Jets Day

You asked for it....

http://youtube.com/watch?v=rZxNeFLuY98

http://youtube.com/watch?v=IMk5sMHj58I

http://youtube.com/watch?v=TpQa7eIwJZs

http://youtube.com/watch?v=MrPVxsGDuA4

http://youtube.com/watch?v=og2Nj6hFGF4

http://youtube.com/watch?v=23dBG27gnuU

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_Jets

http://deadspin.com/sports/nfl/in-the-wake-of-chad-127632.php

Alright....Enough of that. I figured that I would provide a nice background for this one of a kind post. In my short blog career I have written mostly about the Knicks and the Giants. I have also written a lot about baseball, mainly the Mets and Yankees. While I love the Mets and dislike the Yankees, I still find it interesting to talk about both teams. For some reason though, I have never really been interested in the Jets, though I do not detest them like I do the Yankees. In any event, a few of the readers are waiting for me to give the Jets their props. With that in mind I will do the right thing and give you all a post dedicated to those lovable New York Football Jets.

Coming into this season the Jets were a franchise in transition. Actually that assessment is way to nice. Let me rephrase, they were a franchise that appeared to be clueless. Their head coach from last season walked out on them for a job with another team. They hired a 34 year old (Eric Mangini) to replace him and proceeded to demote their general manager and promote their 37 year old assistant GM (Mike Tannenbaum) to the GM position. In addition, their "franchise" QB, Chad Pennington was recovering from his second rotator cuff surgery in as many years.

Over the years the Jets have seen many lean years. Years they were supposed to be bad, they usually were and seasons where they had high expectations, bad luck seemed to find them. Their one moment on top of the football world was their victory of Super Bowl III in 1969. Since that time they have had playoff years here and there but never made it back to a Super Bowl. Their closest call came in the 1998 season when they finished 12-4. They had a great defense, a top QB (Vinny Testeverde) and a Hall of Fame head coach (Bill Parcells). They ended up losing in the AFC title game to the eventual Super Bowl champion, Denver Broncos. The next season Testeverde went down with an achilles injury in week one and they did not make the playoffs. Parcells quit after the 1999 season saying he was burnt out. The franchise has seen four head coaches since then (including Bill Belicheck for one day).

Mangini and Mr. T had their work cut out for them in the off season. They were not focused on making the flashy move, but instead they focused on acquiring players of substance. With their two first round picks they drafted two offensive linemen. Through the draft and free agency/trades they added to the depth of the defense and offensive backfield. They brought back Pennington after agreeing to restructure his contract to better help the team financially. As a result of the major inexperience in their head coach and GM, plus the lack of an "impact" personnel moves, many predicted the Jets to be at the bottom of the League like they were a year ago.

The Jet fan base had similar low expectations for the team. The Jet fans are a group who has a biased, unabashed love for their team, but also has a distinct cynicism in the back of their minds. The Jets have let them down time and time again. As a result they are almost jubilantly comfortable at the start of a "rebuilding" year and terrified of having high expectations heaped on them. For this group, 2006 was a season where they did not have to worry about high expectations, and instead they could just root for any sign of improvement.

From the beginning of the season it was clear that the Jets were a team that was hard working, but short on talent. They went into Tennessee and beat the Titans in Week one. After five games the Jets were 2-3, having beaten teams that were under .500 and losing to teams that were over .500. They won their next two games against struggling Miami and Detroit. At this point it was clear that the Jets were a solid, middle of the road team. Since their schedule in the second half was filled with poor teams, fans and media began to mention the word playoffs. That was all muted when in Week six the Jets lost in Cleveland.

Week seven was a bye, but in Week eight the Jets went into New England. This was an important game for the Jets on a number of levels. First of all they were still in the hunt for the division/playoffs and the Patriots were leading the division at the time. Also, New England has been the class of the League over the past five years, winning three Super Bowls. Winning in New England could solidify all of the hard work that the Jets had been putting in all season and send a message to the football world. Lastly, Coach Mangini was an assistant under Bill Belicheck in New England for eight seasons. When Mangini was offered the Jets job it is rumored that Belicheck told him not to take it. Of course, Mangini did and their relationship has been supposedly cold ever since. Mangini led the Jets into New England and pulled out a victory in rainy weather conditions. It has been the signature moment of his coaching tenure so far, and the defining moment of the Jets season. The Jets have split the two games since to make them a very respectable 6-5.

The Jets have won in a number of ways. They have had very good defensive performances. While their defense has not been "dominating", they have forced turnovers and played hard. Jonathan Vilma had been the heart of the defense at middle linebacker and Kerry Rhodes has stepped up big in the secondary. They have used a running back by committee this season since Curtis Martin has been out the entire season with injuries (a knee). While early in the year they struggled running the ball, they have been better as of late with Kevan Barlow, Leon Washington and Cedric Houston splitting caries. In my mind the most important part of the Jets season on the field has been Chad Pennington. While his numbers have not been very impressive he has brought back some stability to the offense. People forget that going into this season Chad was in a four way competition to see who would be the opening day starting QB. Other than Martin, Chad is the longest tenured Jet. He is a respected veteran and leader on this team. Him being healthy and on the field has been a boost to this team in itself.

The biggest positive in this season though has been the coaching of Eric Mangini. It is clear that he has a good relationship with the players and they play hard for him. Following their victory in New England, all of the quotes from the players had to do with winning the game for coach. He has instilled a discipline and focus that this team did not have a season ago. This is not a total knock on former coach Herman Edwards. He had one of the more successful tenures of any Jet coach in history. Two things were clear though at the end of his tenure. At the end of last season he quit on his team and his team quit on him. In addition, he had no clue how to manage the clock/time outs at the end of halfs and games. So far in his short head coaching career Mangini has shown to be very poised a in handling the clock. In addition he has a much stronger relationship with the press than Edwards did. While he tells the media nothing substantive, he is very personable and sometimes even humorous with them.

Looking ahead, the Jets have a very encouraging schedule. They play in Green Bay, home Buffalo, in Minnesota, in Miami, home Oakland. You have to figure at worst a 2-3 finish, but very likely 3-2. That would leave them with a 9-7 record. I don't have the schedules of the other Wild Card contenders, but I would think that 9-7 will not get a team into the AFC playoffs. In addition, the Jets lose a tiebreaker against Jacksonville (head to head loss) who is a contender for that last Wild Card spot. Bottom line is that the Jets will need to finish 10-6 to have a shot at the playoffs. I do not think they will do it, but then again I did not think that they did not be in the position to begin with.

This season has been a tremendous success for the Jets. They have confidence in both their head coach and front office. In addition, they have made significant strides on the field. They have a very young and talented offensive line and a couple young studs on defense. They will probably stick with Pennington for at least one more season, and have a potential successor in Kellen Clemons, a rookie this season. In the off season they will look to upgrade skill positions on offense (RB) and find more players that fit their 3-4 scheme on defense. Lastly, with the tumultuous season that the Giants have had to endure, the Jets have not had much, if any pressure on them from the fans and media. Over all, if you are a Jet fan this season has been better than you could have hoped. Don't kill me for saying this, but the future looks bright and I will be expecting bigger things next season............!

STKAFI