yard run out of the wildcat. ”That was just one of those situations where we knew as a defense it was crunch time,” said Maybin, “We’ve been in those situations.” The Jets were trailing 16-13 with just under eight minutes to go, but a hit-or-miss kickoff was returned to midfield.That’s when Sanchez scrambled to avoid the sack, and completed a pass on third and four to Greene for 10 yards. Two plays later, he found Holmes wide open for the long score.

A bright spot for the Redskins, Fred Davis, who has been having a great season, had six catches for 99 yards. After the game, news broke that both he and left tackle, Trent Williams, are going to be suspended for the rest of the season for breaking the NFL’s substance abuse policy.

Rookie running back Roy Helu also had a good game rushing for 100 yards and a touchdown on 23 carries. His score came at the beginning of the game to put Washington up 7-0. The Jets came right back with a 17 play, 74-yard drive to score the tying score. With this second late surge in a row, Ryan thinks the Jets are on their way to their third straight playoff appearance.

“We know where we think we’re going,” he said. “More confident than 100 percent? I don’t know about that.”

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The Jets are mathematically still in the thick of the AFC wild card race, but if they don’t improve their play it’s not going to matter what the numbers say. Coming off a victory over the Bills in a must-win game, the Jets look to keep things rolling when they travel to FedEx to face the Washington Redskins on Sunday.

New York narrowly avoided a loss and possibly the end of their season when Mark Sanchez found Santonio Holmes for the game winning touchdown with just over a minute left last week against the Buffalo Bills. While they got the win it was hardly a pretty game as Sanchez struggled, despite throwing for a career high four touchdowns, and the defense had trouble stopping a Bills offense which was without its best player in running back Fred Jackson.

Their play wasn’t a good sign for a team likely forced to win at least four of their last five games, if not all, to have a shot at the final playoff spot in the AFC. For the Jets to have success down the stretch, they’ll have to rely on Sanchez to improve his play and lead the team. He completed 48.6 percent of his passes for only 180 yards last week.

The once feared defense allowed the Bills to drive 90 yards down the field for the score earlier in the game, and almost let Ryan Fitzpatrick lead the Bills down the field in less than a minute for the game winning score. Had Stevie Johnson made a wide-open catch on a play during that drive, the Bills probably would’ve scored and won the game.

“We have to keep improving, there’s no question,” Jets coach Rex Ryan said. “We’re not going to win and we’re not going to reach our goal if we don’t get better. But we definitely plan on getting better.”

“It is funny how if we make a mistake, we’re horrible and it’s, `Oh, they’re terrible,” Ryan said. “That could be bad luck there, too. But if we make a play, it’s, `Oh, we’re just lucky.’ So, maybe it’s the green (team colors). I don’t know. I hope karma is with us. I hope we continue to be lucky, and we’ll take that.

“The old saying, `I’d rather be lucky than good.’ I’d rather be both, and I think we are.” The Jets are hoping for luck, and that they gained momentum heading into the game Sunday because their track record against the ‘Skins isn’t good. The Jets are 1-8 all time versus Washington.

Washington also hopes to keep some momentum going, coming off a close win over Seattle to snap a six game losing streak. The Redskins came back from 10 down in the fourth to score 16 unanswered points. ”That’s what you’re in this game to do, is to win,” Washington coach Mike Shanahan said. “But at the same time, when you’re around a football team that’s giving you everything they’ve got, you feel good.

“That’s why I feel good about the character of this football team, and it was nice to find a way to win because they deserved to win. Our players have been working extremely hard, and hopefully we can keep it going.”

Rex Grossman is coming off of one of his best performances of the season completing over 73 percent of his passes and racking up 314 yards. To add to that, rookie running back Roy Helu earned himself the start this week rushing for 108 yards and a touchdown last week. He also caught seven passes for 54 yards as well.

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It wasn’t as easy for the New York Jets in their second game with the Buffalo Bills, but the end result was the same. The Jets won a critical game and kept their playoff hopes alive. Led by Mark Sanchez and his career high four touchdown passes, the Jets escaped Sunday’s game with a win when Sanchez found Santonio Holmes for a 16-yard score with just over a minute left to keep the Jets in the thick of the AFC playoff race.

“He’s at his best in big moments,” coach Rex Ryan said. This was as big a moment as the Jets have had all season and with the win they now have only five more to go. The sentiment through the Jets locker room this week has been that they have to win in order to make it to the post season. It was looking like that was going to end with the first game when Dave Rayner hit a 53-yard field goal to put the Bills up 24-21.

Sanchez then led the Jets down the field, the key play coming on a third and 11 from the Bills 36 where Sanchez found Plaxico Burress along the sideline. Burress reached up and made an amazing one handed catch for 18 yards and the first down. ”It was crazy,” Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis said of the catch. “He’s 6-foot-5 and he’s got those ‘Go-Go-Gadget’ arms. It was probably one of the best catches I’ve seen in a while.”

Sanchez ran a sneak to assure there would be no challenge and then on the next play rolled out right and found Holmes in the end zone for the go ahead score. Though posting a career high in touchdown passes, Sanchez was far from great. He finished 17 of 35 for 180 yards and a pick, but when things mattered most, he prevailed.

His Bills counterpart, Ryan Fitzpatrick, bounced back from a streak of bad games to go 26 of 39 for 264 yards and three touchdowns, but couldn’t manage one more at the end. Fitzpatrick found a wide open Stevie Johnson, but Johnson dropped the pass. He also missed Johnson in the end zone as he threw behind him and the catch couldn’t be made.

Johnson made headlines for other reasons than just the dropped pass. He scored a touchdown late in the first half and to celebrate mocked shooting himself in the thigh, clearly a shot at Plaxico Burress who had accidentally shot himself in the leg in a nightclub in 2008 when he was with the Giants.

He then continued by mocking the “flight” celebration many of the Jets use after they score and fell to the ground which got a flag for 15 yards and ended up leading to the Jets tying the game back up 14-14. ”I was just having fun and part of having fun ended up being a penalty and a touchdown for the Jets,” Johnson said. “It was a stupid decision by myself.”

“I’ve seen worse, and I’ve heard worse,” Burress said of Johnson’s celebration. “So, it doesn’t bother me at all. The result I’m looking at is we won the football game.”

The Jets have won their first game and look to continue their streak for the playoffs as they head down to Washington to square off with quarterback troubled Redskins. The Bills, now losers of four straight games look to snap the streak as they head home to face Matt Hasselback and the Tennessee Titans.
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If the Bills’ season does not turn around, they will look back to Week 9 when they faced the New York Jets and were defeated in front of their home crowd. Going into Week 12, the Bills have a chance to stop the bleeding and keep themselves in the wild card race if they can muster a win over the same New York Jets.

The Bills have lost three straight and are facing a Jets team that is trying to avoid their own third straight loss when the teams square off Sunday at MetLife Stadium.

During this tough stretch, the Bills have only managed to score 26 points which is nothing compared to the team scoring 30 points a game through their first 7 games. To make things worse, running back Fred Jackson, who was amidst a career year with 934 yards good for third in the league, was lost for the season when he broke a bone in his left leg last week.

The Bills now turn to former first round pick, C.J. Spiller, to carry the load in the running game. Spiller has been somewhat of an underachiever, only showing some promise in the return game, but not so much out of the backfield. The real key for the Bills comes with quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick who since signing a new contract three weeks ago has not played up to it. “We’re trying to figure out some answers and looking to see some results this week,” Fitzpatrick said.

In the past six games, Fitzpatrick has thrown 11 interceptions. His favorite target, wide receiver Stevie Johnson, who only has seven catches during this losing streak and when facing the Jets, has been another victim of Revis Island. He has 11 catches for 187 yards and a touchdown in the past three meetings with the Jets.

The Jets, like the Bills, have also been reeling as of late. Two weeks ago, the Jets were riding a three game winning streak heading into a game at home against New England for first place in the AFC East. They not only got blown out of the water in that game, but also turned around and lost to the Tim Tebow led Denver Broncos four days later.

They now find themselves two games out of first behind the Patriots and in serious danger of not making the playoffs at all. There is hope that another win over the Bills will be just what they need to turn things around. They have been here before, having to finish up the season strong to make the playoffs. “I think everyone kind of feels like it’s now or never,” safety Jim Leonhard said.

“We have to play well, and we have to play well now.” The Jets schedule definitely favors them, as the New York Giants are currently the only remaining team the Jets will face that currently has a winning record. “In this game, you don’t have time to feel sorry for yourself,” linebacker Bart Scott said. “You have to move on, and you have to get ready to play.”

This is a good opportunity for us to get on the right track and try to go on a roll because we have to. We can’t afford to lose any more games.” Just as it is for the Bills, the Jets will need quarterback Mark Sanchez to step up his play, which has hardly been NFL quality the past two games.

He has an NFL high of three interceptions returned for touchdowns, two of those coming in the past two games. Last time the Jets and Bills faced off, Sanchez was 20 of 28 for 230 yards with one TD and one interception, but the Jets were able to manhandle the Bills with their physical play at the line on both sides of the ball.

Running back Shonn Greene, who left the game in Denver and never returned, looks to be okay and is expected to play Sunday. The Jets will need a repeat performance of the game in Week 9 if they want to get the ball rolling, as they aim to make a late season run at a wild card spot and into the playoffs.

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All is where people thought it would be at this point in the season. The New England Patriots are 1^st in the AFC East and the New York Jets are chasing them for the divisional title as usual. Led by Tom Brady’s three touchdown passes, two which went to tight end Rob Gronkowski, the Patriots moved into sole possession of first place in the AFC East with a convincing victory over the Jets at MetLife stadium on Sunday Night.

Brady finished 26 of 39 with 329 yards and the three scores, the biggest which came after the Jets pulled within a score 23-16 early in the fourth quarter. Brady led the team on an 84 yard drive capped by an 8 yard touchdown catch by Deion Branch who burned nickel back Kyle Wilson.

The victory was sealed with linebacker Rob Ninkovich intercepted Mark Sanchez on the next possession and returned it 12 yards for the score. The game was for first place in the East, and the Patriots cruised, snapping their two game losing streak and the Jets three game winning streak, while sweeping the season series.

The Bills entered Sunday tied for first, but were blown out in Dallas earlier 44-7. For the Jets this marked their first home loss of the season entering the game 4-0 at home. Coach Rex Ryan insisted that his team had greatly improved since losing to the pats a month ago in New England, but tonight wasn’t indicative of that. The Jets still have a lot to do if they want to take over the AFC East.

All day the Jets secondary had no answer for Rob Gronkowski who finished with 8 catches and 113 yards and kicker Stephen Gostkowski was good on his three attempts. The Patriots, who ranked last in the league coming into the game in sacks, saw Andre Carter collect 4 ½ alone as the Patriots were in Mark Sanchez’s face all game.

Sanchez had a dreadful game. He finished 20 of 39 for 306 yards a touchdown and two interceptions. He was also sacked five times. A 7 yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress had the Jets right back in the game, but then Brady took over leading the Patriots down the field for a 13 play 84 yard drive using a no-huddle offense to keep the Jets off balance. The drive ate up half of the fourth quarter.

The key play came when Joe McKnight bobbled a muffed punt which set up a field goal. Isaiah Trufant had two chances to recover the punt, and Donald Strickland who let the ball squirt out of his hands, failed to recover the punt which eventually was recovered by Niko Koutouvides at the Jets 13.

The Patriots capitalized with another field goal to increase the lead. They got the ball right back when a Sanchez pass went off Shonn Greene’s hands and was deflected by Jerod Mayo into Ninkovich’s hands. The Jets played well early getting on the scoreboard with a safety when Jamaal Westerman got to Brady in the end zone forcing an intentional grounding.

The Jets took the ball and went down the field on a 7 play 65 yard drive capped by a 2 yard draw by Mark Sanchez to put them up 9-6. Though they got the score Sanchez made the mistake of calling a timeout instead of letting the clock run out. This gave Tom Brady plenty of time to drive down the field and answer with a touchdown right before the half.

Ryan, angry with Sanchez, told NBC at the half that the timeout call was the “stupidest play in NFL history.” The Jets opened the game with an impressive drive, but couldn’t punch it in and got no points when Nick Folk missed a 24 yard field goal wide left.

The Jets have a quick turnaround as they head to Denver to face Tim Tebow and the suddenly relevant Denver Broncos on Thursday Night Football. The Patriots look to continue their good play as they head home to face former quarterback Matt Cassel and the Kansas City Chiefs who have lost two straight since winning four in a row.

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With their backs to the wall in the midst of a three game tailspin, the Jets needed a win in “the worst way” against the winless Dolphins on Monday Night just to stay relevant in the NFL playoff race. They got the win, but it wasn’t too convincing. However, ask the Jets and they’ll tell you its fine as long as it wasn’t another loss.

With the Dolphins knocking at the door, threatening to jump out to a 10-0 lead early in the first, Darrelle Revis ran back the first of his two interceptions 100 yards for a touchdown and helped kick start the Jets to do just enough to get a win at home. The Jets were sitting at a 2-3 mark coming into the game with a ton of turmoil going on in the locker room.

“Anytime you lose three games straight, you’re going to lack some confidence,” running back LaDainian Tomlinson said. “You’re going to start to question yourself a little bit.” However, the Jets did nothing to prove that they’ve turned things around, getting off to yet another slow start with their first four possessions ending in three-and-outs for the second straight game.

The Jets didn’t get their 1^st first down until 6:17 left in the half. Sanchez, while not playing a great game, was serviceable. He found Holmes for a 38 yard touchdown on a crossing pattern early in the fourth quarter. Sanchez finished 14 of 25 for 201 yards 1 TD and another touchdown coming on the ground when Sanchez ran a QB draw 5 yards for the score.

Shonn Greene had another decent outing rushing for 74 yards on 21 carries. The Dolphins came to town just in the nick of time for gang green, but they have a much better opponent in the 4-1 San Diego Chargers, coming into town next week with a bye following. For the Dolphins, they drop to 0-5 and this season is beginning to look like 2007 when they went 1-15.

Fans are hoping for no wins so they can get Andrew Luck in next years draft, but the heat for this seasons is falling on Tony Sparano. He didn’t help his cause by designing a game plan that had Matt Moore in his first start. The Dolphins were constantly throwing toward Revis’ side of the field which ended up burning them.

“It’s tough right now,” wide receiver Brandon Marshall said. “When you lose, everything looks bad. It’s a nasty feeling in the building and a nasty feeling every day. The only thing we can do is fight to get a win.” Marshall didn’t even live up to the promise that he’d get ejected during the 2^nd quarter. He didn’t start a fight with Bart Scott or Antonio Cromartie like he said he might.

The Dolphins were first on the scoreboard when Dan Carpenter knocked a 23 yarder midway through the opening quarter. The Jets fumbled and lost the ensuing kickoff when a short kick bounced off blocker Garrett McIntyre and was recovered by Austin Spitler. After Daniel Thomas rushed twice for 3 yards, Moore attempted to hit Marshall in the end zone.

Unfortunately for Moore, Revis was on Marshall, stepping in front of the pass and was off to the races, making it 7-3 and turning the game right around. Matt Moore, who was in for Chad Henne, had a horrible game. He was 16 of 34 for 204 yards and two interceptions. “It’s rough, kind of the same old story, trying to find answers and make plays down there in the red zone and we seem to hit a wall,” Moore said. “Just got to keep going.”

Marshall finished with six catches for 109 yards but no touchdowns. Five of the catches and 63 of the yards came against Revis who was matched up on Marshall for most of the night. He was targeted 19 times. Reggie Bush who left in the 3^rd quarter with a neck injury had 71 yards on the ground and two catches for 7 yards.

Carpenter hit a 21 yard field goal in the early 2^nd to make it a 7-6 game, but that would be the end of the scoring for the Dolphins. The Dolphins face the Broncos at home next week before heading back to MetLife stadium for a showdown with the other New York team Big Blue.

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When reports first surfaced about there being a possible rift in the Jets locker room, the Jets organization was quick to downplay it. The report stated that the Jets’ three big-name wide receivers, Santonio Holmes, Plaxico Burress, and Derrick Mason went to Rex Ryan to complain about offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimers’ play calling.

The Jets issued a statement 90 minutes before their game last weekend against the New England Patriots, saying the report wasn’t true and that the meeting never took place. After the game this week, all three receivers and Ryan all denied the report.

Derrick Mason has since been traded to Houston due to ‘lack of performance’, though many speculate Mason’s critical post-game comments lead to his benching during the New England game and his eventual trade. This move wasn’t popular among the receiving core and served as somewhat of a wake-up call to the rest of the Jets team, a call that Holmes clearly didn’t answer.

Santonio Holmes repeated his criticism of the offensive line. “I may be criticized again for saying it, but it starts up front,” Holmes said Thursday. “The big guys know it. If they give Mark enough time to sit in the pocket and complete passes, I think everything changes.”

While this may be a true statement, it’s not what the Jets need. Holmes, clearly frustrated after the poor and very conservative play calling against the worst ranked defense in the league, said, “The numbers speak for themselves,” he said, adding, “If you were in my shoes, what would you think?”

Guard Brandon Moore fired back on Friday. “He’s obviously got the green light to evaluate every position on the team,” Moore said. “I just didn’t think captaincy entailed that. I’ve never seen a captain do that. That’s not leading. That’s not being a leader. It actually fragments the locker room. It’s not productive.”

The offensive line is clearly ticked off and this couldn’t come at a worse time for the Jets who are in the midst of a three game losing streak. The fact that Moore said anything back, especially something critical, shows the state of the locker room. Moore is regarded as a quiet leader and is the longest tenured offensive lineman.

Schottenheimer, who’s been under a ton of scrutiny from the fans, media, and some players alike, downplayed the situation between Holmes and Moore. “The team is a family and families have disagreements.” He said the offense has “a great relationship,” expressing confidence that the players will resolve their differences.

Schottenheimer has plans to address this issue with the entire offensive unit. “Absolutely,” he said. “Whether it’s done in public or whether it’s done in private, these are things we’ll keep in-house. But this group will be ready to go Monday night, I have no questions about that.”

He’d better hope they’re ready as his job may be riding on it. While this could just be the product of a frustrated team in a tough spot, it could prove either a breaking point or the season turn-around for the team.

While Holmes is right about the play of the offensive line, going public isn’t something a leader should do. He’s never been one to shy away from speaking his mind and this is one of the reasons why the Steelers were willing to trade him for such a low cost, a fifth round draft pick. One thing is for sure, if the Jets lose to the winless Dolphins and Matt Moore on Monday night, this will be just the beginning of the team’s problems.

The Jets are on a tailspin right now, but with problems like this brewing in the locker room, they could very well be in route to crash and burn. A season that started with Super Bowl aspirations could end with a team divided and a fan base left believing that these are in fact the ‘same old Jets.’

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To Jets fans dismay, the Jets are showing a very consistent pattern of losing games. Three weeks — three losses. The Jets were handed another loss at the hands of their division arch-rivals, the New England Patriots, and they can only blame themselves. The Jets gave a lackluster performance with sporadic play from the offense yet again.

Even with the return of All-Pro C Nick Mangold, the Jets offense couldn’t get much of anything going against the league’s statistically worst defense. After all the talk this week about getting back to the ‘ground & pound’ that made the Jets the team we’ve come to know in the past two years, the first three drives ended with Sanchez dropping back on third and short.

Schottenheimer, who has been under a ton of scrutiny from the media recently — especially with the report surfacing that the Jets’ three big-name WRs complained to Rex Ryan about the play calling, didn’t help his case with some awful play calls throughout the game. The offense couldn’t do anything outside of one really good drive which featured Shonn Greene, 83 yards for the game, a season high.

The offense had seven, counting the seven three and outs and a horrendous three for 11 on third downs. Compare that with the Patriots going 7 for 14 on third downs and you can see why the Jets didn’t win this game. Mark Sanchez only had 70 yards through 3 quarters against the worst pass defense in the league.

This is twice in three games where Sanchez has been ineffective against bad secondaries. His numbers make his game appear a lot better than what was seen. He didn’t do a good job managing the team and it appears as if he’s regressed from the past two years which showed so much promise.

The defense, numbers aside, played a good game. They kept Tom Brady in check limiting him to a pedestrian 321 yards 1 touchdown and 1 interception. Wes Welker coming in as the league’s leading receiver had 124 yards, but 73 of those came on one play where Eric Smith bit badly on a play action fake leaving the field wide open over the top.

Revis was on him for most of the game so he was out of commission for the majority of the game. However, as everyone knows, defenses will wear down the longer they’re on the field and such was the case with the Jets who also surrendered 136 yards to BenJarvus Green-Ellis.

A big chunk of those yards came on a late game sustaining drive for the Patriots in which the Jets defense just couldn’t get off the field. A lot of miscommunications, some poor tackling and 8 penalties added to the Jets demise in Foxboro. Again the lone bright spot was Joe McKnight who’s proving he’s the real deal in the return game.

He had another 88 yard return and was solid in the return game all day. The Jets finish 0-3 on their road trip and return home to face the winless Dolphins on Monday night. While the Dolphins haven’t won this won’t be an easy win for the Jets as divisional games combined with their recent poor play doesn’t guarantee anything.

While this recent skid doesn’t bode well, the season isn’t lost quite yet, but one thing’s for sure if the Jets don’t turn it around quickly they won’t be making the playoffs much less the Super Bowl like Ryan so boldly predicted at the beginning of the season.

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Another week has passed and in another game Gang Green has been handed their proverbial butts once again. After last week’s embarrassment in Oakland, the Jets traveled south to Baltimore to face Rex Ryan’s old team and were met with a brick wall.

The game started with so much promise as Joe McKnight, who’s become quite the special teams player, popped the ball loose from the Ravens on the opening kick-off, though the Ravens did recover later. The newly signed DE Aaron Maybin gave the Jets a pass rush and forced the Ravens to punt.

After that there wasn’t much good for the Jets. On the offenses’ first play the Jets left arguably one of the best safeties of all time, Ed Reed, unblocked and he blindsided Mark Sanchez forcing a fumble that was recovered for a touchdown. One of the lone brightspots came on the ensuing kick-off when Joe McKnight ran the kick 107 yards back for the touchdown setting the record for longest play in Jets history.

The troubles for Sanchez continued as he played his worst game, and arguably one of the worst games for a QB ever. He had 4 fumbles, 3 of which were recovered by the Ravens and 1 pick. Three of his turnovers led to touchdowns. The biggest was a pick 6 he threw as the Jets were gaining some momentum after a fumble recovery by the defense on the previous play.

Sanchez couldn’t hit anything as his passer rating (30.5) and his completion percentage (31.4) are laughable at best. He failed to read any of the Ravens blitzes and find his hot routes. This wasn’t all on Sanchez as the offensive line had another horrible game and was still suffering from the absence of C Nick Mangold.

Replacement center rookie Colin Baxter was actually benched for a few series and Vlad Ducasse made it into the game as Matt Slausson moved to center. The running game was again absent and the wide receivers dropped many of the passes that made it to their hands. The defense rebounded from a tough game in Oakland, but it wasn’t enough to overcome all the turnovers.

They got a decent pass rush, forced a few turnovers and the highlight came on David Harris’ pick 6. Starting OLB Bryan Thomas tore his Achilles on a fluke play rushing OT Michael Oher and will miss the remainder of the season which is another big loss for a team with lack of depth.

Don’t be surprised if the Jets sign a veteran offensive linemen or two and possibly a linebacker to fill in for injured players. LB Tully Banta-Cain is a viable option and the Jets worked him out not to long ago and have remained in contact with him. This has been a tough two games for the Jets and it doesn’t get easier with a trip to Foxboro to square off with Tom Brady and the Patriots looming next week.

This has turned into a must win for the Jets as they’ve fallen to 2-2.

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This is the question that the New York Jets need to ask themselves. If this was a year or two ago, the answer would’ve been simple: a ground and pound offense and a smash mouth defense. However, this year the Jets look like a team who are searching for their identity, which is not good considering this team is planning on winning it all.

At the beginning of the year, the Jets decided to make Shonn Greene their bell-cow running back and moved last year’s starter, LaDainian Tomlinson, to a third down receiver type back. The only problem is the Jets have been unable to run the ball in their first three games this season. The team that would beat you up with their big skilled offensive line now has to rely on the passing game for points.

Mark Sanchez threw the ball 44 times in the opener against the Cowboys, and has had to throw the ball a lot more than intended because of the inefficient run game, even throwing in a blow out against the Jaguars in Week 2.

Now a lot of this has to do with the Jets interior line who, without center Nick Mangold, is sporting two first year players and second year player, Matt Slauson. This a big difference from the line of last year and from two years ago in which tackle D’Brickashaw Ferguson, who is a pro-bowler in his own right, was the weak point.

The spectacular Rex Ryan defense, which should be playing great as 10 of the 11 starters are now in at least their second year in the system, has at times looked bad. The Cowboys were able to expose the defense almost costing the Jets the home/season opener two weeks ago, and it cost them the game on Sunday against the Raiders who torched the Jets defense for 200+ yards on the ground.

Bad tackling combined with a lack of pass rush has plagued the Jets and the mental mistakes aren’t helping either. While I’m sure the defense had a bad game, and will be fine as the season goes on, the real problem is the offense and how the Jets are going to score points. If the Jets can’t find their identity as a team, they can stop all the Super Bowl talk now and kiss their season goodbye.

These next two weeks will really show what the Jets are made of. They travel to Baltimore this week for the Sunday night game against the Ravens, and then to Foxboro to square off with their nemesis, the New England Patriots.

The worse that could happen is the Jets lose both and fall to 2-3 in the season, which will not put them in a good spot considering the Bills, yes, you’re reading that right the Buffalo Bills, right now are atop the division at 3-0 and have easy games. The Patriots, assuming they beat the same Raiders the Jets just lost to, would be 4-1.

While the season is long and a lot can happen, the Jets need to ask themselves who they really are as a team, and they better figure it out quickly. Otherwise the answer to the question, “Who are the 2011 Jets?” will have one answer: a team with all the talent in the world that just couldn’t put it all together.

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After the Jets celebrated their win over the Dallas Cowboys, it was straight back to work and breaking down the tape of the game. There were some problems but least expected: issues on the the offensive line.

The O-line for the Jets has for years been a strong point of the team, but in the game against the Cowboys’ Sanchez, it was sacked four times and knocked down at least three separate times. If Sanchez is the key to the Jets run at the Super Bowl then the Jets line needs to protect him better.

After the game, Sanchez took concussion tests though he seems to be fine. However, this could turn out to be a bad omen of what might happen if he keeps taking abuse like he did against the Cowboys on a game to game basis. Ryan picked on the offensive line during Wednesday’s meeting and according to players, called out the offensive line for their poor performance.

Now, there are some factors playing into their game. For starters, this isn’t the same line it used to be. Secondly, Sanchez threw the ball 44 times. That is an extremely high number for Sanchez since the Jets are usually a ‘run first’ team. If any QB drops back that many times, he’s bound to get hit at some point.

To protect their franchise quarterback, the Jets line will have to play better — not just on pass plays. Shonn Greene only had 26 yards last week as the Jets ground and pound was pounded by Rob Ryan and his various run blitzes.

This is a line very capable of playing up to the standards the Jets are used to, however the Jets need them to actually play up to those standards if they are meant to have any hope of ending this year with a trip to the White House.

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With the first week of preseason in the books it’s time to take a look at the Jets 16-20 loss to the Houston Texans on the first Monday Night Football of the season. The starting teams were only on the field for the 1^st quarter and the 2^nd stringers, 3^rd stringers, and rookies played the rest of the game. C Nick Mangold, RG Brandon Moore, and WR Plaxico Burress all didn’t play due to injuries.

Starting D: The Jets starting D was up to its old tricks again only allowing the Texans high powered offense, though missing top targets Arian Foster and Andre Johnson, to 24 total yards in the 1^st quarter.

They caused a 3 and out with a sack on the first series and were able to force a punt on the 2^nd and final series. Kyle Wilson had a nice play on a 3^rd down pass to TE Owen Daniels on an out route causing the pass to be dropped and forcing the punt. Bart Scott was hurt on the first play from scrimmage, but walked off on his own power and returned in the 2^nd series.

Starting O: The starting offense looked good with both the passing and running game moving the ball down the field even though some key pieces were missing. QB Mark Sanchez went 4/4 on the 1^st drive and finished 6/7 with 43 yards connecting with 3 different receivers.

RB Shonn Greene showed that he was capable of being the feature back collecting 32 yards on 5 carries showing good strength and speed breaking a 20 yard run. New receiver Derek Mason looked good in his brief appearance catching 3 passes for 21 yards. Sanchez was sacked twice in the 1^st quarter.

2^nd Team Woes: The backups looked confused in their first game, but that’s to be expected with the lack of time with the teams and the systems. Rex Ryan was furious on a 1^st and goal play where a miscommunication occurred and there were too many players on the field. Ryan was animated running onto the field to call a timeout and throwing his hat and his headset.

The 2^nd team got burned a few times on play action bootlegs by Texans backup QB Matt Leinert one leading to the Texans only TD. The 2^nd team defense surrendered 98 total yards and 13 points in the 2^nd half while the 2^nd team offense led by rookie QB Greg McElroy was unable to score anything only able to gain 46 total yards.

Vlad the Impaled: With starters Nick Mangold and Brandon Moore out with injuries Rob Turner and 2^nd year player Vladimir Ducasse got the start. Ducasse got burned badly on two plays both leading to sacks.

On the first play he got beaten by rookie DE JJ Watt and Watt ended up falling on Turner causing him to be taken off on a cart. On another play he got beat badly on the outside and allowed McElroy to get popped causing a fumble.

Rookie Impact: Overall it was a pretty good game for the Jets rookies. 1^st and 3^rd round picks DE Mohammed Wilkerson and NT Kendrick Ellis made themselves known on the field both having strong games. Wilkerson showed great speed and power against the 1^st team, but was caught offside one time by a hard count.

Ellis also showed great power and awareness blocking up the middle on many plays and tipping a pass that led to an interception for the Jets. WR Jeremy Kerley wasn’t really a factor from scrimmage, but looked good in the return game having a bunch of solid returns. He looks to have a big impact filling in for the loss of WR Brad Smith.

RB Bilal Powell had an alright game with his biggest play coming on a screen for 29 yards bringing the ball down to the 1. QB Greg McElroy looked solid in his first NFL game going 23-29 with 208 yards 1 TD and 1 fumble. He bounced back from a shaky second quarter showing more poise and control in the pocket leading a nice drive down the field for the lone Jets touchdown.

Other Notes: Backup S Brodney Pool had a solid first half posting 5 tackles and TE Jeff Cumberland made some noise posting 6 catches for 77 yards. The battle for kicker continues as Nick Folk went 2/2 hitting from 33 and 40 and Novak hitting from 35. RB Joe McKnight was playing well until he exited the game with a head injury. The Jets out gained the Texans overall 310-221 and committed 8 total penalties.

Overall this was a solid preseason opener for the Jets. The first teams looked strong and the 2^nd and 3^rd teams didn’t play that bad considering the lack of preparation time.

This should improve as the team has more time in training camp. The Jets could have won the game, but rookie WR Michael Campbell dropped the potential go ahead touchdown in the final minute. Next up for the Jets is the Bengals next weekend.

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Shonn Greene is now the feature back of the New York Jets. After a somewhat disapointing preseason and a rough couple of first games last year the Jets made the decision to split the carries between Greene and LaDanian Tomlinson with LT getting more of the carries.

This season the Jets are ready to make the switch to Greene being the feature back. However, if he never makes it to the field the Jets will have to look to the veteran Tomlinson, 2^nd year RB Joe McKnight and rookie Bilal Powell.

Greene missed the afternoon practice today with a low-grade skin infection on his right foot. He took part in this mornings walk-through, but was limping toward the end of the session.

Tomlinson took most of the practice carries and Powell worked as the No.2 back, as Joe McKnight missed practice due to a concussion he suffered in the Monday night game against Houston.

The problem for Greene has always been durability and whether or not he can make it through a full season taking the majority of the carries. The Jets are looking for about 250 carries from Greene this season, but he can’t do that from the sidelines.

This means that Tomlinson will get the start at RB this Sunday against the Bengals with Joe McKnight, if he plays, and Bilal Powell taking a lot of carries as well.

This could be a big oppurtunity for 2^nd year back McKnight and the rookie Powell to make an impression on this coaching staff. Tomlinson will take more carries, but the Jets want to be conservative with him to keep him fresh later in the season if possible.

McKnight after a terrible training camp and preseason last year has been showing promise this year and this could be his chance to show the Jets brass why drafting him was a good choice.

Powell who’s been having a quiet camp could also benefit from added carries as well.

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