At long last, one team has broken away from the middling pack and established a sole proprietorship on first place. After a 29-26 overtime victory over the New York Jets, the New England Patriots now sit atop the AFC East with a record of 4-3. However, the Jets weren’t the only team to suffer a late game loss in week 7. The Buffalo Bills fell to the Tennessee Titans 35-34, after a fourth quarter comeback led by veteran quarterback, Matt Hasselbeck, handed the Bills their fourth loss of the season.

In Foxboro, Massachusetts the Patriots took advantage of a couple of untimely Mark Sanchez turnovers and some suspect play-calling to grab their fourth win of the season. Tom Brady tossed two touchdowns and didn’t turn the ball over once to a Jets defense that looked primed and ready for an upset from the first snap. However, even a stellar defensive effort wasn’t enough to combat the continued offensive woes for the Jets.

Mark Sanchez fumbled a hand-off in the opening half which lead to a safety, and threw an interception on an under thrown pass to a wide open Stephen Hill in the end zone. The Patriots rallied off a first quarter kick return touchdown by Devin McCourty. Rob Gronkowski added two touchdown passes, and his size ultimately proved too much for the Jets undermanned secondary to handle. Despite a valiant effort, the Patriots added a Gostkowski field goal in overtime, followed by a strip-sack of Sanchez to end the game. Jets fans have to be wondering how much longer Mark Sanchez can struggle before Tim Tebow sees some substantial playing time.

In Buffalo, the Bills engaged in a back and forth shootout all day, only to fall 35-34. Ryan Fitzpatrick looked more impressive than in recent weeks, tossing three touchdowns to only one interception. Running backs, Fred Jackson and C.J. Spiller, both looked fresh, having seemingly fully recovered from early season injuries. However, the Bills are still working out the kinks on defensive. One of the most highly touted units in the off-season, this Buffalo defense is yet to make any type of meaningful impact toward a Bills victory.

In Week 8, the Miami Dolphins return from bye to face the Jets at Metlife Stadium. The Patriots travel to St. Louis to take on the Rams, and the Bills receive their much needed bye week.

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As dysfunctional and circus-like as the New York Jets (2-3) have been this season, the undefeated Houston Texans (5-0) nearly didn’t make it out of East Rutherford, New Jersey with their fifth consecutive win.

Thanks to Arian Foster’s 152 yards on 29 carries, including a 13 yard touchdown run to break a 7-7 tie with 11:11 remaining in the first half, the Texans staved off the surging Jets in the fourth quarter for their first win against New York in franchise history, 23-17.

“Arian stepped up and played huge,” said Texans quarterback Matt Schaub, who only completed 14 of 28 pass attempts for 209 yards, one touchdown and one interception. “We’re very excited to be 5-0 and get a win on the road.”

Mark Sanchez’s 27 yard touchdown pass to tight end Jeff Cumberland, which tied the game at seven late in the first quarter, was exactly the spark that the Jets had been looking for from their painfully anemic offense.

Two crucial interceptions thrown by Sanchez, however, overshadowed his 230 yards through the air and impressive touchdown pass. One was tipped by Texans’ defensive end, J.J. Watt, and returned all the way back to the New York nine yard line by cornerback, Brice McCain, with just 14 seconds left in the first half and the Jets only trailing 14-7 at the time.

McCain’s pick completely flipped the complexion of the game. What could have been a tied or four point game entering halftime with the Jets having moved the ball 81 yards all the way down to the Houston 12 yard line, suddenly became a two possession 17-7 Texans’ lead going into the locker room after the interception was converted into a short field goal.

Many speculated throughout the week that this could be the game where backup, Tim Tebow, could finally receive more snaps and make a case for replacing Sanchez as the starting quarterback. Unfortunately, Tebow only substituted for Sanchez on six plays, throwing one pass, an incompletion downfield, and totaling 19 yards with five option rushes.

Sanchez’s second and final interception came at the most inopportune time for the struggling Jets. Behind 23-17 with less than three and a half minutes left in the game, New York, despite their inability to contain Foster or find any true offensive flow, found themselves with the football at their own 16 yard line with a chance to steal the game.

“I honestly thought we were going to drive down the field and score a touchdown on the last drive,” Jets wide receiver Chaz Schilens said. “It’s not going the right way.”

The Jets would make it as far as their own 32 before Sanchez’s pass to Cumberland popped up in the air and was intercepted on 3^rd and 18 by cornerback, Kareem Jackson.

A steady diet of Foster handoffs after the Houston takeaway ran out all but 4 seconds on the clock, and the Texans survived.

“It’s definitely our best start,” said Texans tight end, Owen Daniels, who hauled in a wide open 34 yard touchdown reception on the game’s opening possession. “And a big part of that is it doesn’t matter on this team about stats or individually what is going on. It’s great to be a part of something like that.”

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Another week in the AFC East and the division continues to travel as a pack. After four weeks, the Buffalo Bills, the New York Jets, and the New England patriots all stand at 2-2 while the Miami Dolphins are just one game back at 1-3.

The 2-1 Jets hosted an angry San Francisco team that completely overpowered the Jets on both sides of the ball. Quarterback Mark Sanchez posted one of his worst efforts in recent memory in a 34-0 shellacking at the hands of the 49ers. Sanchez’s consistent mistakes lead many fans to call for backup Tim Tebow to see some snaps under center, but the Jets brass remains steadfast in their commitment to Sanchez as the starting quarterback. To add injury to insult, wide receiver, Santonio Holmes, left the game with an apparent foot injury. His status is uncertain for the coming weeks, but the Jets fear he is lost for the season.

In Arizona, the Dolphins took the undefeated Cardinals to their limit, ultimately succumbing to an overtime field goal in a 24-21 loss. That makes two straight overtime losses for Miami, but this one came with a little more gusto. Ryan Tannehill looked motivated to win the game, finding target, Brian Hartline, 12 times for 253 yards and a touchdown. Ultimately, a loss is a loss, but Dolphin fans can be proud of the effort their team put forth on Sunday.

The Patriots looked the opposite of their 2-2 counterparts in the Jets and Bills after trouncing Buffalo in a 52-28 blowout. Thirty-one fourth quarter points propelled Tom Brady and the Patriots to a road win, while forcing four interceptions from Buffalo quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick. This might be just the type of win New England needed to shed their early season rust and leave the rest of the division in the dust.

For this upcoming week, the Jets face an equally tough foe in Houston on Monday Night Football. Miami travels to Cincinnati to take on the Bengals, Buffalo takes on the 49ers in San Francisco, while New England hosts Denver for another installment of the great rivalry between Peyton Manning and Tom Brady.

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Remember everything that happened in the AFC East last week? Well forget it all and flip the script! Week 2 of the 2012 NFL season saw some serious surprises, highlighted by the defeat of defending AFC champions New England Patriots to the lowly Arizona Cardinals after a missed game-winning field goal by all-pro Stephen Gostkowski. If things couldn’t get any worse, it appears as if star tight end Aaron Hernandez could be out up to six weeks after injuring his ankle.

The New York Jets, who looked like a well-oiled machine last week against Buffalo, struggled to find any type of offensive or defensive consistency and were severely overmatched in a 27-10 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Mark Sanchez struggled to find any type of flow, and the team’s wildcat offense proved effective but ultimately too late. Tim Tebow only saw the field for three offensive snaps, a decision that left Jets fans scratching their heads when it was apparent that the proto-typical offensive strategy wasn’t getting it done.

However, it wasn’t all gloom and doom for the AFC East. The Miami Dolphins won their first game of the season by besting Carson Palmer’s Oakland Raiders 35-13. Running back Reggie Bush had arguably his best game as a pro, rushing for 172 yards and two touchdowns. Rookie Ryan Tannehill stayed virtually mistake-free, throwing for one touchdown and rushing for another while successfully notching a zero in the turnover column. If the Dolphins continue to cut down on mistakes and Tannehill continues to progress, this season could be far more promising than previously anticipated.

After a debilitating week one defeat of divisional rival New York that saw starting running back Fred Jackson sidelined for at least a month, the Buffalo Bills bounced back with a decisive 35-17 victory at home against the Kansas City Chiefs. Running back C.J. Spiller filled in admirably for Fred Jackson, accumulating 170 total yards and two touchdowns. Ryan Fitzpatrick’s effort of two touchdowns to zero turnovers provided a catalyst for this sudden turnaround in Buffalo.

After two weeks of this NFL season, each team in the division is 1-1. With everything still up for grabs and teams still out to prove themselves, the AFC East looks to stay competitive for the foreseeable future. Next week, the New England Patriots travel to Baltimore to take on the Ravens in a Sunday Night Showdown. Buffalo travels to Cleveland, Ohio, while the Jets travel to Miami for an early season divisional showdown.

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The AFC East’s week one results didn’t prove much for fans of the New England Patriots or the Miami Dolphins. The Patriots systematically dismantled an inferior Tennessee Titans team on the way to a 34-13 rout. Tom Brady looked on point, and starting running back Stevan Ridley turned some heads with 125 rushing yards. Defensive rookies Chandler Jones and Dont’a Hightower made an immediate impact, collaborating on a strip sack touchdown. Overall, no surprises at New England, and the Patriots remain one of the favorites to represent the AFC in the Superbowl yet again.

At the bottom of the division lay the Miami Dolphins, who were highlighted on this season of HBO’s ‘Hard Knocks’ and endured some hard knocks of their own in a Week 1 loss to the Houston Texans. Rookie quarterback Ryan Tannehill struggled with his accuracy, and made some prototypical rookie mistakes as the veteran Texans capitalized. Rookie Head Coach Joe Philbin has his hands full with an inexperienced offensive line and a green quarterback behind center. The Dolphins are in for a long season if they continue to commit turnovers at the rate they did on Sunday.

The real surprise of the NFL’s kickoff weekend came in East Rutherford, New Jersey, where the New York Jets put up 48 points on route to a decisive victory over their divisional rival, the Buffalo Bills. An offensive unit that seemed inept for the entirety of the preseason came out firing against the supposedly new and improved Buffalo defense. Mark Sanchez had one of his best games as a pro, tossing three touchdowns to only one interception and completing over 70 percent of his passes. Rookie wide receiver Stephen Hill and second-year standout Jeremy Kerley contributed for two touchdowns each, including one by punt return for Kerley. Tim Tebow was virtually irrelevant for the Jets, contributing five carries for eleven yards.

Ryan Fitzpatrick of Buffalo looked shaky, tossing three interceptions, one of which was returned easily for a touchdown by Antonio Cromartie. Starting running back Fred Jackson left with a knee injury, and while C.J. Spiller handled the load admirably, Buffalo will sorely miss Jackson’s versatility and experience alongside Fitzpatrick.

Prized free agent signee Mario Williams was a virtual no-show for Buffalo, as was the rest of the Bills defense. Buffalo fans are left scratching their head as to the promise of this season, whereas Jets supporters are already talking about a return to AFC glory. After one week this talk may be premature, but the Jets certainly proved that they can perform on both sides of the football.

For week two, the Jets travel to Pittsburgh to take on the Steelers, Miami hosts Oakland, Buffalo is at home against Kansas City, and New England takes on Arizona in Foxboro.

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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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Imagine this dream scenario for your favorite NFL team: The most competitively decorated athlete in college football history is drafted to a non-rival, small market team. The athlete helps to rake in millions of dollars in revenue for the franchise, including having the most popular selling jersey worldwide.

He goes on to become a pop culture spectacle and by most accounts a national phenomenon after achieving varied success, highlighted by repeated late game heroics and inconceivable wins. After being supplanted by a once-in-a-lifetime free agent quarterback, the aforementioned athlete is traded to your very own hometown team for a throwaway draft pick to play backup quarterback and lead your team to football’s promised land. If it all seems too good to be true, that’s because it is.

I’m talking, of course, about NFL superstar Tim Tebow and his jettison from Denver, into the laps of the all too willing New York Jets. Call me a cynical Jets fan (a decade of inept offensive coordinators, failed quarterbacks, and AFC championship game losses has probably put me over the edge) but I’m still confounded as to why Tim Tebow is on my team. Sure, he’s an unbelievably, likable, hard worker and a beast in the weight room. So is Nick Mangold’s sister, but that doesn’t mean I want her coming off the bench to run a quarterback draw for a dozen snaps a game.

My main problem with Tebow in New York isn’t due to his ineffectiveness at quarterback; it’s the complete lack of logic the Jets’ front office displayed in handling the situation that makes the franchise look like a circus sideshow. First, futile flirtations with Peyton Manning questionably necessitated the contract extension of already shaky quarterback Mark Sanchez.

Whether this was in the cards for months or an attempt to assuage Sanchez’ defeated ego wouldn’t matter because weeks later, Tim Tebow would don the green and white. This trade would instigate a positional (and media) battle between the country’s most popular athlete and the unreliable quarterback of the future for the Jets organization.

In a perfect world, the competition that Tim Tebow brings to the quarterback position would light a fire under Mark Sanchez and propel him to a career-defining year. If Sanchez had the intestinal fortitude of crosstown rival Eli Manning, or even the gutty gamesmanship that coach Rex Ryan continues to emptily preach, maybe it would be a different story. Unfortunately for this Jets fan, it seems all the more likely that Sanchez will crumble under the pressure and cede an increasing number of snaps Tebow’s way, as the season falls apart.

As a rule of thumb I try to always reserve judgment on newly acquired talent, but the stats are hard to ignore. I don’t see how a quarterback with a 47.3% completion percentage and almost as many turnovers as touchdown passes could possibly help in the backup quarterback capacity. Judging by initial reports out of the Jets camp, Sanchez and Tebow are struggling mightily with their passing accuracy, a downfall that has plagued both quarterbacks in their short tenures in the NFL. Sanchez and Tebow are performing so poorly, that Jets fans may be clamoring for third stringer Greg McElroy by camp’s end.

New York Jets General Manager Mike Tannenbaum and Head Coach Rex Ryan continue to propagate the idea that Tebow was brought to New York to be an athlete, rather than an exclusive quarterback. Preliminary reports even had his number of snaps estimated between ten and twenty a game. Wildcat packages with two quarterbacks on the field at once had naïve Jets fans salivating at the creative possibilities under new offensive coordinator Tony Sparano.

How would defenses account for two passers and infinite rushing possibilities? Pretty easily actually. Tebow’s speed has never been a weapon in his rush-heavy arsenal. Defensively command the edges of the box- something the Jets couldn’t do when they lost to Tebow in Denver last season- and he’s forced to run into a questionable Jets offensive line.

Cover the short passing attack, and Tebow is forced into deep-outs and fades, undeniably the weakest part of his game. NFL defenses will be praying  (no pun intended to the Tebow-ing masses) for Sanchez and Tebow, two mediocre quarterbacks, to appear on the field at the same time.

Part of the phenomenon that is Tebow-mania, is that I actually feel bad to doubt his potential as a New York Jet. I respect how real he is with his fans, and I truly feel that the interviews he gives showcase his endearing and likeable personality. But smiles and charm don’t help shed the little brother complex the Jets and their fans face in their own city.

The acquisition of Tim Tebow has done nothing but create a mockery out of the Jets camp. A franchise in desperate need of a spark seems to have lit the wrong end of the dynamite. Now the world is waiting to see if it will blow up in our faces.

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The role of the back-up quarterback is one of the least envied positions in all of sports. Performing well enough in practice to displace the current incumbent is extremely rare (unless of course your name is Tim Tebow) and the back-up usually spends much of the season sitting on the bench, preparing for an event that is unlikely to ever come calling.

That being said, there are cases every season when the unlikely does come calling and an untested rookie gets a shot at making himself a star, or an over the hill veteran gets one last chance at glory. The relative heroics of Matt Moore, T. J. Yates and Tebow last season have cast some light on a previously unheralded position and as such we have compiled a list of the back-up quarterbacks most likely to make an impact this season.

1. Jason Campbell – Chicago Bears

Campbell signing with the Bears was one of the more surprising off season moves this year, effectively co-signing himself to second string behind Jay Cutler. When you look at the multitude of teams in the NFL struggling at the quarterback position, a move to Jacksonville or Miami (Ryan Tannehill could definitely do with a season learning the game before being thrust into the limelight) would have made far more sense given that Campbell has the quality to start in this league).

That being said, Cutler’s absence due to a broken thumb last season cost the Bears their place in the playoffs, with deputy Caleb Hanie leading Chicago to five straight defeats. If a similar situation were to occur this year, Campbell would arguably provide a much more efficient option, and with the Bears looking stronger on offense, it could make a significant contribution if called upon.

2. Tavaris Jackson – Seattle Seahawks

There is no guarantee Jackson will actually be the back-up, with Pete Carroll currently splitting snaps equally between Jackson, Matt Flynn and rookie Russell Wilson. Stranger things have happened in the NFL, but it is unlikely that the Seahawks will pay Flynn $26 million over three years for him to be a back-up, and whilst Wilson is a great prospect, he is not yet ready to start in the NFL. Wilson could well be the long term solution for the Seahawks at the position, but a role as a back-up will give him a great chance to flourish by learning from two quarterbacks as contrasting as Flynn and Jackson.

Jackson is a good quarterback, certainly not elite, but still good. Given that Flynn has started just two professional games, both of which he was surrounded by the supercharged Green Bay Packers’ offense, his credentials have yet to be confirmed at this level. Should things turn sour for him in Seattle, you could see Carroll reinstating Jackson to the starting spot by the middle of the season as they look to return to play-off contention in one of the weaker divisions in the NFL.

3. Kyle Orton – Dallas Cowboys

In my opinion, Tony Romo is an underrated quarterback. If you could cut out his high-profile errors then he would arguably be rubbing shoulders with the league’s elite quarterbacks. Unfortunately for Cowboys fans however, it doesn’t seem too likely that that is going to happen. Given that Romo is now 32, and supposedly at his peak, it is hard to imagine him improving his game dramatically enough to push himself into the upper echelons.

Orton certainly didn’t have the best time in Denver last season, but being in pole position ahead of Tebow is definitely not an enviable position (take note Mark Sanchez). Should Romo continue to hurt his teams’ chances with self-inflicted errors, how long is it before the Dallas faithful start calling for Orton to start? A refreshing role-reversal for Orton certainly.

4. Tim Tebow – New York Jets

It would be impossible to leave Tebow out of this list for numerous reasons, but perhaps most fittingly because he inspired it. Similarly to Campbell, there were calls from the Tebow faithful to explore the chances of a move to the Jaguars or Dolphins in an attempt to start, but ultimately the Broncos and Tebow found the right deal in New York.

As if the media hype surrounding Tebow last season wasn’t enough, the media circus that is in New York City will do nothing but fan the flames of ‘Tebowmania.’ Throw into the mix an under-performing starting quarterback in Mark Sanchez and you have all the ingredients for another season of drama for Tebow.

Sanchez is rightfully the starting quarterback for the Jets, he is young and was showing signs of being a successful franchise quarterback for ‘Gang Green’ but a terrible 2011 season has raised a lot of questions about the long-term future of Sanchez. A new three-year contract seemed to answer the multitude of these, but the arrival of the iconic Tebow caused them to resurface more quickly than Sanchez had hoped for.

Jets’ fans will be hoping that the arrival of Tebow has two equally important effects for a team who consider themselves play-off contenders. First, they hope that the increased pressure on Sanchez will bring the best out of the young man (although many have already condemned him to crumbling under the pressure), and second, that the unifying presence of Tebow will help bring peace to a tumultuous locker room.

One thing is certain; all eyes will be on Sanchez this season. Just one bad game from the quarterback and, perhaps unfairly, Jets’ fans, the media, and possibly even Sanchez’s teammates will all be calling for Tebow to start. In the case of Sanchez, it is perhaps far less enviable to be the starting quarterback, the ‘Tebow Savior’ headlines are probably already being printed in New York.

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So, in case you have not heard, Tim Tebow is the back-up quarterback of the New York Jets now, and as you could imagine, it has been perceived as kind of a big deal. Unfortunately for the Jets, however, acquiring a player of Tebow’s stature has not put the spotlight on them for the most positive reasons thus far.

Since bringing in the former Broncos starter, whose miraculous and oftentimes Hollywood-like runs last season hit their ultimate peak with a 29-23 overtime victory against the mighty Pittsburgh Steelers in a Wild Card playoff match-up, the Jets front office and coaching staff have been on the receiving end of extremely harsh, relentless, national media criticism.

While the Jets insist that Tebow’s acquisition was not a PR move and that he will only be used in Wildcat packages and as a second-string option, that is not how most people around the country are viewing it. To put it lightly, it is safe to say that a good number of experts were not exactly fond of the idea of trading for one of the most polarizing quarterbacks in recent memory, not when his presence could ultimately create a starting quarterback controversy somewhere down the line between him and three-year Jets starter Mark Sanchez.

Hold on, people. We have had a little over a week to digest this move, so let’s all just take a deep breath, and look at it rationally. That is the least we could do. Barring an injury to Sanchez, Tim Tebow will not start for the New York Jets at any point next season, and there is no reason to worry about any drama arising. Plain and simple. After admittedly pursuing, and shortly thereafter failing, to obtain longtime former Colts quarterback Peyton Manning, the Jets proceeded to give Sanchez a three-year, $58.5 million contract extension to remain their starter under center.

Under his new deal, Sanchez will be owed a total of $20.5 million in guarantees over the next two seasons – a price that the Jets would not be willing to pay just to cut him or have him on the bench in order to throw Tebow out there. Of course, they could use that money to buy Sanchez his own personal gold-plated, diamond-encrusted bench if they were to sit him, but that does not seem very likely or practical in today’s salary cap era.

Before Sanchez signed the extension, he was still tied to the final two years of his rookie contract, which included no guaranteed money, meaning that the new deal displayed the Jets’ faith in him. With the loss of wide receiver and Wildcat quarterback Brad Smith in free agency last season to the Buffalo Bills – an AFC East division rival – the Jets all but abandoned the Wildcat, which had proved to be successful for them since drafting Smith out of Missouri back in 2006.

As a gifted runner with below-average talent as a passer, Smith was a stereotypical college quarterback at Mizzu. It is well-known from Tebow’s playing days at Florida and Denver that he has a very similar skill set, but with more build in his frame and more experience throwing the ball at the NFL level.

New York needs someone like Tebow to get their Wildcat back on track, especially with Sanchez’s occasional passing droughts and new offensive coordinator Tony Sparano calling the plays. During his time as the Miami Dolphins head coach, Sparano’s Wildcat offense gave defenses a fit with running back Ronnie Brown taking direct snaps.

If you did not watch the games or highlights last year, Tebow needed things to go perfectly to win ball games. He only completed 46.5 percent of his passes in 2011 and was clearly the beneficiary of the league’s fifth best rushing offense and a defense that completely dominated teams, at times, during his 7-1 run at starter.

Sanchez may have had a completion percentage of just 56.7 a year ago, but he does not have the prolonged, troublesome throwing motion of Tebow and is expected to improve now that former offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer and his primarily horizontal passing attack have left for St. Louis.

Don’t worry about Tim Tebow or Mark Sanchez, it is a non-issue, period.

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Although this year’s class of free agents was not heralded as being a remarkable group of players, one position in particular has caught the headlines early in the free agency period. The position of quarterback, despite always receiving more media attention than any other position, has seen several big name moves around the league with expectant fans waiting anxiously to see how their new stars perform in the game’s most critical position.

One of the more unreported signings has been former Jacksonville Jaguar David Garrard’s move to the Miami Dolphins. The Dolphins were spurned by Peyton Manning and Alex Smith all within the space of a week and were lucky to add Garrard to their roster where he will compete with current incumbent Matt Moore for the starting spot.

Although Moore showed flashes of brilliance last season, his inconsistency will be a worry for head coach Joe Philbin and Garrard’s arrival gives Philbin two serviceable options at the position, in addition to any further recruitment through the draft. As long as Garrard is showing no ill effects from his herniated disc, which kept him out of the 2011 season, his career pass completion rate of 61.6% and experience of the west coast offense that Philbin wants to implement at the Dolphins could well give him the edge over Moore when the new season arrives.

As the 2011 season came to an end, everyone expected then soon-to-be free agent Matt Flynn to join former offensive coordinator Philbin at the Dolphins, but instead the former understudy to Aaron Rogers is now plying his trade at the opposite end of the country, in Seattle. Flynn’s move to the Seahawks has been suggested by many to be enough to put Seattle into playoff contention despite the presence of the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC West.

The main concern surrounding Flynn is whether he has the ability to be an NFL starter, having previously been a back up to Rogers in Green Bay. He put in two sensational performances for the Packers towards the end of the regular season but it is also important to remember that the Packers were a highly-tuned offensive machine last season and Flynn will not be surrounded by the same embarrassment of riches this year in Seattle.

The most important contributing factor to whether or not Flynn’s first season for the Seahawks is successful arguably rests with whether or not receivers Sidney Rice and Mike Williams can remain fit throughout the season.

Peyton Manning stole the headlines with his move to the Denver Broncos but questions remain as to whether the Broncos were the right destination for the quarterback. The Broncos do offer a good chance of making the playoffs given the relative weakness of the AFC West, but there are also many negatives to consider regarding his choice to play at Mile High Stadium.

The cold winters, lack of a dome and lack of elite receivers will all come as a shock to Manning who did not have to contend with these issues during his time at the Indianapolis Colts. The decision to join the Broncos is even more surprising considering there was also interest from both San Francisco and Tennessee.

The 49ers, who made it to the NFC Championship game last season, arguably offer a more realistic chance at a Super Bowl appearance, whilst the Titans offered Manning a ‘position for life’ effectively guaranteeing the quarterback a position with the franchise beyond his retirement. For better or worse however, Manning has made his decision and committed to the Broncos, making Denver one of the most eagerly anticipated teams to watch in 2012.

Perhaps the most intriguing and potentially successful move has been the acquisition of Tim Tebow by the New York Jets. The announcement of the move came shortly after Mark Sanchez agreed terms on a new long-term contract in New York and raises questions over who will be the starting quarterback for the Jets.

Sanchez has seen his progression stall of late, with some even suggesting he has regressed, and many experts had tipped the Jets to let him move on this offseason. The arrival of Tebow, which will not only help reduce discord in the Jets locker room, could spur on Sanchez and help the quarterback reach the potential he has promised since he joined the league.

Even if Tebow has been acquired solely as backup for Sanchez, he offers a fantastic second choice option and may well be the best backup in the league, with notable mentions to both Jason Campbell and Kyle Orton who have moved to the Chicago Bears and Dallas Cowboys respectively.

One thing can be guaranteed however, should Sanchez show the same lacklustre performances next season then Linsanity will have to take a back seat and allow Tebowmania a chance to shine in the Big Apple.

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In a stunning move the New York Jets have acquired Tim Tebow and a seventh round draft pick from the Denver Broncos for a fourth and sixth round pick. The Jets will also have to pick up half of a $5 million dollar salary advance that was paid to Tebow by Denver at the beginning of last season.

The trade was originally announced yesterday only to hit a snag as the Jets didn’t like some of the language in Tebow’s contract in regards to the salary advance. Jacksonville then tried to throw their hat back into the ring, and Tebow was asked for his opinion on where he wanted to go, thrilled at the chance to play for the Jets.

Tebow joins the team whom he was able to defeat last year on his magical run of 4th quarter victories. His arrival not only brings with it “Tebowmania” and everything associated with it, but may also spark a quarterback controversy with current starter Mark Sanchez. His presence as such a polarizing figure could split a locker room that doesn’t need any more distractions.

Cornerback Antonio Cromartie tweeted on Tuesday night “we don’t need Tebow,” saying he was confident in Sanchez and the guys already on the team. Today he tweeted “Why are we doing this?”

Tebow is also the same player who last season, in the week leading up to the Jets-Broncos game, was criticized by Jets players when it came to his passing abilities. Now teammate cornerback Darrelle Revis said Tebow’s style as an “option” type quarterback wouldn’t be able to sustain itself as a long-term success.

The timing of the trade is also weird as the Jets signed Sanchez to a three-year, $40.5 million contract extension two weeks ago despite a disappointing season. Then, last week they signed Drew Stanton to be their No.2, giving him half a million in signing bonus. They also still have Greg McElroy, the former Alabama standout.

The Jets look at Tebow to fill the vacuum left by Brad Smith who signed with the Buffalo Bills last season in their wildcat situations. Especially since new offensive coordinator Tony Sparano was the coach who introduced the wildcat to the NFL.

Hall of Fame Jets QB Joe Namath wasn’t happy with the move.

“I’m just sorry that I can’t agree with this situation. I think it’s just a publicity stunt. I can’t go with it. I think it’s wrong,” Namath told “The Michael Kay Show” on ESPN1050 in New York. “I don’t think they know what they’re doing over there.”

Rex Ryan, who has vowed to return to the power running game, hopes Tebow could bring some assistance, as they only have one established running back in Shonn Greene.

The potential of backlash is especially great for the Jets as Tebow has a monstrous following and his popularity could distract Mark Sanchez. Sanchez, coming off a sub-par season could be facing the rumblings for Tebow if he doesn’t play well.

Tebow must also adjust as he falls back into the backup role after becoming the starter last season in Denver and leading them to the playoffs and a first round victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers. The next week however Denver was crushed by Tom Brady and the Patriots.

When it comes down to it though, Tebow made the playoffs and Sanchez did not. Sanchez struggled mightily down the stretch which got people wondering about his future with the Jets. The team backed him publicly, but vowed to change the quarterback depth chart for 2012.

With the trade for Tim Tebow, we can see that they were serious.

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The New York Jets will not pursue former Colts great Peyton Manning, as the team gave its starting quarterback of the last three years, Mark Sanchez, a three year contract extension on Friday night. Sanchez’s contract will be worth $58.25 million, making him the seventh-highest paid quarterback in all of the NFL. He is guaranteed $20.5 million combined through 2012 and 2013.

“The best part about it is, they chose to stick with me,” said Sanchez. “I’m going to be their starting quarterback for the next few years and that’s exciting.

“I’m the leader of this team and I’m excited to get back.”

Jets general manager Mike Tannenbaum stated that the decision to extend Sanchez was made after the season ended, despite leaving the door open recently on a possible change at the position when asked about any potential interest in bringing in Manning. Sanchez previously had two years remaining on his rookie contract, but they did not include any guaranteed money.

New York completed a three game losing streak in Miami in Week 17 to end the season at 8-8, preventing them from making their third consecutive playoff appearance with Sanchez under center. The ensuing result during the offseason was heavy criticism of the 25-year-old, which came in the form of negative remarks from several unnamed teammates concerning his talent level and mental makeup.

Sanchez led the Jets into back-to-back AFC title games in his first two seasons and losses in these were his only two in six career playoff games. All four of his post-season wins were impressive for a young quarterback, considering that they all came on the road in hostile environments against elite quarterbacks – Carson Palmer in Cincinnati, Philip Rivers in San Diego, Peyton Manning in Indianapolis, and clearly the most extraordinary victory, Tom Brady in Foxboro.

Sanchez showed flashes of brilliance in 2011 with a career high 26 touchdown passes, but a career high with an equal amount of turnovers left him looking like a split personality quarterback at times.

Jets fans moaned for years that former offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer’s quick passing, mainly horizontal air attack was the central factor that prohibited Sanchez from ever reaching his full potential as a quarterback. It did not allow Sanchez to take very many shots down the field, which drastically limited the Jets offense while also holding back his necessary progression at the position.

Jets management finally felt that it was time to make a change at the offensive helm, and thusly fired Schottenheimer this offseason. They then hired former Miami Dolphins head coach Tony Sparano to replace him. Sparano was the head man in Miami for the past three plus seasons.

Time will prove if the coaching alteration will get Sanchez to the place that he, the Jets, and their fans believe he is more than capable of getting to. “We’ve won a lot of football games with Mark as the starting quarterback of the New York Jets and that’s what really concerned us,” said Tannenbaum. “It’s not a projection, it’s not a hope, it’s not an incremental leap of faith. Here’s a three year body of work.

“That said, we don’t have blinders on. It has to get better and it will get better. We think he’ll become more consistent. Taking a long view of things, we’re excited and encouraged by the trajectory of Mark’s career.”

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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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In one swift beat down the Philadelphia Eagles kept their playoff hopes alive while potentially ending the Jets playoff chances. In a 45-19 blowout over the Jets the Eagles have managed to stay alive for at least one more week.

They sit at 6-8 after two straight wins and trail the 8-6 Cowboys and the 7-7 Giants for the NFC East title with a very slim chance to overtake the two in the final two weeks to make the playoffs. Better than being eliminated though right?

“It feels good to still have a chance to even be considered in the playoff race,” quarterback Michael Vick said. “We’ve been through a lot, but we’re resilient.”

For the Jets it was the second time this season a three game winning streak was snapped in a big way and it couldn’t have come at a worse time. The Jets (8-6) controlled their destiny coming into the game, and now have fallen into a tie with the Bengals for the last spot in the AFC. The Jets do hold a tiebreaker over the Cincinnati with the better record against common opponents.

“Obviously, a horrendous performance by us,” Jets coach Rex Ryan said. “Go into the game thinking we have to run the table to control our own destiny, and we come out of the game needing to win out to control our own destiny.”

Vick finished 15 of 22 for 274 yards with one interception and one touchdown. He also had 32 yards and a score on 5 carries. LeSean McCoy also contributed with 102 yards and three touchdowns on 18 carries. He surpassed Steve Van Buren’s team record with his 19^th touchdown and 16^th rushing touchdown. Brent Celek also had a career day racking up 156 yards on 5 catches for one touchdown.

The Eagles turned three New York turnovers into 21-0 on their way to grabbing a quick 28-0 lead, and kept pounding it on the Jets after they made it 28-13 going into the half.

For Mark Sanchez, this was another one of those games he wishes he could forget. He finished 15 of 26 for 150 yards two touchdowns and two interceptions. He was also sacked four times, three by Jason Babin.

“It’s embarrassing,” Sanchez said. “It’s not good football. We just didn’t play our best speaking from an offense perspective, and it puts our defense in a hole. We are a much better football team than we showed.”

Santonio Holmes fumbled and it was returned 47 yards for the touchdown to put Philly ahead early. The Jets caught a break when they recovered a fumble at the 14 on a punt that DeSean Jackson let bounce and eventually caromed off his teammate, but gave it right back as Sanchez was picked by Asante Samuel at the 4.

Vick found Celek for a 26 yard score to put the Eagles up 14-0. Early into the second quarter Vick put them up 21-0 on an 11 yard run and the drive was helped by a roughing the passer penalty.

Sanchez fumbled on the next possession as he was hit running away on a busted play and it eventually led to McCoy’s first touchdown a 9 yard run to put the Eagles up 28-0. The Jets did try to fight back getting a field goal and then recovering a fumble on the kickoff and turning it into 7 as Sanchez found Holmes for a 25 yard touchdown which cut the game to 28-10.

McCoy fumbled on the next possession and the Jets go it at the 27, but had to settle for a field goal. After that it was all McCoy as he eventually scored from 1 and 33 yards which made it 45-13.

For Philadelphia they need to win out and hope the Jets beat the Giants and then the Giants beat the Cowboys in order to win the division. For the Jets they still control their destiny and have zero wiggle room with games against the Giants and Dolphins left.

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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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In a span of five days, the Jets have gone from controlling their destiny for home field in the playoffs to potentially missing the playoffs all together. The Jets’ defense played great for 55 minutes on Thursday, but couldn’t stop Tebow on the final drive. Tebow capped a 95 yard drive with a 20 yard touchdown run with 58 seconds left to stun the Jets and give the Broncos the 17-13 victory.

“I like winning,” Tebow said after his third comeback in a month, “but I wish it wasn’t this stressful. Before the “drive,” the Broncos had punted on their eight previous possessions and Tebow seemed unable to do anything against the Jets defense. He then got the ball with less than six minutes and calmly engineered a 95 yard drive in which he had 57 yards on the ground.

“We played them well through the whole game, until that last play,” Jets star cornerback Darrelle Revis said. “We played them well. Tim Tebow’s legs took them to victory, ran them to victory.”

It was third and four from the Jets 20 with just over a minute left when the Broncos got a “timeout” when a fan ran onto the field and had to be chased by security. During this break the Jets made the decision to call their first all-out blitz of the night, a decision that will be talked about for weeks to come.

Tebow took the snap, read the blitz, and beat safety Eric Smith to the edge and cut back to find his way to the end zone. It was a horrible play by Smith who was supposed to set the edge, but came to far inside and couldn’t recover. ”You know he’s going to keep it in that situation. That’s what he does. You keep the ball in your playmaker’s hand,” Ryan said.

“We thought he was going to carry the ball and he didn’t disappoint us. But he ran for a touchdown. The kid’s a competitor and makes big plays with the game on the line.” Since Tim Tebow replaced Kyle Orton, the Broncos are 4-1 and have climbed back to .500 a half game behind Oakland for the lead in the AFC West.

“He’s a competitive dude,” Broncos coach John Fox said. “He’s super competitive. He never lays his sword down. He’ll fight you to the death. That’s just his nature. He’s a great young man.” Mark Sanchez heaved it up toward the end zone as time expired, but the pass was batted down dimming the hopes of the Jets to even make the playoffs.

The Jets were up 10-3 when Sanchez made a throw toward Plaxico Burress in which he followed him with his eyes the whole way, that was picked off and returned for a touchdown by Andre’ Goodman to tie the game up. Nick Folk broke that tie with a 45 yard field goal with 9:14 remaining.

The drive could’ve been over on the first play when safety Jim Leonhard had a chance to tackle Eddie Royal in the end zone for a safety, but was unable to wrap him up and Royal gained eight yards and got the drive started. Tebow impressed more with his running than his passing finishing 9 of 20 for 104 yards.

“I said before, I trust him. I trust him with everything,” teammate Von Miller said. “No matter how many interceptions he throws, no matter how many touchdowns he scores, that’s Tim Tebow and I’m going to ride with him to the end. I hope he shut up a whole bunch of critics today.”

Joe McKnight and rookie Bilal Powell had to share snaps for most of the night when Shonn Greene took a knee to the ribs and left the game. He never returned after that and with LaDanian Tomlinson being out already the Jets running back situation is very depleted. “He did it to us in college and he’s doing it here,” said teammate Robert Ayers, who went to Tennessee.

“It doesn’t have to be pretty, it doesn’t have to be Aaron Rodgers-like. As long as we get it done, that’s all that matters.” The Broncos and Tebow look to continue their success in their race for the AFC West and the playoffs when they travel to San Diego to face division rivals the Chargers who have been reeling as of late.

The Jets return home to face the Bills in a must win for the Jets if they want to stay alive in the playoff hunt.

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There is no secret about the game plan when facing a Denver Broncos team led by Tim Tebow. There will be a lot of options and running the ball and virtually no throwing. While it may seem easy to defend, Tebow is 3-1 since taking over the starting job in Denver.

The Jets are coming off a disappointing loss at home to the Patriots that all but killed any chance of them winning the AFC East, and looking to bounce back on a short week when they face the Broncos, who are suddenly back in the race for the AFC West, on Thursday night.

The Jets had a golden opportunity to take control of their playoff destiny and the AFC East, but lost 37-16 to the Patriots and snapped a three game winning streak. The game was characterized by sloppy play, including a missed 24 yard field goal, a muffed punt that the Jets failed to recover three times, a pick six, and a stupid timeout.

Sanchez didn’t show up to play, throwing two interceptions and getting sacked five times. The timeout he called before the half prompted coach Rex Ryan to tell NBC at halftime that it was the “stupidest play in NFL history.” ”There’s plenty of football left to play,” center Nick Mangold said. “We’re excited about the opportunity to get out there Thursday night and, you know, right the wrongs.”

The Jets are facing the polar opposite this week as the Patriots featured a lot of spread offenses while the Broncos are strictly a running team. This might pose some problems for the Jets defense that statistically is better against the pass with their talented cornerbacks Darrelle Revis and Antonio Cromartie. The Jets rank 8^th against the pass giving up 210.8 yards per game.

On Sunday Denver rushed the ball 55 times in its win over Kansas City and had 244 yards on the ground. Tebow only attempted 8 passes all game completing 2, though one of the completions was a 56 yard touchdown to Eric Decker. The Jets faced a season-high 39 pass attempts Sunday against the Patriots holding them to 60 yards on 28 carries.

The Jets are still only rank 15^th against the run giving up 116.0 yards per contest. The Broncos have the 2^nd best rushing attack in football averaging 158.2 yards per game, but have been averaging 246.0 yards in their past three games. ”I think it’s just one more thing for people to prepare for,” Tebow said of Denver’s unique offense.

“It’s not like we went out there and did a lot (Sunday) but it’s something you have to scheme for, you have to prepare for and you have to be sound.” There might be some changes for the Broncos in the backfield, though it likely won’t change how the team runs the ball. On Sunday starter Willis McGahee left the game with a hamstring injury and is listed as Questionable.

Backup Knowshon Moreno also was hurt Sunday suffering a torn ACL which will end his season. Sunday they had to turn to third string tailback Lance Ball who was effective rushing for 96 yards on 30 carries, with Tebow adding 43 and a score on 9 carries. They will turn to Ball and second year back Jeremiah Johnson if McGahee can’t go.

The Jets also look to run the ball, though not to the extreme that the Broncos do. They’re averaging 125.5 yards on the ground in their last four games with Shonn Greene averaging 80.8. LaDanian Tomlinson who was hurt late in the game Sunday will not play this week and the Jets have activated rookie Bilal Powel from the practice squad.

The last meeting between the teams was last year and the Jets won 24-20 with a late touchdown from Tomlinson to seal the win. Tebow was only used as a runner in that game carrying the ball 6 times for 23 yards.

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When the Jets and Patriots met a month ago, the Patriots handed the Jets their third straight loss and made people question whether the Jets would even make the playoffs, let along make good on Rex’s usual preseason guarantee. Now the Jets have the chance to do the same thing right back to the Patriots.

The Jets have been hot lately, and they are undefeated at home this season. They’ve won the past two meetings at home against New England and on Sunday have a great opportunity to give the suddenly vulnerable Patriots their third straight loss, which would be their first since 2002.

“Both teams are going to be humming for this one, no question,” Rex Ryan said. “You can sugarcoat it all you want, but they know they need it and we know we need it. Both teams are going to be hungry.”

During their three game losing streak the Jets gave up at least 30 points and fell two games behind the AFC East lead. Three wins later and New York is 5-3 and back into a tie for 1^st with Buffalo and New England. The defense looks like the defense of old, circa 09’ and 10’, allowing only 38 points and forcing 8 turnovers in the past three games. Their last win was a convincing one 27-11 over the Bills last week.

“We definitely have been getting better these last three weeks,” Ryan said. “But we’re going to see how much we’ve improved.” While the defense is playing better they will still face a tough task against Tom Brady and the Patriots who are ranked second in the league averaging 437.3 yards per game.

However in the Patriots past three games they’ve failed to score more than 20 points. Against Pittsburgh two weeks ago they managed only 213 yards total and didn’t score in the first half last week against the Giants. They also committed four turnovers against New York last week which is the third time they’ve done so this year compared to only 1 turnover through their final eight games last year.

Tom Brady isn’t having his best year as he already has 10 interceptions which is the third most in the league compared to only four all of last year. ”Just decision making,” Brady said. “I’ve just got to make better decisions.” The problem for the Patriots though hasn’t been the offense. There issue is the defense which is dead last in passing allowing 314.0 yards per game and is the only team allowing 300+ passing yards in the league.

“I think everybody can do a better job,” Bill Belichick said. “That includes everybody — it includes me, it includes all the coaches, it includes all the players. There’s room for improvement for all of us.” The Patriots cut Albert Haynesworth on Tuesday who they had brought in hopes that he could help improve their defensive front.

They also brought in wide receiver Chad Ochocinco hoping he could give them some sort of a vertical threat, but he hasn’t made a catch in three games. Last week Brady targeted him five times. ”He’s continued to do a great job in practice in his role that he’s really carved out for himself,” Brady said, “and he’s going to continue to be out there and, hopefully, make a bunch of plays.”

The patriots will need him to start making plays to give them a some semblance of a deep threat, because due to his lack of production the Patriots have had to rely extensively on Wes Welker and Rob Gronkowski. With Welker likely being matched up against All-Pro corner back Darrelle Revis his job will be even tougher this week.

Welker had a big 73 yard reception in the last meeting against the Jets, it came when he was lined up opposite Revis. He was otherwise held to a very pedestrian day only catching four balls for 51 yards. ”Sometimes I was throwing him on the ground, sometimes he was catching some balls on me,” Revis said. “I call him the ‘Energizer Bunny’ because he never stops — it doesn’t matter what you do to him, he just keeps on coming and coming.”

The key for the Patriots last time the two met was the run game. BenJarvus Green-Ellis rushed for 136 yards and two touchdowns and the Patriots racked up 152 yards on the ground. The Jets defense has been playing well against the run lately, though they are still ranked 22^nd giving up 123.0 yards per game. They will be getting defensive end Mike DeVito back who is a big part of their run defense so that bodes well for the Jets.

Though the Patriots pass defense is bad, the Jets will continue to rely on their run game as they have the past few games. Shonn Greene has stepped up and the Jets are averaging 130.7 yards over the three game win streak up from 76.2 before. A lot of the resurgence has to do with All-Pro center Nick Mangold fully healing from injury.

The return to the run game has also helped the passing game as Mark Sanchez has 7 touchdowns and only 2 interceptions with a 63% completion rate over the past four games. Sanchez has done well at home against the Patriots posting a 114.5 passer rating and a 2-0 record.

With the recent struggles of the Patriots and the Jets playing well lately and at home the game will be a close one. The Jets should be able to learn from the Steelers and their New York NFC counterparts and be able to keep Brady off balance in the passing game. Unless the Patriots get another big day from the run game the Jets will be hard to beat at home.

When it’s all said and done the Jets should be able to hand the beleaguered Patriots their third straight loss and move into first place in the AFC East. Final Prediction: Patriots 24 Jets 27

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The New York Jets put an end to all the talk surrounding them with a victory over the Buffalo Bills on Sunday.

The high-flying Bills’ offense, which was averaging 30 points a game, was completely shut down by the Jets’ defense. The Jets were able to pick Ryan Fitzpatrick off twice and force a fumble. They stopped the Bills on fourth down, and the Bills didn’t score a touchdown until late in the fourth quarter when the game was already out of reach.

Mark Sanchez and the offense came out early for a change, but couldn’t score until the third quarter when the Jets scored on four straight possessions and cruised to a 5-3 record and a tie with Buffalo.

Sanchez had two bad early turnovers. The first was a pick in the end zone, which spoiled a 15 play 87 yard drive that ate up 10 minutes of clock. The second came when he just missed a perfect shotgun snap that gave Buffalo the ball right back after the defense forced a turnover. He rebounded and finished 20 of 28 for 230 yards and completed an eight-yard touchdown pass to Santonio Holmes.

The Bills, on the other hand, didn’t look like the team that had breezed through their first seven games, but rather dysfunctional and overmatched.

“We just couldn’t get anything going,” Fitzpatrick said. “They kept us frustrated all day and didn’t allow us to do what we’ve been doing all year.”

The corners took away the quick passing routes that the Bills have been running all year. Without much of a running game, things became difficult for Fitzpatrick. He finished 15 of 31 for 191 yards and had a touchdown and two interceptions. He hit David Nelson for a seven-yard touchdown with three minutes left in the fourth quarter. Then he ran the ball  for the two-point conversion to make it 27-11.

The Bills had three first downs and just as many turnovers in their first eight possessions. This game was the first time the Bills have been under 20 points all season.

“They played well and we played poorly,” Bills coach, Chan Gailey, said. “It was a big ballgame. We haven’t had this happen at home this year. And we’ve got to get better.”

The lone bright spot in the game for the Bills was running back Fred Jackson who racked up 82 yards on 18 carries and had three catches for 38 yards. He will have to continue to play well if the Bills want to have a chance on their upcoming road trip, playing four out of the next five games on the road.

The Jets, while not matching the almost 300-yard average, had a good day running the ball. The team rushed for 126 yards and two scores led by Shonn Greene who had 76 yards on 19 carries.

“I’m sure now there’s going to be something written about the Jets being back,” Scott said. “And we won’t listen to that either, because at the end of the day, we know that you guys [in the media] don’t know what the hell you’re talking about.”

The Jets are now focused on their game next week against the New England Patriots, which will be for first place in the AFC East.

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The New York Jets had a bye week that came at the worst time. They had gained some momentum and were riding a two-game winning streak going into the bye. And given their recent history under coach Rex Ryan coming off of byes (they’re 0-2), they’re hoping to change things and are confident that they won’t have a drop off due to time off.

Ryan was at a loss when asked about the trend of his team coming out flat after time off, but said this year that can’t happen. “We have to do something about that trend,” he said. “We need to win this week.” Every game has become a must win for the Jets, especially since the Jets are one game behind the Buffalo Bills and New England Patriots for first place, and they face these two teams in the next two games.

Even CB Darrelle Revis called the game against the Bills this Sunday a must win. “You can’t focus on the past coming off byes and losing,” Revis said. “It’s a new year and we’re in control of our destiny and where we want to go.” The Jets do in fact control their own destiny even after a three game skid as if they can take both of the next two games they could potentially be sitting atop the AFC East.

Lose both games, and the Jets’ season could be close to being over. The Jets have owned the Bills in the past few years, winning five of the last six meetings between the two, and that includes three wins in Buffalo. Ryan believes the practices have been good, and the Jets look very alert and aware of the situation which he hopes will translate into a good showing out of the bye.

But the Jets have lost all three of their away games this season and hope to end the streak at three with a win on Sunday. “Would we like to have had a better record? Absolutely, we would’ve, but we don’t,” Ryan said. “We’re 4-3, but we have it right in front of us. The teams you have to beat are right in front of us, so we’ll know. These next few weeks are going to be critical for us.”

Buffalo on the other side sits at 5-2 atop the AFC East and is coming off their best performance of the year dominating Washington 23-0 up in Toronto. They only gave up 178 yards had two picks to add to their league lead 14, and recorded 9 sacks. This was way better than their five previous games in which they gave up 414+ yards in each game.

“You hope that your team gains confidence from that, and that your defense sees how well they can play,” coach Chan Gailey said. “It should create more confidence.” The Bills are 26^th in the league giving up 385.9 yards per contest, but the Jets’ offense isn’t much better ranked 29^th and averaging 300.1 yards per game.

The problem for Buffalo is that the Jets have recently been playing better, including their season high 162 yards on the ground in their last game against San Diego in which Shonn Greene had 112 yards. This isn’t good for a Buffalo defense that struggles stopping the run. The Jets average 279.0 yards on the ground in the past four meetings with Buffalo.

Buffalo does benefit from having Fred Jackson on their side and they are ranked fifthin rushing averaging 140.6 yards per game. Jackson is ranked second in the NFL averaging 103.0 yards and is sixth rushing touchdowns. His 353 yards receiving out of the backfield is good for fourth among running backs. This matchup looks good compared to the Jets who are 25^th against the rush giving up 126.9 yards per game.

They will have to rely on their backfield because Ryan Fitzpatrick has a 62.0 rating in four games against the Jets and, with CBs Darrelle Revis and Antonio Cromartie, look for TE Scott Chandler to have a big game as the Bills will try to take advantage of the safeties down the seams the one weakness of the seventh ranked pass defense.

The Bills defense is 20^th against the rush and 24^th against the pass. The Jets’ offense, which saw a boost against the Chargers as WR Plaxico Burress and RB Shonn Greene had breakout  games, is looking to keep the momentum going. Mark Sanchez needs to out-manage Ryan Fitzpatrick if the Jets want to win this game.

This will be a good game that will come down to a key play or drive. Each team is riding momentum and playing well as of late and I believe that the Jets with a few more playmakers on their team will be able to pull the game out late. Final Prediction: Jets 27 Bills 21.

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The way things began at MetLife Stadium on Sunday made it look like the Jets’ season was going to crash and burn. The Jets began the game with the ball, and in less than two minutes, they were already down 7-0 when Donald Butler stripped Dustin Keller of the ball and ran it back 37 yards for the score.

New York started gaining some momentum, and appeared to have a 10-7 lead on a 23-yard catch by Santonio Holmes, but the play was brought back due to a holding penalty on Nick Mangold. Two plays later, Mark Sanchez made a bad throw into double coverage, and was picked off by Eric Weddle, which led to a two-yard touchdown catch by Antonio Gates.

This was Gates’ first game back since missing three games with a foot injury. He finished with five catches, 54 yards, and the one touchdown. The Jets’ only touchdown in the first half capped a nice drive that saw a very balanced running and passing attack. Sanchez was able to find Plaxico Burress in the endzone on the third and goal, which brought the score to 14-10.

Four Charger penalties, two pass interferences, and offsides calls helped the drive. Had it not been for a lot of mistakes the Chargers made, they would’ve been up by more points by halftime. San Diego, which came out of a bye wee, had 13 penalties for 95 yards on the day. A late drive and a one-yard run by Mike Tolbert put the ‘Bolts up 21-10 going into halftime.

The second half was a different story. The Jets dominated on both sides of the ball. On their second possession of the half, the Jets had a nice 10-play drive finished off with Burress’ second touchdown of the day on a four-yard catch to make it 21-17 with three minutes left in the third quarter.

The play of the game came with the Chargers driving down with the lead, looking for the potential game sealing score when Philip Rivers threw to Vincent Jackson. The ball tipped off his hands due to the throw being a little behind him, and bounced right into Darrelle Revis’ hands, who returned it at 64 yards to the Chargers 19-yard line, which set up the go ahead score.

“It was a big play,” said Revis, who thought cornerback Antonio Cromartie also got a piece of the ball. After some good runs by Shonn Greene, who had a breakout game rushing for 112 yards on 20 carries, and a defensive holding penalty, Sanchez was able to find Burress yet again for his third touchdown of the day on a three-yard slant in the redzone to give the Jets their first and only lead with 8:41 remaining.

This was Burress’ second three-touchdown game, his first being the opening week of the 2007 season with the Giants. “You’ve got to evaluate yourself,” Burress said. “I looked at myself, and said I’ve got to play better. It was not on anybody but myself.”

On San Diego’s next possession, Rivers, who finished 16 of 32 for 179 yards and a touchdown, threw another interception, this time getting picked off by Kyle Wilson. The turnover set up a 30-yard run by Nick Folk to put the Jets up 27-21. San Diego’s final drive with no timeouts was a joke as they barely got plays off, and turned it over on downs.

Sanchez who, besides the early interception, picked things up finished 18 of 33 for 173 yards and three touchdowns. Burress finished with four catches for 25 yards, but proved to be the red-zone presence the Jets were looking for when they signed him at the beginning of the season.

The Jets head into a bye week, sitting at 4-3, riding a two-game winning streak. After the bye week are two divisional games against the Bills and a home rematch against the Patriots. The Jets improved to 4-0 at home. “This,” Revis said, “was a must-win for us.”

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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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After the Jets lack luster play in the last three weeks, especially by the offense, offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimers’ name has begun to come up more and more with the New York media and fan base. Many people are already calling for his departure after the Jets proved unable to do anything against one of the worst defenses in the league in New England.

Schottenheimer, who is the only holdover from the Mangini era in New York, has been on the hot seat for a few years now due to the offense’s inability at times to score points. Many fans remember how the play calling used to be under Mangini which was always short and safe, sometimes too safe.

They were notorious at times for calling plays in which receivers would run routes inside the first down line and never given the chance to gain enough yardage. Schottenheimer isn’t the type of play caller who calls plays regardless of the opponent. His game plans vary week to week, based on the opponent’s weaknesses.

However, this season he seems to be more worried about keeping all of the offense’s big name receivers, Santonio Holmes, Plaxico Burress, and before he was traded Derrick Mason, happy rather than doing his job and calling the plays that needed to be called. Against Oakland, he made a great call on LaDainian Tomlinson’s touchdown catch matching him up against an obviously slower linebacker.

Then, Tomlinson never received the ball. Dustin Keller, who has all the ability in the world to be a top ten tight end in the league, has five catches all year. While many of the Jets struggles sit with the players and their poor performances, a lot also stems from poor and questionable play calling.

The Jets vowed to return to their ‘ground & pound’ roots against the Patriots and succeeded to some extent. However, there were a lot of play calls that left fans, the media, and even the announcers of the game scratching their heads. In the first three of the Jets eventual seven three and outs, the Jets ran the ball early and had 3^rd and 2, 3^rd and 1, and 3^rd and 2.

All of these were very manageable third downs, but instead of running the ball up the gut which they had success with earlier, they dropped Sanchez back all three times, resulting in two incomplete passes and one sack.

On another play later in the game, they had Sanchez back in the shotgun with a spread four wide receiver set, yet not one wide receivers route was past the 1^st down marker and the play resulted in the Jets being short of the first down. Plays like this are causing people to think that these are in fact the ‘same old Jets.’

Schotty’s play calling, which was the subject of the report issued before the Patriots game, that the three big name receivers had gone to Rex Ryan to complain about the play calling, has one, maybe two weeks to turn this all around before the Jets’ bye week. Up next for the Jets is the winless Dolphins on Monday Night Football, who like the Patriots have the 31^st ranked passing defense.

After that it’s the 4-1 San Diego Chargers, but if the Jets lose to the Dolphins at home on national TV, Schotty might not even make it to the bye week. He is definitely on the hot seat and it’s up to him and the offensive players to get the job done or his job with the Jets could be done before seasons end.

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Monday, the day after the Jets were beat down in Baltimore, Rex Ryan laid into his team about their recent performance and promised a return to the “Ground & Pound” that has made the Jets such a formidable contender the past two seasons. Rex seemed calm after their loss Sunday night, but according to guard Matt Slausson, “(Sunday night) he was definitely hurt, emotionally hurt, but today he was pissed.”

A player speaking on the condition of anonymity said that Ryan was, “as angry as I’ve ever seen him.” Ryan told the team they need to get their identity back, which for the Jets means running the ball and playing smashmouth in your face football. The Jets the past two seasons have built their reputation as one of the most prolific running teams in the NFL.

This season has been a different story as they’ve gotten away from that and become a pass happy team. That pass happy mentality backfired badly against the Ravens. The blitzes put Sanchez under heavy pressure all game causing him to commit four turnovers and take 10 QB hits.

The Jets rushed for 38 yards against the Ravens, which is a season-low. “We have to be able to run the football better than we’re running it, there’s no question about that,” Ryan said. “Maybe we’re built differently than other teams. We can get a lot of (passing) yards and all that stuff, but we want to get wins.”

The Jets problems are stemming from the lack of offensive line play. For years this has been the strength of the team but it is beginning to show signs of deterioration. They were playing bad before All-Pro center Nick Mangold went down and has missed three games with a high-ankle sprain. The team is hopeful he can play against he Patriots  on Sunday.

The only new starter is right tackle Wayne Hunter, who was a backup so the drop off is somewhat shocking for the team and its fans. The Jets average 71 rushing yards per game which is good for 30^th in the league compared to a year ago when their average was 148.4.

Ryan hasn’t blamed RB Shonn Greene, who was named the “bell-cow” running back this year. So far he has 157 yards and 3.1 average, which is the lowest per-carry mark among the top 40 rushers in the league. However, Ryan has no plans to reduce his role and feature LT more.

“Shoot, no,” he said. “How ’bout we give Shonn Greene a chance?”

However, Ryan is partial to second-year back Joe McKnight out of USC, who has been impressing coaches with his special teams play. He forced a fumble on Sunday nights opening kick-off and returned a kick 107 yards for a touchdown. He was also in on defense, causing pressure on the Joe Flacco pick six.

“Concerned? Not at all,” left tackle D’Brickashaw Ferguson said. “We have tough skin and we’ll get it fixed.” But running the ball is a mentality, and it might be harder than the Jets think to just switch back to the way they were in 2009 and 2010. But they will try. When asked if Ground & Pound is back, Slauson smiled and said, “Absolutely. … We’re going to be back. We’re going to be back real soon.”

The Jets better hope they come back sooner than later or the Jets are in for a long season in which their franchise quarterback ends up in the ER.

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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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After his last pitiful performance, New York Jets QB Mark Sanchez is looking a young quarterback again. Except he’s not getting any younger and the Jets can’t afford him to continue regressing. With big expectations on both the team and Sanchez coming into this season, he’s already been on a roller coaster.

After a poor start, Sanchez was able to lead the team back and steal one from the Dallas Cowboys the opening week. The following week the Jets handled business and beat up the lowly Jaguars with Sanchez having a good game. When the team left MetLife stadium, things took a turn for the worse.

Sanchez was abused by the Raiders front seven and seemed unable to complete a pass against Oakland’s questionable secondary. The Ravens gave him even more punishment. Sanchez had 4 fumbles (3 recovered by Baltimore) in Sunday’s game and one interception, but the worst part of the turnovers was that three of them were returned by the defense for touchdowns.

The one-dimensional offense has put a burden on Sanchez, who has nine turnovers in four games. Against the Ravens, he was rattled and completed only 31.4 percent of his passes, the lowest mark in team history for a quarterback with at least 35 attempts in a game. Ryan, who gave a harsh assessment of Sanchez after the game, softened his stance after reviewing the tape.

“I don’t care if Joe Monatana was back there, with that kind of pressure, it’s hard to execute,” Ryan said. The biggest issue has been Sanchez’s lack of leadership and confidence. He’s looking a lot like the kid who was overmatched in his rookie season by the NFL and not like the third year franchise quarterback the Jets need.

While the Jets have issues in the running game and offensive line, possibly adding to Sanchez’s early season woes, a lot of it is on him too. He’s not reading defenses well enough at the line, holding the ball too long, making errant throws when he needs to be more cautious, and fumbling way too many snaps.

Sanchez, who was named captain this season, needs to step up both on and off the field and show the coaches, organization, and fans that he is the player they believed him to be when they traded up to the 6^th overall pick to draft him. If he can’t do that it’s going to be a long season for gang green and Sanchez’s tenure in New York won’t be nearly as long as he or anyone expected.

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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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For all the Super Bowl talk and two looming games in Baltimore and Foxboro, the Jets should be able to win an easy game against the Raiders right? WRONG. The Jets returned to Oakland, and looked not like a Super Bowl contender, but like a confused team with a lack of identity.

The Jets defense was manhandled all day by the Raiders. On the first drive, they came out and drove 76 yards down the field on five plays to go up 7-0. Darren McFadden tore up the Jets’ “vaunted” rush defense for 171 yards and two touchdowns, proving why he is one of the best running backs in the game right now. The Raiders had 230+ yards on the ground, and Jason Campbell managed a good game for Oakland.

The Jets couldn’t tackle all game as everyone was missing open field tackles that allowed Oakland to break off big plays, the biggest being McFadden’s 70 yard TD run. The only bright spot in the Jets’ defense was Darrelle Revis who had his usual game of shutting down the best receiver, who was Darrius Heyward-Bey this week.

His counterpart Antonio Cromartie, who earlier in the week said he was a better play-maker than Nnamdi Asomugha, was forced to eat those words as he had a horrible game. Committing four penalties, keeping scoring drives alive, and fumbling a ball on a kickoff, which lead to the game-winning score, Cromartie was humbled by the Raiders, who, by the way, don’t have Asomugha anymore. Cromartie eventually left the game with a rib injury and didn’t return.

On the flip side, Mark Sanchez and the Jets’ offense showed flashes of brilliance, but it wasn’t enough to keep up with the Raiders. Everyone thought the problem going into the game would be the absence of All-Pro C Nick Mangold, but rookie Colin Baxter held up in his first career start as the Jets ran better than they had all season at times.

Sanchez posted a career high with 369 yards, but played a terrible game. He looked jittery in the pocket all game and the few times his receivers were open, he couldn’t hit them. The numbers say Sanchez had a better game than what showed as for two quarters the Jets couldn’t get anything done against the Raiders. Sanchez was sacked four times in the second half and took a lot of abuse.

It was also another bad running game by Jets standards as Shonn Greene only had 59 yards on 15 carries. There were a few runs that got broken, but the Jets struggled with their interior running, and were only able to gain a yard or so whenever they ran up the middle.

The Jets showed life on a late drive by Sanchez and company, marching 93 yards to score, but it was too little too late. The Jets now look ahead to the tough part of their road trip, falling a game behind the Bills, no typo, yes, the Bills, for first place in the AFC East.

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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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