As Gang Green Turns: Sanchez Throws Season Away in 19-17 Loss to Miami

Article first published as As Gang Green Turns: Sanchez Throws Season Away in 19-17 Loss to Miami on Blogcritics.

Three more interceptions this week and the situation starts to look pretty bad for QB Mark Sanchez, offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer, and head coach Rex Ryan. We Jets fans have run out of excuses for these three, and even Schottenheimer's apparent benching of Santonio Holmes in the final minutes of the game seems meaningless. Giving Holmes a time out for bad behavior does nothing to save Schottenheimer; in fact, his lack of leadership becomes even more apparent when you analyze things.
The first person who needs to go is the big guy on top. I have often jokingly referred to Ryan as Humpty Dumpty, but after this game the reference has never been more obvious or fitting. Rex had a big fall this season, and you have to wonder about him lying in pieces outside MetLife Stadium. My bet is the players will collect their things and walk by indifferently instead of rallying the horses and men to try to put Rex back together. Honestly, it is his own fault and his fate is deserved.

Schottenheimer has been under fire all season, and he has more than anything mishandled the line and the receivers. It also seems like he has had Sanchez on auto pilot. Sanchez has fallen apart as much as King Rex, with his trigger-finger being so itchy that he just throws the ball without seemingly any thought process or plan. Without proper pass protection, and with receivers being covered and out maneuvered, Sanchez has been under the gun and shooting blanks. It is not a pretty picture at all.

The benching of Holmes at the end of the game was the salt in the wounds. On an offensive drive that mattered most, Holmes should have been in there, but not in Schottenheimer's world. He allowed whatever altercation happened between Holmes and a teammate to override good sense, so we have Holmes sitting on the sidelines looking like a kid in the corner in school. Unfortunately, the dunce cap goes on Schottenheimer for this final straw. If he isn't sent packing, something is rotten in the state of Jets country.

Of course, we Jets fans are bitter now, but we have to face facts and so does owner Woody Johnson. This team cannot be seen as a legitimate playoff contender; perhaps, it never should have been in the three years Ryan has been here. All his hot air made the perception that the team was more than the sum of its parts. It's kind of like dropping a Cadillac shell around an old Yugo. No matter how nice it may look, you will never get the performance you expect, and eventually the shell will break away, as it did for Rex this year.

If we learn anything from this 8-8 season, it is that we can only hope things get changed for the better. Jets fans shouldn't be thinking about how Oakland, Denver, and Cincinnati lost. Remember that Tennessee won. Besides, even if all the stars aligned and the Jets won, they no doubt would have been eliminated in the first round.

Next year we need to see a major change for the Jets. Sanchez should be thought of as a back-up QB for now, or trade him and get the right guy. The Jets should make a full court press to obtain Peyton Manning, and Schottenheimer should be shown the door. Finally, Johnson should take a long hard look at Ryan and decide whether his baggage is worth it. After three years of empty promises, the bubble has burst. It could be Ryan is shown the door too, and that may be necessary in order to purge what is wrong with this team.

It will be a long and lonely time for Jets fans in the months ahead, but maybe we should bite the bullet and watch the Giants. They have a solid head coach in Tom Coughlin, and Eli Manning is starting to look like he is in his brother's shadow no more. Jets fans may not like admitting it, but Big Blue has much of what the Jets lack. If we are honest with ourselves, we will know it is true and then we only have to hope that Woody Johnson realizes it as well and makes appropriate changes.

For now, the soap opera known As Gang Green Turns goes on hiatus. As in the TV world, that is never a good thing, and reruns just don't cut it because we know how it all turns out. Hang in there until next year, Jets fans.

Photo Credits: Humpty Dumpty - lyricsdog.eu/ Holmes - nydailynews

As Gang Green Turns: Humpty Dumpty Rex Teetering On the Wall

Article first appeared on Blogcritics.

Rex Ryan, Jets head coach and intimidating master of his domain, seems ready for a big fall. It isn't enough that he has negotiated his path with his foot in and out of his mouth going on three seasons, but now all the king's men are not loyal to his service, so even if the big guy falls off the wall, it is unlikely they will all rush to put him together again.


"Controversial" seems to be a word that is always connected with Ryan. He brags about his team, sometimes without thinking, and oftentimes even if he has time to think he still blabbers about things that are potentially damaging to the team. He is like a parent who keeps telling his kid that he is a prodigy, but the kid can barely play the piano and hits all the wrong keys. Then he goes on bragging to the other parents about how great his son plays and puts him in the spotlight, only to see the child fall apart on stage. Incongruously, he learns little or nothing from this and continues to push the child without ever doing the most sensible thing - teach him how to play the piano the right way.

This turmoil on the Jets is nothing new. Ryan seems to enjoy it, even if it is a subconscious pleasure, and manifests situations which continually mix things up. Unfortunately, the big guy is not just a straw that stirs the drink, but rather a blender that has the cover off. But if Rex doesn't like the heat, why does he keep putting himself in the kitchen you may ask. The answer is not because he is looking for a gargantuan snack, but more likely that he is unable to stop himself, sort of like the shark that eats its own intestines after you slit open its belly.

If the things I hear on talk radio on sports stations here in New York are even half accurate, the Jets locker room has more protesters than can be found in lower Manhattan in Zuccotti Park. Many people see this unrest as a key to the team's terrible start (2-3), but the problem is inherent in the culture that Rex has established in the team. Anyone who watched the HBO show Hard Knocks last season can tell you that Rex wants his guys to win and aspire to be a bad boy bunch as they mow down the competition. Sometimes this has worked for him, but now his methodology seems to be imploding.

When questions have been rightly raised about quarterback Mark Sanchez and his throwing problems, suddenly the focus shifts and it's the offensive line that is to blame, or even more specifically offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer. Derrick Mason complains about the line, and before you can say Gang Green, Mason is traded to the Texans. This goes a long way to qualifying King Rex's rule over his kingdom, as obviously he is ready to banish those who do not show loyalty to him or his minions.


Now we have Santonio Holmes complaining about the offensive line. Apparently Plaxico Burress has also complained, and right guard Brandon Moore is accusing Holmes of being "disrespectful" and causing dissension on the team. Center Nick Mangold has indicated that he has no problems with Holmes, but one wonders how true that can be. Clearly, the writing is on the wall and Rex, not that light on his feet to begin with, is walking a shaky path on top of it.

Rex can say that none of this matters, that his offensive line has "skin like an armadillo," but there is a fear for this Jets fan that this season is on the brink of being lost. I am not at all certain that you can blame the linemen for Sanchez's performance thus far, and perhaps it is legitimate to blame Schottenheimer (but he is not the guy throwing the ball), who says "The team's a family and all families have disagreements." Is Schottenheimer pretending not to notice the jeers of the fans? They and some of the players think it best if he goes, but Rex is standing by his man (at least for now).

So the chicken or the egg question this week is this: is it just that Sanchez is not throwing the ball well, or is it because the line is not giving him enough time to throw it even if he were? The painful process of watching the last three games seems to clarify things for me: poor blocking, the lack of Schottenheimer's "pound and ground" game of running the ball, and no success putting the ball in the air either because of Sanchez throwing poorly or receivers not catching the ball.

In the next episode of the ongoing soap opera that is As Gang Green Turns, the guest star this week is the Miami Dolphins (0-4), coming into the New Meadowlands Stadium for the big Monday night game. The Jets are coming off three losses in a row, and there should be no doubt about the outcome of this one, but right now there is nothing but uncertainty. If the Jets should lose this game, Rex may indeed have that big fall from the wall, and all his horses and all his men are going to run in different directions. If that is the case, Rex will lie there in the hot sun for a long time, and the season may well be over after six games. How do you pick up the pieces after that?

Photo Credits: Ryan - New York Daily News; Sanchez - New York Post

As Gang Green Turns: Jets Keep Playoff Hopes Alive in 22-17 Win Over Steelers

Article first published as As Gang Green Turns: Jets Keep Playoff Hopes Alive in 22-17 Win Over Steelers on Blogcritics.

In my way of thinking, there was no way the Jets (10-4) would come into Pittsburgh and beat the Steelers (10-4), especially not after losing at home against the Dolphins last week, but here they go again surprising me and their fans with a not too pretty win at Heinz Field as the snowflakes fell like pixie dust all around them.

Mark Sanchez actually had a good game this week, looking like a man on a mission. He went 19 for 28 for 170 yards and made a seven-yard touchdown run that came as a surprise to everybody, but most especially the Steelers' defense. 

The game started with a great 97-yard run by Brad Smith who took the ball in for a 7-0 lead. If that didn't take the wind out of the Steelers fans, it certainly gave Jets and their fans the shot in the arm they needed after the last two games that had knocked them (and coach Rex Ryan) off the playoff bandwagon.

The Steelers managed to take the game back by the end of the first half, and going into the locker room with a 10-10 tie was not what Ryan and his team wanted to see. Nevertheless, the Jets came back out in the second half and scored on Sanchez's heads-up run and then Nick Folk's 34-yard field goal. There was no looking back after that and the Jets were on their way to a much needed - and completely unexpected - victory.

What is still alarming is that the Jets' offense and defense never seem to have a good day during the same game. While the defense is always the thing that Ryan likes to boast about, something like the Steelers not going into a huddle can seem to throw it off kilter. In the end the Steelers were coming down the field like a team that was going to score no matter what, but somehow the defense rallied and stopped them from scoring and the Jets got the win.

It goes without saying that this was a must win for the Jets, and now the playoffs are still a possibility for Gang Green. The big question is which team is going to show up from week to week. Ryan is lucky to be getting out of Pittsburgh with a victory, but the road to the playoffs is still a bumpy one, and we would expect nothing less in the soap opera As Gang Green Turns.

As Gang Green Turns: The Misery Continues in Jets 10-6 Loss to Dolphins

Article first published as As Gang Green Turns: The Misery Continues in Jets 10-6 Loss to Dolphins on Blogcritics.

After losing a terrible game last week on the road against the Patriots, the New York Jets (9-4) and their fans were hoping for much better things against the Miami Dolphins (7-6) at New Meadowlands Stadium. Alas, it was not to be; even though the defense showed up this week, the offense once again seemed dazed and confused as the Jets lost 10-6.

The immediate focus has to be on quarterback Mark Sanchez, who was 17 for 44 for 216 yards. He has looked like he is making it up as he goes along, and the results are not pretty. Sanchez is fumbling, getting intercepted, and stumbling his way through these last two games. In the process, the Jets' hopes to take the division are now lost, and it is questionable whether they have what it takes to even make the playoffs now.

The bright spot of the day for head coach Rex Ryan was that his defense came back, looking less like the zombies from the AMC series The Walking Dead in last week's game and more like the highly touted "best" defense in football today. The problem is no matter how well the defense clicked, the Jets offense came down to two Nick Folk field goals.

To make matters worse, while the Jets were losing this one, the Patriots (11-2) were wiping up the field with the Bears (9-4) in an 36-7 victory. Surely there is no doubt after these last two weeks that the Pats are the best team in the NFL right now.

After the loss to the Pats last week, Ryan buried the game ball in a symbolic effort to say that loss was over and the team had to move on. Today the team did nothing to prove that they, and not the game ball, are six feet under. With a road game against the Steelers (10-3) looming next week, Sanchez and the offense better get themselves together or the season will be ostensibly lost.

 

As Gang Green Turns: Despite Sitting Out First Quarter, Edwards Key to Jets Win in Miami

Article first published as As Gang Green Turns: Despite Sitting Out First Quarter, Edwards Key to Jets Win in Miami on Blogcritics.

If you were writing the script for the Jets 31-23 win over the Dolphins in Miami, you would probably not have conjured up as good a twist as what happened in reality: Braylon Edwards - the guy who got in trouble with a DWI last week - turned in the key performance that helped push the Jets to victory. Instead of sipping an alcoholic beverage through a straw and landing himself in the pokey,

Braylon Edwards was the straw that stirred the drink in the Jets win.
Should the Jets and their fans be happy they got out of Miami with a victory? You bet your bottom dollar. There is the other side of the story though, the thing that got away from everyone in the euphoria of victory: Edwards still was caught and arrested for drinking and driving last week with a blood alcohol count of 0.16. How he could even drive like that is beyond imagination, and the fact that no one was seriously hurt or killed is amazing, but there is still the notion of the disciplinary action taken or the lack thereof in last night's game.

Edwards sat for the first quarter. This is head coach Rex Ryan and team owner Woody Johnson's version of tough love. You can call it a slap on the wrist, but it's more like a tap on the finger. What did Edwards learn from his benching last night? More importantly, what the heck did his teammates and all the Jets fans (especially the kids) get out of the whole thing? You go out and get drunk, even get arrested, and we'll let you sit out for a spell before putting you back in the game. That's what they got.

That reminds me of my school days when the nuns made us stand against the wall and watch the other kids play as punishment during recess. What did we do? It didn't matter; that was the blanket punishment. When the five minutes were up, a flick of the wrist told us we could play, and we'd race off into the schoolyard and forget all about our little transgressions and just have fun.

The problem is that Edwards didn't have a little trangression. He was driving while drunk, but that was all forgotten last night after his brief benching. Edwards went out and had lots of fun as he was involved in three crucial plays in the game:  a sixty-seven-yard touchdown, a twenty-yard catch, and he inspired an end-zone pass interference call on Jason Allen, which was followed by LaDainian Tomlinson's short TD run that put the Jets ahead for good. A big night for the big man indeed!

Could the Jets have won without him? Perhaps not, and maybe that's the whole point to the light penalty of one quarter on the bench. It's a case of the Jets wanting to do the right thing in a bad situation, but they didn't want to give away the game either. Still, you can win the battle and lose the war, and I am sort of wondering if that is the price the Jets will have to pay later this season.

With their defense depleted by injuries to Darrelle Revis, Calvin Pace, and Kris Jenkins, Ryan and company probably had big fears going into this game. If they lost lost the game because Edwards was out the whole way, they would hear neverending complaints about a lack of leniency and taking the DWI thing too seriously. But now that they have won the game, with Edwards being an integral part of the victory, there will be others who argue that the Jets put winning before doing what was right. And, of course, they would be totally correct.

A lot of good things happened in last night's game. QB Mark Sanchez looked great again; the defense didn't fall apart against the Dolphins, and Edwards made it look like he was indispensible. The problem is that all those good things don't erase the DWI. It is going to be an albatross hanging around Rex Ryan's neck for the rest of the season. The question is will he be like the Ancient Mariner and forced to keep telling a story of woe? That would be a losing cause in the long run, but hopefully Ryan will find a way to remove that albatross before it ends up defeating him.