Jets Folk Hero Scores in Nick of Time

There stood Nick Folk, amazingly calm and collected on the field. Stunned fans of the Detroit Lions once again saw their team snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, as Folk, who had minutes before kicked a 36 yard field goal to send the game into overtime, booted a 30 yard kick through the uprights only 2:38 into overtime, giving the Jets a 23-20 win.

It turns out that the reason that Folk felt so little pressure is that he had no idea that his winning kick won the game for the Jets. He thought that the new overtime rule recently approved by the Lords of Football would apply, and that the Lions, who lost the coin toss in OT, would get one possession to either tie or win the game. The rule, of course, is applicable only in the post-season. “ When I made it, I turned to go get ready to kick off”, said Folk. “Then I saw everyone running onto the field and was like, ‘OK, we won. Woo hoo.” This was obviously a case where a little knowledge was an excellent, and not a dangerous thing.

What to make of this victory? For the second time in three weeks, the Jets plucked a rabbit out of their helmets, winning a game that was apparently lost with less than five minutes to go in regulation. For 55 minutes, the Jets, especially the offense, sleep-walked through the game. The Jets, having been shut out last week by the Green Bay Packers, didn’t score against the Lions until Sanchez threw a 74 yard TD pass to Braylon Edwards late in the second quarter. Thus, the offense went almost 90 consecutive minutes scoring nada. Gang Green accrued 11 penalties, made five fumbles, two critical second half turnovers including a terrible Sanchez pass which was intercepted in the end zone in the final quarter. The fabled defense allowed Lions second year QB Matt Stafford to pretty much pick them apart. The defense stiffened later on in the contest, but only after Stafford left the game due to injury. With less then five minutes to go in the game, and down by 10 points, the Jets forsook Ground and Pound for the hurry-up offense, and scored on a one yard sneak by Sanchez to pull within three points, with less then three minutes to go in the ball game. Coach Ryan eschewed an on-side kick, and the Lions took possession, needing only one first down to wrap up the game. But the miraculous comeback likely would have never taken place if Jim Swartz, the Lions head coach didn’t make a most peculiar call. With less then two minutes to go, and the Jets out of timeouts, Swartz made the decision to have back-up QB Drew Stanton run a bootleg play on third down, deep in their own territory. Stanton ran the bootleg, and decided to pass for the first down. The pass fell incomplete. If the Lions had chosen to run the ball, they would have burnt up 40 crucial seconds on the clock, and the Jets would have had to run their hurry-up offense from deep in their own territory with less then a minute to go in regulation time. Swartz later took the blame for the blunder: “That’s my fault,” he said. “I did a poor job of communicating [to Stanton]. Looking back on it, don’t even give [ Stanton] the option to pass.” The Jets were flummoxed but grateful for the gift, “I was definitely shocked they threw that pass,” right tackle Damien Woody said, “and when it went incomplete I was like, ‘You just did us a big favor. Thank you very much. We’re in business.’ ”

> Buy NY Jets jerseys & fan apparel online through Pro Football Fans, find NFL Fathead wall stickers or check the updated NFL scores!

That wasn’t the last of the Lion’s boners; however, The Jets received their second Christmas gift a minute later when Lions linebacker Julian Peterson was called for a 15 yard personal foul for hitting LaDainian Tomlinson out of bounds. Sanchez took advantage of the penalty as well as the extra forty seconds, driving to the Lion’s 19 yard time, setting up Folk for a 36 yard field goal as time ran out in regulation.. Continuing the hurry-up offense as the game went into overtime, Sanchez hit Santonio Holmes with a 52 yard bomb, which set up the game winning field goal.

The question remains: what are Jets fans to make of this victory? Rex Ryan always refers back to Bill Parcells’ adage: “You are as good as your record.” The Jets are currently 6-2, in first place in the AFC East, thanks to New England’s loss to the Browns. There are also no remaining teams in the NFL with less than two losses. However, the Jets, however resilient, have some obvious symptomatic issues, especially on offense. They play the Cleveland Browns next week; the Brownies have already beaten the Super Bowl Champion New Orleans Saints as well as the Patriots. The match is intriguing, not only because Cleveland appears to be rejuvenated, but also because the Jets face off with their former Head Coach, the Man-Genius, as well as defensive coordinator Rob Ryan, brother of Rex. Stay tuned, as the Jets begin the second half of a season that their own exuberant Head Coach insists will culminate in a February appearance at Jerry Jones’ Pleasure Palace.

By: Paul J. Nebenfuhr
ProFootball-fans.com New York Jets Correspondent