Jets roll over the Rams

Jets put up 40 points in record breaking first half

The Jets finally put together a complete effort and annihilated the LA St. Louis Rams last week 47-3. The was easily the best effort the Jets have put forth all season, and Merrill Hodge said something like the Jets are rounding into championship form, but sadly I can’t quote him verbatim because I am too lazy to look it up. On Sunday I was overjoyed when the Jets kept adding to the misery of a city that probably shouldn’t have stolen a team from Los Angeles in the first place. With that glorious win in the books and with Thomas Jones looking like a young Gale Sayers (minus the latently homoerotic biopic), let me make my position clear: Let’s not get crazy Jet fans.

This week presents the biggest challenge of this young season. On Thursday night, the Jets head for New England for what will be in the words of Steve Seaholm, “a clash of the tidans.” New England OWNS the Jets (hence the reason for the caps). With the juice the Jets have after last week’s massacre of Marshall Faulk’s former squad, they must come to play once again to legitimize themselves as a contender in the AFC.

When these teams played in Week 2, the Jets failed to compete offensively and allowed the Pats to walk away with an easy win, but this is not Week 2 in the sense that both teams are better. Matt Cassel seems to have come around. The guy can play a little football. Maybe sitting on the bench for 2 of the biggest sports dynasties of the last 15 years can teach you something and then again, “maybe it was all just a big façade” (My Fellow Americans reference, BOOM!). Since that Week 2 matchup, and most noticeably in the past couple of weeks, other than getting completely run off the field against the Chargers, the Jets defense has been superb and the Jets secondary may boast a couple players headed to Honolulu because of it. It is because of this unit that the Jets may be playing in early January before Brett Favre predictably self destructs. The Jets defense is slowly becoming one of the best units in the NFL, however, up until last week, the Jets offense was unable to keep up.

Someway, somehow, the Patriots keep churning out the victories. BenJarvus Green-Ellis leads the Patriots on the ground and in syllables. Miraculously, Wes Welker has more catches this year than he did at this time last year. Defensively, the Patriots may employ linebackers that are older that the on air staff of 60 Minutes, but rookie Jerod Mayo helps them get the job done.

Let’s face it, breaking down the X’s and O’s does not really matter this week. The Patriots absolutely OWN the Jets. Did I already say that? Well, they do. New England has beaten the Jets 11 of the past 12 times they’ve met including a playoff loss a couple years ago. I’m more worried about this game than what I’m going to smell like after I buy Tony Sirico’s new cologne.

In the NFL, the fact remains when you play a team that has been your nemesis for years, you need to game plan effectively. This is a short week and therein a short article, but let me pontificate for a second. The Jets probably don’t have enough time to get their game plan together, but I don’t care.

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Last week’s game has given me the hubris to predict a Jets victory. Well maybe not.

Prediction:

Jets 17

Pats 23

Let’s pray that I’m wrong.

By Dan Rein
ProFootball-fans.com New York Jets Correspondent