Tag: Mark Sanchez (Page 12 of 28)

This is why people are high on the Jets

New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez (6) celebrates with Jets' Jerricho Cotchery (89) after they connected on a touchdown pass against the New England Patriots during the third quarter of their NFL football game in East Rutherford, New Jersey, September 19, 2010.   REUTERS/Ray Stubblebine (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT FOOTBALL)

Outside of maybe the Cowboys, there wasn’t a potential 2010 playoff contender that looked worse than the Jets in Week 1.

They couldn’t run the ball, they couldn’t capitalize on turnovers, Mark Sanchez thought the checkdown was an actual play in the Jets’ offensive playbook…

The Jets were bad. And when an over-hyped team plays bad, they’re going to hear about how overrated they are for the rest of the week, which the J-E-T-S certainly did.

But in typical Rex Ryan fashion, the Jets just gave everyone the middle finger after taking it to the Patriots 28-14 on Sunday. Only in today’s NFL can a player like Sanchez look so hopeless one night and then six days later outplay a three-time Super Bowl winner. After looking pitiful on Monday night, Sanchez finished 21-of-30 for 220 yards with three touchdowns and zero interceptions today, while Tom Brady threw for 248 yards on 20-of-36 passing with two touchdowns but two picks.

Sanchez’s QB Rating after the game was 124.3.

Brady’s? Seventy-two point five.

Yeah, that’s about right.

Sanchez was helped by the fact that the Jets rushed for 136 yards and the defense forced three turnovers. Brady and the Pats were just 1-for-3 inside the red-zone and held the ball for roughly five minutes less than the Jets.

If there was ever a statement game early in the season, this was it for the Jets. They’re still 1-1 and they still have a long way to go before they can even think about reaching the lofty expectations that Ryan set for them, but this was a huge win today. No doubt about it.

Ravens win white-knuckle thrill ride over Jets on Monday Night Football

New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez throws against the Baltimore Ravens during the first half in their NFL football game in East Rutherford, New Jersey, September 13, 2010. Ravens' Trevor Pryce is at left. REUTERS/Ray Stubblebine (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT FOOTBALL)

Well, that was fun. Watching the Jets’ offense was roughly about as exciting as a three hour root canal in which your dentist has to jab you with a Novocain needle six times because he keeps missing the nerves in your mouth.

The only difference between Mark Sanchez and Trent Edwards right now is $7.25 million a year. The second-year quarterback did nothing Monday night to silence critics that say he’s the one thing that will hold the Jets back from competing for a Super Bowl berth.

In his team’s 10-9 loss to the Ravens, Sanchez completed 10-of-21 passes for 74 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions. For those scoring at home, his average completion averaged a measly 3.5 yards. There’s a good chance that if he purposely tried to trip over one of his offensive lineman every play, he could have fallen forward for more yards then if he attempted a pass.

Drop back, look down field, hold for one second, check down to running back, repeat.

When the Jets’ offense came back onto the field down one point with under two minutes left, they had no shot to get into field goal range because Sanchez wasn’t going to throw vertical. And even when he went temporarily insane and threw the ball further than three yards on a crucial 4th and 10 at the end of the game, tight end Dustin Keller caught the ball and ran out of bounds one yard short of the first down marker when nobody was around him. Keller must have felt that the Ravens played hard enough to earn the win, so he’d just give it to them. Of course, he was hit so hard by Ray Lewis the play before that it’s possible he didn’t know what down, quarter or team he played for by that point.

Speaking of the Ravens, they didn’t set the world on fire with their offensive performance tonight, but at least they moved the ball. Turnovers killed them in the first half and they couldn’t run against the Jets’ stingy front seven, but how good did Anquan Boldin look in his Baltimore debut? He beat Kyle Wilson so many times that the New Jersey highway patrol is going to have to stop the Ravens’ bus before it heads to the airport so they can integrate Boldin about domestic abuse.

Does anybody else feel like they just got done watching a fourth preseason game?

2010 NFL Preview: AFC East Predictions

New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady calls a play against the New Orleans Saints in the first quarter of their NFL pre-season football game in Foxborough, Massachusetts August 12, 2010.  REUTERS/Brian Snyder  (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT FOOTBALL)

2010 NFL Division Previews & Predictions: AFC East | AFC North | AFC South | AFC West | NFC East | NFC North | NFC South | NFC West | 2010 Question Marks Series

The AFC East is arguably the most difficult division to predict because the Patriots, Jets and Dolphins all have enough talent to claim the top spot but all three also have huge question marks that could hold them back.

The Bills, on the other hand…not so hard to predict. (Sorry Buffalo fans.)

Here’s how I see things shaking out in the AFC East this season. Be sure to check out the link entitled “2010 Question Mark” under each team’s preview, which is a breakdown of one or two potential weaknesses that could derail that squad’s hopes in 2010.

1. Patriots

What to Like: Wes Welker is apparently healthy, which is a great sign for Tom Brady and the rest of the Pats’ offense. Although they failed to recapture the magic they had in 2007, the offense ranked third in the NFL in yards per game, sixth in total points and eighth in third down percentage. Along with Welker and Randy Moss, Brady will also have talented rookie tight end Aaron Hernandez to throw to in the passing game and Julian Edelman proved when filling in for Welker last season that he can be productive as well.
What Not to Like: It appears that the pass rush, or lack thereof, will be a massive concern all season. It was a concern heading into the offseason, it’s been a concern thus far in preseason and it’s going to remain a concern unless guys step up. Granted, Tully Banta-Cain is coming off a career year and rookie Jermaine Cunningham has potential, but Derrick Burgess needs to stay motivated and be productive. If he doesn’t and Banta-Cain can’t put up the numbers he did last year then Bill Belichick’s defense could suffer at every level. There’s also the very real concern that starting left guard Logan Mankins will skip the entire season because of a contract despite, meaning promising but inexperienced tackle Sebastian Vollmer will be inserted into the starting lineup.
Keep an Eye On: Darius Butler
In five starts last season, Butler had three inceptions and although he was inconsistent in coverage and needs to cut down on penalties, he could blossom into a star this season. He has already become a leader in the locker room.
The Final Word: Even though the offense stalled in the second half of some games last season, it will still be tough to stop this team a weekly basis. Plus, after struggling to a 2-6 record on the road last season, the Pats will face only two 2009 playoff teams away from Foxboro this year. In fact, six of the 2009 playoff teams they face this year will have to come to New England, which is obviously a major advantage. I think given the problems that the rest of the teams have in the division, the Pats will once again come out on top, although this is far from a Super Bowl team in my eyes.

New England Patriots 2010 Question Mark: Pass Rush

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Rex Ryan sees Super Bowl for Jets in his “crystal ball”

New York Jets new head coach Rex Ryan waits to speak to the media at a press conference in Florham Park, New Jersey on January 21, 2009. (UPI Photo/John Angelillo) Photo via Newscom Photo via Newscom

Rex Ryan is really hyping this Jets-Super Bowl talk this offseason.

From ESPN.com:

Asked Friday why he signed Adam Schefter’s training camp bus, “Soon to be champs,” the Jets coach said why not? That’s his belief and he doesn’t mind repeating himself.

“The first step is, if you don’t believe it yourself your team darn sure won’t,” Ryan said. “Again I’m not apologizing I just know what’s going to happen. My crystal ball I’m seeing a Super Bowl trophy in there. I could be wrong but that’s what I see.”

“That’s what I’m saying. That’s our mentality, that’s our goal and I’ve got confidence to put it up there. I believe we’ll do it so why wouldn’t we say it, why wouldn’t we go for it?”

I like Rex Ryan, although I can also see how he rubs some people the wrong way. He’s brash and confident and many people don’t like that, but one thing you have to give him credit for is that he doesn’t back down from saying what he believes.

That said, he better hope that his best defender gets into camp and that his second year quarterback progresses or else the Jets will be watching the Super Bowl at home again this year. That’s not meant to be a knock on them or Ryan, but the reality is that this team needs Darrelle Revis and won’t take the next step until Mark Sanchez can win a game or two on his own.

Remember, Ryan isn’t talking putting together a winning season or winning another playoff game or two. He’s talking about the Super Bowl and the Jets won’t get there without Revis and unless they can take the training wheels off Sanchez’s game.

2010 NFL Question Marks: New York Jets

Jan 17, 2010; San Diego, CA, USA; New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez (6) takes the snap during the 2010 AFC Divisional playoff game against the San Diego Chargers at Qualcomm Stadium. The Jets defeated the Chargers 17-14.

Merry training camp season, everyone. It’s been a long offseason, but football is finally gearing up again and to celebrate I’m rolling out a new series on TSR entitled “2010 NFL Question Marks,” where I discuss one or two of the biggest concerns that teams have heading into the new season. Granted, some teams have more issues than others, but I’ll primarily be focusing on the biggest problem areas. Today I’ll be discussing everybody’s chic pick for 2010, the Jets.

Ah, the New York Jets – the media darlings of 2010.

How can you not like the Jets this year? The players have taken on the swagger and confidence of their head coach, their defense is among the top-3 in the league, they’ve upgraded their roster thanks to a couple of shrewd offseason moves (i.e. trading for Santonio Holmes and Antonio Cromartie), and they have a young running back (Shonn Greene) who might be knocking on the door of stardom this season.

But alas, there is one chink in the armor and he goes by the name of Mark Sanchez.

When you think about it, it’s rather amazing that a team coming off a 9-7 season that barely made the playoffs is garnering so much Super Bowl attention this offseason. Not to mention, they also have a quarterback who is a) coming off surgery and b) hasn’t proven that he can carry a team on his own yet.

Granted, it’s not fair to criticize Sanchez for not having a Matt Ryan or Joe Flacco-like rookie year. Most first-year quarterbacks struggle and seeing as how Sanchez was able to lead his team to the AFC Championship Game last year despite his rookie struggles speaks for his potential.

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