So much for being the favorites, huh?
Brett Favre and the entire offense had trouble getting in sync, Matt Cassel did a decent job in Tom Brady's absence and Stephen Gostkowski booted four field goals as the
Patriots trumped the Jets 19-10 at the Meadowlands. The tone of the game was set early. The Gotham Green took the opening kickoff and drove to the New England 13-yard line, but stalled. Enter Jay Feely for a 31-yard field goal attempt. Wide right. Things degenerated from there.
This was a very frustrating game to watch. The Jets had numerous opportunities to take control of this one, but couldn't do it. The defense looks much improved from last season, but the offense looks eerily similar to 2007. Both units could move the ball between the '20s (at times), don't score touchdowns (in the red zone or anywhere else) and seem unable to battle back from deficits.
Hopefully, this year's offense will gel and improve as we roll along.
REASONS TO GET UP ON MONDAY:
Defense. The unit allowed over 100 yards on the ground (104), but allowed the Pats only 3.2 yards a carry. Gang Green registered 3 sacks, Bryan Thomas had another good game (one sack and a near KO of Cassel in the first half) and Randy Moss was held to 2 catches for 22 yards. That was the good stuff. Unfortunately, the D needed a big stop after the Jets cut the score to 16-10 with 10:18 minutes left in the game and it didn't happen. The Patriots marched 71 yards on 11 plays and ended the game with a field goal. Former Jet Lamont Jordan was a big part of that drive and finished with 62 yards on 11 carries. Still, I thought the D played relatively well. They were playing on a short field nearly the entire afternoon (five New England drives started in Jets territory).
Chansi Stuckey. Two weeks and two touchdown catches for No. 83. Not bad for the second-year player from Clemson. Stuckey hauled in a two-yard touchdown pass early in the fourth quarter to pull the Jets to within 16-10. Stuckey got some help from a well-disguised pick by Laveranues Coles, but that's beside the point. I'm not sure what Brad Smith's status is as the No. 3 wideout, but Stuckey looks like he's ready to take over that job. Stuckey finished with 4 catches for 43 yards and the TD.
REASONS TO SLEEP IN ON MONDAY:Kicking game. Way to make a good first impression. Jay Feely trotted out in the first quarter to attempt a 31-yard field goal and give the Jets a 3-0 lead. Not even close. The ball was off the mark as soon as Feely's foot hit it. A real downer. Ben Graham had a horrible game (40.5 average on four punts) and those numbers don't really illustrate how poorly he played. It's not like the Jets were relying on these guys to win the game, but it would have been nice if they didn't put them behind the eight-ball all day.
Offensive woes. I know Favre is still getting acclimated to his new digs, but the offense looked like it was still in preseason mode at times. The Jets had a first-and-goal at the 3-yard line in the second quarter and decided to run the ball three straight times. They had to settle for three. Thomas Jones had a decent day (70 yards on 17 carries), but I would have liked to see one pass attempt at the goaline. The O looked terrible on their first possession of the second half. The Jets started with a holding penalty and then Favre was called for an illegal forward pass. Somehow, Gang Green converted on a 3rd-and-22, but they weren't finished with their sloppy play. Jerricho Cotchery was called for pass interference on the next play and Favre's next pass went for -5 yards. But the worst was yet to come. Favre made a terrible pass that was intercepted by Brandon Meriweather and returned to the Jets 31-yard line. The Pats would convert that turnover into six points. It wasn't an awful day for No. 4 (he finished 18 of 26 for 181 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT), but the numbers and the execution were very similar to what the Jets got at the QB position last year.
Penalties. Six flags for 60 yards. The worst string came in the above paragraph, but another bad penalty came on a 3rd-and-2 in the fourth quarter. The Pats converted the third down to the Jets 40-yard line, but Calvin Pace was called for roughing the passer. That moved the ball to the Jets 25-yard line and New England would eventually seal the win with a field goal.
All in all, a very disappointing afternoon for the Jets. The Pats defeated the Green and White for the eighth straight time at the Meadowlands and 10th in the past 11 get-togethers. I guess that'll calm down talk of the Jets as the team to beat in the AFC East for a while.
Next week the Jets will strut their stuff at the San Diego Chargers on Monday night. The
Bolts suffered a brutal loss to the Broncos and should be in a foul mood next week.
And so should the Jets.
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