New York Jets

One of those teams rumored to be interested in Thomas as a free agent is the New York Jets, where Thomas would be reunited with his former defensive coordinator, Jets head coach Rex Ryan. Guess which two games Thomas circles on his calendar if he matriculates to the Jets? 

Continue reading "Hours Away"

Chances: Good 

New York Jets – Head coach Rex Ryan thought his team was eliminated from the playoffs after last week’s loss. They play Indianapolis today. Ryan was just looking ahead. Too bad, because there isn’t a team playing worse now than the Jets. Chances: Excellent 

Continue reading "Hours Before Kickoff: Week 16"

In the end, the Patriots turned a late turnover into seven points to secure the win. It’s easy to say a win is a win, but the manner in how New England held off the Jets is concerning. 

Continue reading "Pick Six: Week 11"

The New York Jets have the league’s best rushing offense. Can they shut it down? QB Mark Sanchez is reeling after a great start. Will his problems persist or will he have a bounce back game? And after getting toasted by Colts receiver Reggie Wayne, can CB Jonathan Wilhite and the rest of the secondary handle Braylon Edwards and the Jets receiving corps? 

Continue reading "Hours Before Kickoff: Week 11"

l then use divisional record to break the tie. 

Which makes Sunday’s game against the New York Jets more important than the Patriots-Colts game. New England already lost a game to the Jets, making the Pats 2-1 the first time through the AFC East. Cincinnati meanwhile, is 5-0 against the AFC North, including sweeps of Baltimore and Pittsburgh. Now is the time to start praying the Cleveland Browns pull off an improbable upset in week 12. 

Continue reading "Looking Ahead"

After being blitzed nearly to death against the New York Jets, Brady carved up Atlanta and starred down Baltimore’s Ray Lewis-led defense and came out ahead. 

Not happy with his inaccuracy on deep balls against Denver, Brady put on a clinic against Tennessee, throwing six touchdowns and connecting on a handful of passes downfield. And Brady put it all together in London in a sound defeat of Tampa Bay. 

Continue reading "The Real Tom Brady"

week and Atlanta being the exceptions, the Patriots gained less than 100 yards against Buffalo, the New York Jets, Baltimore, and Denver. It’s not just coincidence that two of these games were losses and the other two were close wins. 

Continue reading "Staying On the Run"

Maybe the week two Jets game was like a flash forward of this game against Baltimore. 

Obviously the Ravens’ defense will play much like Gang Green’s crew that kept the Patriots offense out of the endzone. Baltimore will rely on many of the principles taught by Cocky Green Giant, with a few twists naturally. 

Continue reading "Hours Before Kickoff: Week 4"

The Patriots offense was virtually shut down by the New York Jets. QB Tom Brady was unable to get the offense into the endzone and was constantly rushed by a relentless New York blitz. It got people saying the Jets had the blueprint for beating the Patriots and with the rest of the league as witnesses, every opponent will follow suit. 

Continue reading "The Blueprint"

Over the last two years, the Patriots invested a lot of their time turning over the cornerback position. It started with allowing Asante Samuel to leave as a free agent. New England took action to replace him by drafting Terrance Wheatley and Jonathan Wilhite in the 2008 draft. 

Continue reading "Very INTeresting"

Great. The Jets have bragging rights until they meet again in November. That’s a lot of time to bark. 

Time vs. Frequency: People thought what really mattered last week was that the pass rush showed up when the team needed it. The Jets what happens when a team gets pressure all game long instead of just at the end of the game. I barely saw DE Derrick Burgess in the first half and didn’t see DE Tully Banta-Cain until the second half. They are supposedly the best pass rushers on the team. How many snaps did they get and when? 

Continue reading "Pick Six: Week 2"

Now the Pats look forward to the New York Jets, Atlanta, and Baltimore. That’s like after a heart attack, getting a staph infection (from Gang Green), bird flu from the Falcons, and a severe concussion courtesy of the hard-hitting Ravens. 

Continue reading "Hours Before Kickoff: Week 2"

le and making sure his teammates are in the right places before the snap. 

Guyton knows the New York Jets and team after team will come after him over and over again, on the ground and through the air. Until he proves otherwise, Guyton is the weak link of the defense. He will have to step up in a major way. Does Gary Guton have what it takes? 

Continue reading "Guyton in the Middle"

There are two things you need to know about New York Jets head coach Rex Ryan. 

One, he has a big mouth. He didn’t even wait until the ink dried on his contract before he started throwing verbal spears. He had an entertaining one-on-one with Miami LB Channing Crowder. And Patriot fans had his “I never came here to kiss Bill Belichick’s rings” statement memorized since Ryan said it in June. 

Continue reading "Nothing Wrong with Rex Ryan in my Book"

added to the roster to challenge the holdovers. 

Free agent Chris Baker was signed from the New York Jets after N.Y. deemed Baker expendable after Dustin Keller impressed the coaching staff in his rookie year in 2008. And Alex Smith wasn’t wanted by Tampa Bay anymore after they traded with Cleveland for Kellen Winslow Jr. The Pats got Smith for an undisclosed draft pick. 

Continue reading "The Battle at Tight End"

In the world of journalism, it's the greatest compliment when an article you wrote inspires others to express their own opinion on the same subject.

Back in February, I wrote an article asking the question should teams draft tight ends in the first round. It was a relevant question because Oklahoma State's Brandon Pettigrew could be the only TE selected within the first 32 picks.

Continue reading "Great Minds Think Alike"

s, can you please think before you react? 

4.) Now that Brett Favre has retired again, the New York Jets quarterback situation is a curious case for 2009. It’s seemingly up for grabs, and the front office has a myriad of options. Kellen Clemens is already on the roster, but there has been some talk among those in the know that management is quite fond of another Brett, the one who is still on the team, undrafted free agent Brett Ratliff out of Utah. Although, I find it hard to believe that a team who was one game away from the playoffs last season would put its offense in the hands of a second year man who is yet to take a professional snap. The Jets could also recruit a veteran like Kurt Warner, Jeff Garcia or Kerry Collins. Vince Young will be available, surprisingly (sarcasm), and as a Patriots fan, I hope they bring Young in because he’s terrible. They may also draft Mark Sanchez out of USC as rumored. The most interesting name I’ve heard in the aftermath of the Favre retirement is Michael Vick's (gulp). Vick should be out of jail in time for the upcoming season, and while exceedingly athletic, his ability to play the quarterback position is up for debate and the amount of off field baggage he’ll be totting will be unlike anything any player has carried before. Are the dogs in New York safe?

Continue reading "The Sports Don's Sunday Musings: Volume II"

lcons, made his first pass completion on his way to prominence as a Packer to himself and adorned a New York Jets uniform in his final season, announced his retirement yesterday…again.

Continue reading "Favre Retires. Finally. I Think."

One rumor had Cassel being pursued by the New York Jets if Brett Favre retires. The Jets are a playoff ready team that doesn't have the patience for the unproven Kellen Clemens and his growing pains.

Continue reading "Tag! You're Going Nowhere"

Boy, we don't even get a chance to let the fact that the Patriots are out of the playoffs for the first time since 2002 soak in before the team is involved in off-season news.

On Monday, three teams fired their head coaches, with two of the head men out of work have Patriots ties. Rod Marinelli was canned after a 0-16 season with Detroit, snitch Eric Mangini was let go by the Jets for missing the playoffs two out of three years, and Cleveland had enough of Romeo Crennel after 40 losses in four seasons. Crennel and Mangini were both former defensive coordinators for the Patriots.

Continue reading "Wanna Trade, Cleveland?"

for a third party to complete.

The last time the Pats missed the playoffs, QB Brett Favre and the New York Jets were involved. The difference in 2002 was the Jets won the season finale over a Green Bay Packers team that had their playoff spot locked up. So G.B. mailed it in, allowing New York to get the playoff spot New England had their eyes on.

Continue reading "The Drive in '09"

While the Patriots' fate is intertwined with the results of the Miami-New York Jets game and the Jacksonville-Baltimore game, they don't play until after New England and Buffalo wrap up their regular season. There's no distraction to keep the Pats from losing focus. After the game the players can huddle together in the lounge in front of the big t.v. and wait for fate to determine if there's one more game to prepare for.

Continue reading "Hours Before Kickoff: Week 17"

led by Jim Sorgi with Peyton Manning giving him tips from the sideline? Absolutely not.

Would the New York Jets have a slim chance of getting into the playoffs tomorrow if Kellen Clemens started 16 games while Brett Favre remained retired? I don't think so.

Continue reading "Hats Off"

I can't believe I'm about to say this. It makes me feel dirty just thinking about it. But it's what has to be done.

Go Jets.

 Ugh! I'm gonna need a shower.

As much as I despise New York and their teams (the Yankees once again came through with more than $400 million reasons to hate them more this off-season), for once, I want the Jets to win.

Continue reading "Sacreligious"

Usually I’m not one to consider a conspiracy in sports but the “flex schedule” set up by the NFL has gotten me perturbed to say the least. With their slaughter over the Cardinals last week the Patriots did their part in the efforts to make the playoffs. As luck would have it the Seahawks, allowing a glimmer of hope for New England, downed the Jets. In the final week of the regular season the Jets and Dolphins were to meet in an AFC East clash that will determine the fate of the division. With the entirety of the East playing at 1pm all of the NFL would know by early evening their AFC East divisional winner.

Continue reading "A Final Punishment?"

A friend of mine, whose wife was pregnant, headed to the hospital last week and hunkered down for the impending labor, promptly updating his Facebook status by noting that he was playing "the waiting game."

Continue reading "The Waiting Game"

As I watch the Patriots season I can help but be reminded of baseball seasons past. As an avid Red Sox fan the race for the pennant is always one that leaves fans on the edge of their seats, gaspin

Continue reading "Sizing up the Playoff Picture"

ut as a team, the Patriots can't afford to lose their footing and fall further behind Miami and the New York Jets.

Here's a few things I'm looking for:

Red State Values - The Cardinals are from Republican Arizona, but don't be surprised if both teams have conservative approaches.

Continue reading "Hours Before Kickoff: Week 16"

What's more important is being a play-maker. Think about his interceptions. Against the New York Jets, his second half interception led to the difference-making touchdown. His pick against Miam

Continue reading "Pro Bowl Pats"

People seem to like the New York Jets to beat the Denver Broncos with ease.  I suppose this is a bit of an obvious bet, which is usually a good reason not to bet it.   

The Broncos defense is so bad it cannot be counted on to force a single punt all day.  They just got done losing to the Oakland Raiders in Denver, so that certainly does its part in creating a bad image for the Broncos. 

Continue reading "NFL Week 13 Musings"

Check it. A quick review. About two weeks ago against the Jets, Matt Cassel becomes the first player to pass for 400 yards and run for 60-plus. The following week he throws for 415 yards, becoming the first Patriot to throw two consecutive 400-yard games.

Continue reading "Getting the Most Out of Cassel"

They split with the New York Jets, own a 1-0 advantage over Buffalo, but are down 0-1 to the Dolphins.

Now does a loss to the 'Fins mean the Patriots will not be able to get into the playoffs? It would make the road to the post-season a lot tougher with next to no margin for error, but no, it doesn't.

Continue reading "Hours Before Kickoff: Week 12"

Last Thursday (against the New York Jets) he had a 20-tackle performance. I don’t know how much you’ve seen of him, but I understand he was compared to a former teammate of yours, Al Wilson. 

Continue reading "Romanowski on the Patriots"

He led the team back from 18 points down to the New York Jets with a pass-first offensive attack (New England rushed the ball seven times in the second half, four by Cassel). Matt threw a pin-point touchdown to Randy Moss at the front corner of the endzone. Cassel became the first player in NFL history to pass for 400 yards and rush for more than 60 in one game.

Continue reading "Cassel to Follow an Old Path to the Playoffs"

There are a lot of conflicting opinions on the crisis of climate change. The phenomenon of global warming is a very touchy subject with special interest groups and public interest groups alike. There is one special party that I see benefiting greatly from climate change and his name is Chad Pennington. 

Continue reading "A Case for Global Warming"

teammates, and he expects to be ready for a Thursday night game? I don't see it being enough.

The New York Jets coaching staff isn't stupid, though. Law won't start and his playing time should be limited. Maybe Ty will come in handy in sub packages or as part of the dime unit. Maybe they'll just use him in zone because he hasn't played all year.

Continue reading "Hours Before Kickoff: Week 11"

They've used tape to levy fines and suspensions before. Just ask New York Jets safety Eric Smith. He was fined $50,000 and suspended a game for his hit on Arizona receiver Anquan Boldin in the season opener. Or talk to Pittsburgh's Hines Ward who was fined for what looked like clean blocks.

Continue reading "Vince Will Fork Over the Dough"

They did for two wins against the Kansas City Chiefs and New York Jets, including impressive goal line stands in each game.

They pressured KC's passers and forced Jets' QB Brett Favre into an interception that led to an offensive touchdown.

Continue reading "Hours Before Kickoff: Week 5"

raveled to Washington in week three and stayed in the East until after last week's game against the New York Jets.

While in the nation's capital, the players were encouraged to do some sight-seeing and learn about the history of this country and the current government.

Continue reading "Business Trip"

Over the weekend, after every analyst and reporter suggested who the Patriots should sign as a back-up to Matt Cassel (someone even suggested Jeff George. Jeff George!), New England brought Matt Gutierrez back into the fold. First he was signed to the practice squad, but quickly was elevated to the active roster. He was the emergency quarterback Sunday and almost became the back-up.

Continue reading "The Back-up Plan"

Though I'm not done gloating and soaking up this win over the Jets, it's time to take an objective view of the game.

For starters, it could had been a blowout. QB Matt Cassel hesitated on a few passes. If he threw it on time to WR Randy Moss deep, that would had been a score (but Moss still should had caught that pass - bounced off his chest). There was a curl ran by Wes Welker that could had been a first down. And finally TE David Thomas beat the coverage but Cassel held on a beat too long. By the time he threw it, Cassel had to throw a bullet. If Cassel released it on Thomas' cut, the required touch would had floated the pass over LB Calvin Pace's hand and to the target just before LB Eric Barton arrived. That's 14 points the offense missed out on, not including the other trips into the red zone.

Continue reading "Monday Morning"

For the New York fans that cheered Tom Brady's injury and to the New York tabloids that celebrated New England's misfortune, this win is for you.

All day long I said this would be a Patriots win. Normally I'm a rational wait-and-see guy and willing to respect the unpredictability of the sport. But not today. I had total confidence in the result. No doubt in my mind the Patriots would come out on top.

Continue reading "Satisfying"

Because my browser developed some stupid kind of error, erasing almost an hour's worth of work, I'll gonna go straight to my few points:

Training Wheels? - This is Matt Cassel's fourth year. He knows the offense. But his strengths are different from Tom Brady's. A lot of plays will be the same, but others will be exchanged for what Cassel is comfortable with. There probably will be more screen plays, but that doesn't mean downfield passes are out of the attack.

Continue reading "Hours Before Kickoff: Week 2"

The New York Jets traded with the Green Bay Packers for quarterback Brett Favre for a conditional pick. To make room for the living legend, the Jets cut Chad Pennington. Taking advantage of Pennington's availability was the Miami Dolphins, who signed Chad for two years. Both passers with new addresses are expected to start for their new teams.

Continue reading "Better competition"

So the New York Jets traded for Brett Favre. That's nice, but they still won't beat the Patriots.

The best part of this news is this finally puts to an end the biggest soap opera of the off-season. Favre and the Green Bay Packers complete their divorce and they go their separate ways. Now they get to write a new chapter for their divergent lives.

Continue reading "Near and Favre"

maining LBs, the Patriots aggressively addressed the problem by adding Victor Hobson from the hated New York Jets and three more in the draft. On top of that, New England played free agent signee strong safety Tank Williams at linebacker sometimes during the recent passing camp.

Continue reading "Say When"

every single game the Pats play, but there are a few games to really look forward to:

Week 2: at New York Jets
Where spygate began. Pats fans might want to record this game as New England makes it a payback game

Continue reading "Schedule redux"

He knows there's at least three teams in the top seven (Oakland Raiders, New York Jets, New England Patriots) may have a jones for Gholston. The question is, how badly does one want him? All three franchises feel secure Gholston will still be available after two picks. His availability comes into question when he reaches Oakland at third. So if the Jets or Pats or whoever really want Gholston, they'd call St. Louis.

Continue reading "Miami bluff"

The New York Jets signed DE/LB Calvin Pace from Arizona. Why is this good news? Because if the Jets can fill a pass rush hole through free agency, then they will turn their attention to other needs when the NFL Draft arrives. Remember, the Jets are a pick ahead of New England and need to improve a pass rush that had just 29 sacks last year. DE/LB Shawn Ellis tied for the team lead in sacks with five. The other guy was David Harris, an inside linebacker! That's not supposed to happen in a 3-4 defense.

Continue reading "Good News Times Two"

Today the news broke that the Detroit Lions are looking to move Shaun Rogers via trade or release and, while I do not understand or agree with their decision, the Jets must try to acquire the seventh year defensive tackle.

Continue reading "Mr. Rogers' New Neighborhood?"