Just A Normal Jets Win

If all you did was look at the boxscore following today's Jets game against the Washington Redskins, it looks like the Jets had a nice, easy fifteen point victory. However, that is definitely not the case with this 34-19 win for Gang Green, as they actually were trailing 16-13 with under five minutes to play.

The opening possession of the game for the Skins was simply a horrendous showing of defense on the Jets' part, as Rex Grossman (yes, him) looked excellent against the other Rex (the loud one) and his defensive unit. Skins running back Roy Helu showed some burst breaking out a few solid runs and finishing off the drive with a TD from two yards out.

However, what took place on the Jets' ensuing possession was something that really impressed me. The Jets for the last few seasons have been awful in the first quarter offensively. But finally, the Jets showed some life in the first quarter, actually scoring a touchdown, on a really solid 17-play, 74 yard drive with Shonn Greene finding the endzone to tie the game up at seven. So there's a positive...But as a Jets fan, here's what really bothers me: why couldn't the offense find the endzone until just under FIVE minutes left in the fourth quarter?! It's very frustrating to watch a team that has the ability to put together excellent drives, but just is not consistent.

Time to say another good thing I noticed. Shonn Greene has arrived! Coming into the game with only two touchdowns all year, he gave his fantasy owners a huge day as he scored THREE times! He ran very well, and that's something we haven't seen for a majority of the season. Now how could I write about the Jets and not mention Mark Sanchez, right? I thought he played well. I'm happy with the performance, but I'll leave it at well. He had a couple of occassions where he slightly overthrew an open receiver, but he didn't make any mistakes, which is always fantastic news. He also escaped pressure a few times and made a couple of critical third-down conversions, extending plays just enough to convert. And of course, he made the beautiful game-winning throw to Santonio Holmes for 30 yards (easily, the deepest ball thrown).

Are there things for the Jets to work on? Yes, obviously. Letting Sanchez throw the ball DOWN the field would be great...I've kind of forgotten what that looks like...but I liked the play-calling better today than most days, even throwing in the Jeremy Kerley Wildcat! As a Jets fan, you learn that your team isn't going to get the most aesthetically-pleasing wins in the world, but anytime you get a win, you'll gladly take it!

-David Otero

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