JETS RATTLE BRADY AND MAKE STATEMENT TO PATS

For the first time since 2000, the New York Jets beat the New England Patriots at the Meadowlands. The revamped Rex Ryan defense had Tom Brady scrambling all day and held the vaunted Pats offense without a touchdown. Rookie quarterback, Mark Sanchez, had a tremendous second half leading the Jets from a 9-3 deficit at the half to a 16-9 win. It was another all-around great effort that leaves the Jets 2-0 and in first place in the AFC East after two weeks.

Clearly, the Jets have bought into Rex Ryan's system. I have never seen the Jets have such a dominating defense. The aggressiveness is such a breath of fresh air from Jets defenses of yesteryear. I love the fact that there is a defender waiting to tackle the receiver immediately. I love the fact that they have allowed very little on the ground. And oh yeah! They have not allowed a touchdown against two very good offenses. Look at what Houston did against Tennessee yesterday. The Jets defense shutout that team and then they scored 34 points against a good Titans defense!

Granted the season is only two weeks old and offenses will have better days against our defense, but you cannot help not being excited about it as a Jets fan. Bart Scott, Kris Jenkins, Darrelle Revis, David Harris, and others have absolutely grown into big time players. The pass rush has been outstanding and remember they will get Calvin Pace back in two weeks to add to the attack. And what about the Jets not dropping back into the prevent defense for Brady's final drive? Keep doing what you have been doing all day. I loved that! Prevent defenses only prevent winning.

Mark Sanchez has been very solid as well. He was not allowed to do a whole lot in the first half yesterday, but the second half was a thing of beauty. He did not light up the stat sheet, but he engineered three scoring drives and was very smart in his decision making. The play before punting to the Pats for their final drive was very smart. Instead of forcing a pass somewhere down field, Sanchez wisely took a sack making Brady and company have to go 90 yards to tie the game. You make that decision when the defense is playing the way it is. Why throw something up or chance having the ball being stripped? If he makes a mistake there, the Pats would have started from midfield or better. It was a great decision on Sanchez's part. One Brett Favre wouldn't have made!

As far as Rex Ryan, I think the team has clearly bought into his attitude. Some players need to cool down with their talk, but I like the chemistry between the players and coaches. Ryan's phone call to the season ticket holders also worked. I have never heard the Meadowlands so loud for a prolonged amount of time. He asked the crowd to make things difficult and his request was granted. The crowd forced the Pats offense into four delay of games. Ryan made a great move giving the game ball to the crowd after the victory.

Now Jets fans have been disappointed more than most fans in the NFL. We have seen great starts turn into terrible finishes. Just look at last year. The Jets were flying at 8-3, and there was talk of an all-New York Super Bowl. Then it all fizzled so quickly. So obviously we need to be careful before proclaiming we have a championship level team, but we should also really enjoy the new attitude this team has. Looking at the schedule before the season started, I thought the Jets could be 0-5 against those tough opponents. So to be 2-0 is a major plus and we'll see where they go from here.

Pat Morgan

J! E! T! S! JETS! JETS! JETS!

MAKE A WISH: BRADY HURT OR NOT?

I know that there has already been a lot of speculation around Tom Brady, and his recent pull out of the game against the Washington Redskins. There are many questions surrounding this issue. One: Is Brady really hurt? Two: Is what the team saying really true?

At this point, the Patriots and Belichick are saying that Brady is not hurt. The reason, they claim, that Brady came out when he did was so that they could give him a rest and let the back up QBs get a shot at the Redskins. In all fairness to the unfair Patriots, this probably isn't far from the truth. However, the status update on Brady was that he had a sore shoulder. And after watching the hit that he took from defensive lineman Albert Haynesworth, it looks like he could have been seriously injured. I mean, if that man was coming for me, I would run like the wind, and that's saying something because I cannot run any amount of distance. And not just for that hit. Remember when he stomped on a Dallas' player's head? Yeah, I wouldn't mess with him. (On a side note: for all of you Brady haters out there, I have included the crushing hit video below.)

So right now this whole "Is Brady hurt?" question is still up in the air. However, I think (and so desperately hope) that they took Brady out because he is hurt. I think that Bellechik and the Patriots would be devastated if Brady was hurt again, especially in the beginning of the new season, and would be too afraid of letting that information be leaked out, especially in pre-season. No matter what the articles and sportscasters say, we really cannot tell how this hit has affected Brady until he gets back out on the field. Even if his shoulder wasn't shattered, that is the shoulder of his throwing arm. Although Haynesworth is one scary dude, he just might be the hero of the NFL this year. Sorry Bernard Pollard, your hero-dom has ended.

Jaclyn Kahn

MADDEN COVER TO BE SHARED?

Normally, I could care less about something like this, unless a Buffalo Bills player was put on the cover of the new Madden NFL video game. Everyone believes that there's some curse that goes along with being on this cover, and I don't doubt it. Though, then again, it may just be a "curse" set on the public's mind because they now will pay more attention to that player. Anyway, I care because the article about it at MJD's Shutdown Corner is hysterical.

The two who are supposedly going to share the cover of the new Madden game are (drum roll please) Larry Fitzgerald and Troy Polamalu. According to this article at Yahoo! Sports, "It would mark the first time that the two have shared a cover since they appeared together on the October 2007 cover of 'We Wear Our Hair Like Pretty Girls Monthly.'" Furthermore, "And it would all play very nicely into the hot new feature in Madden this year, 'Let's Brush Each Other's Hair Mode.'"

But enough with the hair jokes. It's sad that there really isn't much going on in the football news that I chose this story to report on. But a lot of people talk about the Madden curse, so why not. I was thinking, maybe there should be a vote for who should be on the cover of Madden. I mean, why not vote for the most popular bad guy in football? It would be one non-violent way to hope that someone goes down to the Madden curse. Why, I'll even begin and nominate Tom Brady to be on the cover of this year's Madden. Gisele can be on it too, I'm sure they could give her some fashionable Patriot's outfit. Or should could be a cheerleader in the background. Either way, it would be nice to get Brady wiped out for another entire season. But getting back to the point, I'm sure there are a lot of fans who, when they find out about their star player being on the cover of Madden, A: freak out, and B: buy the game. It would be even funnier if NFL players were the only ones allowed to vote for the person who makes the cover. Then we'd really see who hates who. The Madden player of the year could actually be Madden's bitch... (i.e. picture... sorry Pat). Maybe Madden reveals the poster child for injury and shame. Or maybe the shame is for the people who spend all their time playing the game...

Jaclyn Kahn

DID YOU CELEBRATE MANNING DAY?

I definitely didn't because I didn't know that this "holiday" existed. As where I get most of my sports-news-related stories, I checked out MJD's blog on Yahoo! Sports. He couldn't have put it any better than myself:

"I need a new calendar. This thing I have right now lists a bunch of unimportant holidays like St. Patrick's Day, Arbor Day, Independence Day and Christmas, but it made absolutely no mention of "Manning Day", and now, the moment has passed."

I know I am excited to celebrate St. Patrick's Day! But if I had known about Manning Day before it actually occurred, it would have given me enough time to prepare jokes and snide remarks about this random holiday. Everyone knows who the Mannings are; if you don't you're a woman completely oblivious to sports (I can be sexist), or you live under a rock. However, just because you know these people are famous doesn't mean we need a holiday for them. I'm not a fan of the Colts or the Giants. I think Eli's IQ is maybe equivalent to one of the dodo birds that used to inhabit the earth, and their father (I heard) wasn't exactly an all star player. Mediocre is a good term, right Pat? Anyway, it just so happens that the Mannings are a football fanatic family. Say that ten times fast. To get anywhere in life it really helps to know people, and if you're father, or brother, have already made it to the NFL, well then you must really fit in too!

As far as the events of the holiday go, it wasn't much to even make fun of. There was a small ceremony and people got autographs from the Manning clan. Maybe if I was a Colts/Giants/old Saints fan, I would have jumped for this type of chance to get an autograph. But I'm not. I have my own deams of T.O. making some big plays for the Bills instead.

I guess if there had to be a Manning Day, it should be for Peyton Manning. That guy really cracks me up. He's a pretty good ball player, and he makes the best commercials. What more can a football watching gal ask for? I don't see Tom Brady making funny commercials. Or any commercials. He's too busy trying to model... good luck with that Tom.

To conclude on a funny note, MJD really knows how to strike a funny bone:
"Had I known, I'd have celebrated like any good Manning-fearing American ... by dressing up as my favorite Manning (I prefer Olivia) and licking the middle of Oreo cookies until my tongue bleeds."

If you don't find that funny, you either don't watch enough t.v. or your IQ is too high (So Eli must be on the floor dying!).

Jaclyn Kahn

WEDDING BELLS FOR BRADY

According to CNN, Tom Brady and his girlfriend of two years, Gisele Bundchen, wed Thursday night in California. The "intimate sunset ceremony" (barf) was held in Santa Monica with family, friends, and relatively no media (shocking).

It's interesting that Brady finally settled down. I mean he does have a child after all. Does anyone wonder if Gisele gave him the ultimatum? Is she pregnant and knew if she didn't acquire a ring and the prenuptial papers that she would be tossed aside just as Bridget Moynahan had been? It's not like Gisele needs the money, being the highest paid model in the world. No easy feat. Must suck not to be able to eat anything for the rest of your life.

Anyway, so it's a piece of news for all to enjoy. Weddings are moments filled with happiness, and I guess Brady deserves some happiness in his life. Not really, I don't mean that at all. Cheers!

Jaclyn Kahn

Will the Super Bowl be without a Manning or Brady?

So even though the Super Bowl isn't for a few weeks, I just began to think about it and who might be showing up. Now that both of the Mannings are out of the playoffs, and Brady has been a no-show for most of the season (Hallelujah, am I right?) it just might seem that none of the "big guns" or celebs of football are going to be in the spotlight. That will be even more true if the big names like McNabb, Westbrook, and Roethlisberger don't make it to Tampa.

Since last Super Bowl, Eli Manning has become as popular as his brother, which makes some people elated, and others astonished. Personally, I think that he got to where he was because of his family name, but that is another story for another day. So that's why so many are shocked and dismayed that Baby Manning will not be venturing to the Super Bowl this year, at least with his Giants.

A couple of years ago, when neither the suddenly amazing Giants, nor the monopolizing Patriots made it to the Super Bowl, there was still a football giant to take much of the spotlight: Peyton. And with good reason; Older Bro Manning helped bring his team to Super Bowl XLI and win it. But what really pissed me off, and I mean PISSED me off was that Brady somehow ended up at this game by being involved with the coin toss.

It doesn't surprise me, now or then, that the NFL loves Brady and can't get enough of him. So even though his team didn't make it to the Super Bowl, he sure did. And because of this special guest appearance, I am intrigued and apprehensive to see which NFL "star" is going to make a special guest appearance this year. Will it be Brady again? Even though he was out for most of the regular season, there's no doubt in my mind that the NFL would pull any amount of strings to get him back out onto the football field, even to the dismay of all anti-Patriots/anti-Brady football fans.

However, after the big hoopla about Eli Manning and his winning Giants, the team who beat out the Super Bowl Giants (no pun intended...maybe) the NFL might not want to give up their overly praised NFC team. That is why the person that might be at that coin toss, who won't be Brady, will be Eli Manning.

In a perfect Super Bowl world, there will be no surprise appearances by any Brady, Manning, or anyone of that stature. The only players that should show up to this game should be the players from the two teams playing in the XLIrd Super Bowl. If any players are going to help with the coin toss, or any other mundane part of the show, why not have it be some Hall-of-Famer? Someone who isn't associated with a current football team that didn't make it because they just couldn't live up to the pressure, or just weren't that good?

Oh and if the NFL has Tony Romo show up for anything, I will search out the idiot who made that decision and give them a piece of my mind!

Go Eagles!
-The Jaxster

The Patriots Now Just One Away From Perfection

-Patriots 21, Chargers 12
Heroes: Laurence Maroney & Kevin Faulk
Goat: Chargers' red zone offense
Turning Point: Junior Seau tackles Michael Turner short of the 1st down on 3rd and 1 inside the NE 5 @ 14-9 Pats
Next: Super Bowl XLII vs. Green Bay/NY Giants

In a game where Tom Brady would throw three interceptions and the Chargers would gain more yards in the passing game than the Pats you would have given the Bolts a great chance to win. The Chargers definitely redeemed themselves this postseason for a very poor start this year, but unfortunately couldn't make the big play when they needed to today to beat New England.

The Chargers lost the game with their inability to get the ball into the endzone. They reached the Pats' red zone three times and traveled deep into their territory four times. You cannot beat the Pats settling for field goals even if you pick off Brady ten times. Give credit to the Patriots' defense though for their superb play deep in their own territory. The biggest play of the game was Junior Seau's stop of Michael Turner when the Chargers seemed poised to take a 15-14 lead off Brady's second interception. Seau and the defense had a terrific game today, and really redeemed themselves for some shoty play lately.

As mentioned, Brady threw three interceptions, so how did the Pats get enough offense to win the game today? The heroes are definitely the two running backs in Laurence Maroney and Kevin Faulk. Maroney dominated the Chargers' frontline in the 2nd half. He had about 15 yards at the half, but finished with 122 for the game. Maroney has had a huge postseason, especially when everyone thought he was a bum this year. Faulk was brillant in the passing game. He took several dumpoffs from Brady and made great things happen, including the spectacular diving catch that effectively ended the game in the fourth quarter. There has been no bigger unsung hero during the Pats' run of Super Bowls than Kevin Faulk.

Even though the Chargers were unable to come up with the big plays they needed, they should be very proud of themselves for what they accomplished this postseason. Philip Rivers showed a great deal of guts playing the way he did today. Other than two bad interceptions, he was very good. The CBS Halftime analysts were completely out of line when they said Norv Turner should have replaced Rivers with Billy Volek for the 2nd half. Rivers played the entire game when his star running back, LaDainian Tomlinson, who has a similar injury, couldn't make it through one possession. Those analysts need to get their heads examined. Vincent Jackson and Chris Chambers really played well again, and this team has the complete package to possibly win a Super Bowl next year.

But today belongs to the New England Patriots. Bill Belichick has done a remarkable job this season putting together this 18-0 team. They should be able to roll through the NFC Champion and complete their perfect year. The weather will be much better down in Arizona, so expect to see the full fire power of the Patriots' offense.

I want to congratulate my co-blogger, Shawn Marosek for predicting that the Pats would never have more than a 10 point lead in the game. His prediction of weather playing a major role was dead on. Great job, Shawn!

Pat Morgan

Brady's Accuracy Leads Pats to 31-20 Victory

-Patriots 31, Jaguars 20
Hero: Tom Brady
Goat: Jacksonville defense
Turning Point: Dennis Northcutt's dropped pass at the NE 2 at 21-14, drop forced the Jaguars to kick a field goal
Next: vs. Indianapolis/vs. San Diego

Tom Brady added another record to his historic season. He completed 26 of 28 passes to break Phil Simms's record for completion percentage in a playoff game (Super Bowl XXI). The Jaguars defense allowed him to pick them apart all night, and in fact the Patriots didn't have to punt until the closing minute of the game. Laurence Maroney had a very good game as well, as he ran for 122 yards on 22 carries. The Jags' game plan to take away Randy Moss and the long ball clearly backfired.

The Jags strategy did them in, as Brady led the Pats on five time-consuming scoring drives. The vaunted Jacksonville defense became the latest victim of the Patriots' epic offense. I did not like the strategy because that was the Jags playing against their strength. They beat up Ben Roethlisberger last week with six sacks and were able to force three interceptions. The Jaguars are not a finesse team. They are a big physical team! Brady was going to beat them anyway, but at least let him beat you playing your game. That, and you cannot give Brady all day and to carve you up all night underneath.

It wasn't an all around great night for the Patriots though. The Jacksonville offense really carved up the Patriots defense at times, especially in the first half. David Gerrard played an exceptional football game. Other than a 1st quarter fumble that allowed the Pats to play from ahead, Gerrard really bounced back from his worst performance of the year last week vs. Pittsburgh. He led the Jags on two long TD drives in the first half. Dennis Northcutt dropped a key pass in the 3rd quarter that would have put the Jags at the New England 2 yard line. So, instead of potentially a 21-21 tie, the Jags had to settle for a field goal. That was costly cause it allowed the Patriots to go up two possessions on their next touchdown. That's really where Jacksonville's chance to win the game ended.

And as badly as the Patriots defense played at times, they did come up big when they had too. They forced the Jags to kick two field goals in the 2nd half (one aided by Northcutt's drop), and Rodney Harrison's interception all but ended the game. I am curious to see if the Patriots defense can come up big one more time if they play Indianapolis next week. I really believe that game will be an all out war that will be close to the final horn.

Pat Morgan

Pats Survive Mega Scare to Remain Unbeaten

The New England Patriots improved to 12-0 tonight despite being taken to the limit by the Baltimore Ravens. Jabar Gaffney caught a 8 yard touchdown pass from Tom Brady with 44 seconds left to cap off a thrilling game-winning drive and deliever the 27-24 victory. The final drive survived two 4th downs and a deflected pass which is normally intercepted. If it wasn't for a few bizarre couple of plays and penalty calls, the Ravens would have won because everything went right for the upset. The Ravens' defense gave Brady fits the entire game, Willis McGahee ran for 138 yards, the weather stunk, and the Pats made several mistakes. Everything was in place for the upset.

But...

Near the end of the first half, Ed Reed intercepted Tom Brady and ran it back deep into Patriots' territory, but it was stripped by Kevin Faulk denying the Ravens a chance at a go ahead touchdown or field goal. After a huge punt return, Kyle Boller threw an interception to James Sanders which denied them a chance to take two possession lead midway through the 4th quarter. The Ravens' defense stuffed a Brady quarterback sneak on a 4th and 1, but the play was called dead after a last second timeout by Baltimore. Later in the drive, the Ravens stopped the Pats on 4th and 5, but a holding call was made giving the Pats a 1st and Goal. Finally, on the final play of the game, Kyle Boller completed a hailmary, but the receiver is tackled on the three. Other than the hailmary, if even one of those plays don't happen the Ravens probably win the football game.

So for the second straight week, the Patriots survived a scare from a team that makes its home just off I-95. Their next three games are home games against the Steelers, Jets, and Dolphins. The Steelers are 9-3, but are a poor road team. The Pats will want to kill the Jets, and the Dolphins are 0-12. I don't see them losing any of those three, so the game that could deny them perfection is at the Giants in Week 17. Right now it is unclear if the Giants will even need the game as they sit two games up for a wildcard spot. Even if they do, they have major injury concerns at running back. To beat the Pats, they will have to have a McGahee performance from Brandon Jacobs. I don't see it happening, thus the Pats will go 16-0. They have survived their scares and should win out easily.

Can they be beat in the playoffs? Only in the AFC Championship against the Indianapolis Colts. They will not lose to San Diego or Jacksonville in the divisional round, or to Dallas or Green Bay, on a dry Arizona field, in the Super Bowl. As far as the Colts, I can't believe I'm saying this, but it is almost better for Indianapolis to be on the road, away from the fast RCA Dome turf, in the AFC Championship. Remember when the Pats wanted awful weather to slow down Peyton and company? Well that has flipped. The Pats now want that fast track for Brady to go nuts with Randy Moss, Donte Stallworth, and Wes Welker. The Colts would perfer a sloppy track where Joseph Addai can dominate the running game, and the defense can better defend a slower Pats' offense. If McGahee runs for big yardage on the Pats, Addai almost certainly will. The identities of the Pats and Colts have switched. Look for a fantastic AFC Championship Game where the Colts have a legit shot to upset the Pats. They will be 17-0 going into the game.

Pat Morgan

Pats Rally to Defeat Colts; Let Undefeated Talk Begin

It seemed midway through the fourth quarter that all the postgame talk would be all about how the Indianapolis Colts defense shut down Tom Brady and company, and thus ended New England's chance at having an unbeaten season. They were absolutely superb for three and a half quarters, but you can only hold the potent New England Patriots offense down for so long.

Brady's 55-yard pass to Randy Moss with about nine minutes left was what changed the whole game. The Colts had not allowed a big play like that the entire game. Brady then found Wes Welker to bring the Pats within a field goal, and then four minutes later he found Kevin Faulk for the go ahead TD. All of a sudden, Brady had his 3 TD passes and another sexy stat line. The Colts had another chance, but Peyton Manning fumbled to give the ball back to the Pats. Wes Welker sealed the deal with a 3rd down reception. Welker has been the unsung hero on this Pats team. Remember last year Troy Brown dropped the same type 3rd down pass that would have sealed the AFC title for New England. Bill Belichick should send Nick Saban a championship ring for giving him tips to get Welker as he departed Miami last year.

This is a demoralizing loss for Indianapolis. They played smash mouth football for 50 minutes, and had the Pats making mistakes left and right. Brady was rattled by throwing two picks, they committed a team record number of penalties, and Joseph Addai was running all over them (ended up with 226 total yards). With a win today, they would have slienced the entire sports media who have been praising the Pats all year and seemingly ignoring the Colts. Most importantly, this loss probably means that the AFC Championship Game will be in Foxboro. For that game to be at the RCA Dome, the Colts would have to go unbeaten the rest of the way, and hope the Patriots lose two of their final seven games. I don't think they will win a playoff game in Foxboro, but they should have Marvin Harrison in a rematch. Could they win? Yes.

The question now is can the Patriots go undefeated? They have their toughest game by far out of the way, and face an upcoming schedule where the toughest games might be at Baltimore and when they host Pittsburgh in back-to-back weeks in early December. Their bye also comes at a great time, because had they had to play next week after a tough game like this they might have suffered a let down. The Pats probably have a better than 50/50 chance to go unbeaten, and I think they will. They played a terrible football game for 50 minutes today against the Super Bowl champions and still won. Unlike the Colts of years past, this Patriots team will embrace going undefeated. Even if they clinch the AFC by mid-December, they host the Jets and Dolphins in Weeks 15 & 16. Stiff competition right there! They travel to the Meadowlands to play the Giants in Week 17, but if they make it into that game at 15-0 you think they will play very hard to get that victory and make history.

By the way, the NFL is going to be in a great situation when the Patriots visit the Giants in Week 17 that will be seen exclusively on the NFL Network!

Pat Morgan