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.”

Image Courtesy of  Houston Texans

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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.

Image Courtesy of  Miami Dolphins

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Grammy Award-winning band Train is gearing up for the group’s San Francisco 2012 Tour, a special hometown run of club shows, in expectation of the upcoming album CALIFORNIA 37, out April 17 on Columbia Records. The band kicks off six intimate performances in San Francisco starting April 10 at Cafe Du Nord and finishing up April 15 at the Fillmore.

A portion of the ticket sales proceeds will go to the San Francisco charity Family House, which provides temporary housing to families of seriously ill children. Train referenced their commitment to the Bay area and their fans where they began their illustrious career in 2009′s multiplatinum album, SAVE ME, SAN FRANCISCO. Full list of dates below. The band is also revealing the CALIFORNIA 37 cover art on trainline.com (and attached here).

The first single from CALIFORNIA 37, “Drive By,” continues to climb the radio charts and has already entered the Top 10 at both the AAA and HOT AC formats. It is also charting at Top 40 and moving up quickly.  “Drive By” has sold over 200,000 singles since its release in January.

The “Drive By” video premiered on VH1 on February 18 and has gone into rotation there and with support from VEVO. Internationally “Drive By” has been embraced in the UK, Canada, Japan, France, Australia, Denmark, Germany, Hungary, Netherlands, Switzerland and other countries.

Train is heading to the premiere NASCAR event, the Daytona 500, on February 26 when lead singer Pat Monahan will perform the national anthem before thousands of fans live and millions watching on television. The Daytona 500 will air at 1:00pm EST on Fox.

The multiplatinum band TRAIN made its mark on music history with their GRAMMY-Award-winning song “Drops of Jupiter (Tell Me)” and chart-topping singles “Meet Virginia” and “Calling All Angels.” Train earned their third GRAMMY in 2011 for the worldwide smash “Hey Soul Sister” from SAVE ME, SAN FRANCISCO. “Hey Soul Sister” was the biggest selling single of 2010 and hit #1 at radio in the US and in 15 countries abroad.

SAVE ME, SAN FRANCISCO has sold over one million albums worldwide and over ten million tracks.  In addition to taking the sales and radio worlds by storm, Train has been all over television.

They have performed on the NFC Championship Game, American Music Awards, the Grammy Nomination Concert, Crossroads, The Today Show, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Monday Night Football, A&E Private Sessions, America’s Got Talent, The View, Dancing With The Stars, and Live With Regis and Kelly, Ellen DeGeneres Show , The Bachelor, Rachael Ray and more.

TRAIN PRESENTS THE SAN FRANCISCO TOUR

APR 10 – Cafe Du Nord
APR 11 – Great American Music Hall
APR 12 – Bimbo’s
APR 13-  Slim’s
APR 14 - Independent
APR 15 - Fillmore

Image Courtesy of  https://www.facebook.com/Train

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The New England Patriots coasted to a victory Monday night over the Kansas City Chiefs, who were without their starting quarterback Matt Cassel, by a score of 34-3. After a slow offensive start Tom Brady and Co. were able to pick things up. Tom Brady threw two touchdown passes to tight end Rob Gronkowski, and the Patriots got another score from Julian Edelman who returned a punt 72 yards for the score.

With the win the Patriots, who now sit at 7-3, increased their lead in the AFC East to two games, but by beating Kansas City who’s in the hunt for the wild card helped their division rivals the New York Jets.

No one was expecting much from the Chiefs who started quarterback Tyler Palko in place of the injured Cassel. He threw three interceptions, two which were picked off by Kyle Arrington, and the Chiefs only managed one scoring drive, a field goal that gave them the lead with 1:30 left in the first quarter.

“Three interceptions is inexcusable,” Palko said. “The game is hard enough as it is without making mistakes.” Palko finished 25 of 38 for 236 yards and three interceptions. The Patriots got off to a slow start punting on three of their first four possessions and the other ending in a fumble by Brady. On the next series Brady was sacked twice.

“Obviously, the first half we didn’t do anything,” Brady said. “I don’t think it could have gotten much worse.” After that the Patriots were lights out scoring on their next three drives. Brady found Gronkowski for a 52 yard touchdown in which Gronkowski ran for the last 35 yards and tiptoed the line barely remaining inbounds.

The Chiefs gave it right back when Arrington got his first of two picks to set up a field goal to make it 10-3 Patriots. ”We were still fighting and we knew it was a close game going into halftime,” Chiefs safety Kendrick Lewis said. “They got a big play and a big score (Gronkowski’s second touchdown) in the second half and that started their rally.”

The Patriots drove 85 yards on plays to start the third quarter capping on a 19 yard pass to Gronkowski for his second score. Brady finished 15 of 27 for 234 yards and two scores. A minute after that Edelman got his chance and returned a punt for only the second time in his career to put the Patriots up 24-3 with just under nine and a half minutes left in the third.

Arrington got his second pick of the day on the next possession setting up another field goal by Stephen Gostowski to make it 27-3. ”We did too many things that get you beat in this league too many times,” Chiefs linebacker Tamba Hali said. The Patriots got their final score in garbage time when rookie Shane Vereen scored his first NFL touchdown on a 4 yard score with a minute left.

The Patriots look to continue their quest for the number one seed in the AFC when they travel to Philadelphia to square off with the Eagles. The Chiefs will try to stay in the hunt for the AFC West and the wild card, but without Cassel it will be hard. They head home to face Pittsburgh, but after that travel to Chicago and to New York before heading back home to face the Packers.

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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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The Detroit Lions were dropped from the ranks of the unbeatens, as they lost 25-19 to the San Francisco 49ers yesterday. The Lions, coming off an emotional win over the Chicago Bears on Monday Night Football, got off to a great early start and looked as though they were going to use that momentum to propel themselves to a win.

The game seemed to be over before it started, as Detroit defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch forced a strip sack on 49ers first offense play from scrimmage which resulted in a Brandon Pettigrew TD reception for Detroit. Detroit jumped out to an early 10 nothing lead but was held scoreless for the rest of the half by a stout 49er defense.

The 49ers kept the Lions run game in check, rendering running backs Jahvid Best and Maurice Morris ineffective by only allowing 66 yards on the ground. After a Frank Gore touchdown, the defense racked up an 11 yard sack for safety on Matt Stafford that allowed the 49ers to gain some momentum and take a 12-10 lead into halftime.

From then on it was a back and forth game with a total of four lead changes. The final lead change came on an Alex Smith fourth-down, 6-yard pass touchdown pass to Delanie Walker to give the 49ers a 22-19 lead with 1:51 left in the 4^th quarter.  The Lions had a chance to drive for the winning touchdown but thanks to the pressure from the 49ers defense, they weren’t allowed a first down on the final drive.

However the fireworks were not over after the clock ticked down to zero. During the mandated head coach handshake on the field, Jim Harbaugh extended his right hand for Jim Schwartz and with his left slapped him on his back. Schwartz took offense to this and chased Harbaugh down the field yelling at him — the two had to be separated by players.

In a season full of unlikely events, and with two young hot shot coaches, I think we have the start of our most unlikely NFL rivalry.

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In the Monday night football game against the Washington Redskins, Dallas Cowboy star Tony Romo was outfitted with special Kevlar lined pads to protect his ailing ribs. Romo had to resort to wearing the pads after suffering a broken rib and a punctured lung. Romo’s injuries were caused by taking a brutal hit from San Francisco linebacker Ahmad Brooks in Week 2.

The special pads were designed and developed by Unequal Technologies, and this was not the first time that the company has designed pads for an NFL quarterback. Last year Unequal Technologies mocked up similar types of pads for Philadelphia Eagles QB Michael Vick after he damaged his rib cartilage in a game.

The material the pads are created with are reported to be five times stronger than steel and they are the no. 1 shock suppression material in the world, according to Unequal Technologies. However, there is some validity to the statements made by Unequal Technologies. On CBS’ The NFL Today Show, Dan Marino swung a bat at Boomer Esiason, as he shielded himself using some of the protective material.

While Boomer did feel the impact of the strike, he was able to walk away, unharmed. Albeit Marino’s shot was more on the side of an overly aggressive love tap than a full out swing, the material gave Boomer the willingness to be hit in the ribs with a baseball bat and not have any regrets about his decision.

The Kevlar pads obviously provide an extra layer of a protection, and the question that should be on every players lips is why these haven’t become league standard. The pads should not just become standard for QB’s, but for every player who gets on the field. In 2010 30 percent of all NFL players had to miss a game due to injury according to the NFLPA.

Jason Witten, the Cowboys star tight end, was also fitted with a pair of the pads for Monday night’s game so he could return to the football action early. Unequal Technologies’ creation could prevent some of these injuries from happening or from becoming a serious issue. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has been quoted as saying “One of our most important priorities is protecting our players…”

It is encouraging to hear that from Commissioner Goodell , but first a plan of attack needs to be form to tackle the issue of lower body padding. The NFL doesn’t mandate that players wear knee and thigh pads, but does recommend the idea. As a result players, mostly running backs, tend to ignore the recommendation and choose not to wear lower pads.

It is believed by players they can obtain faster speeds quicker and for longer without the hindrance of bulky lower pads.  Without pads on the lower extremities chances of players getting injured are increased; this plays a part in why running backs are habitually sidelined for weeks at a time.

While there has been talk by league offices to enforce players to wear the lower padding, at the moment nothing has come to fruition. However the NFL should receive some credit because addressing the issue is a crucial first step on the path to maximum player safety.

With any luck in the near future, when players suit up on Sunday’s they will be covered from head to toe in best padding, even if that padding just happens to be made of Kevlar
Alexey Stiop / Shutterstock.com

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