'I Thought It Was Going to Be Different'

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Randy's Radar

'I Thought It Was Going to Be Different'

Published: Sun, September 14, 2008 - 9:28pm EDT
Randy Lange

By Randy Lange

Lange is editor-in-chief of newyorkjets.com. He covered the Jets for 13 years for The Record of Hackensack, N.J.


File Under: Shaun Ellis, Jerricho Cotchery, Laveranues Coles, Kerry Rhodes, Leon Washington, Tom Brady, Wes Welker, Matt Cassel, Brett Favre, Calvin Pace

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09/14 — Shaun Ellis was, like the rest of his teammates after this home opener, disappointed. And he has more reason than others to be dejected. The defensive captain has been around for every one of the eight consecutive New England wins in his home stadium.

"We knew this was going to be a close game," Ellis said. "I thought it was going to be different this time."

The Jets' 19-10 loss had that kind of deflating effect on everyone in the locker room. It was ludicrous to think New England wouldn't be tough even with Matt Cassel at quarterback rather than Tom Brady. But there was a feeling that with these Jets on the ascendance and with the Patriots reeling just a tiny bit, maybe the Meadowlands tide had turned.

"It was a tough loss for us," safety Kerry Rhodes said at the interview room podium. "We were definitely a confident team coming in. Cassel didn't lose the game, that's what it was."

Cassel's play was certainly one of the things that made the difference. Even though there was a stretch of the game, from the Pats' last series of the first half through the first two series of the second half, where the Jets hit him four times and sacked him three of those times, he played within himself. He and the Pats didn't turn over the ball once.

"We tried to get pressure," Ellis said, "and we started to get too much pressure so they went back to the quick stuff."

The quick stuff also hurt. Wes Welker had seven catches, three for first downs. With Laurence Maroney sidelined with a midgame shoulder injury, Kevin Faulk (three first downs) and Sammy Morris (two firsts) moved the ball and the chains. When the Jets defense tried to address the short game with their nickel, the Pats salted things away with one-time Curtis Martin backup LaMont Jordan muscling for 62 second-half rushing yards and four firsts.

On the offense, there were moments of brilliance from Brett Favre, Thomas Jones, Laveranues Coles, Chansi Stuckey and Leon Washington, but not enough to counteract the still brawny New England defense.

Thomas Jones was stoned on three straight running plays from the Patriots 3 or closer, forcing the hosts to settle for three points instead of seven in the second frame. And Favre, perhaps feeling the magic after converting a third-and-22 on a BF laser to Stuckey, then threw a similar ball toward TE Chris Baker, only this time S Brandon Meriweather stepped in front for the pick to set up the Pats' only TD drive. Seven points instead of zero.

"I just underthrew him," Favre said, honest as always. "I just made a bad throw. I'd like to tell you something different, but it was a bad throw."

That's 11 points right there, enough to have bumped off the Patriots on this day, had the Jets made the plays to produce them.

"Every opportunity you get to make a play against these guys," said WR Jerricho Cotchery, "if you don't, then they take advantage of it."

That was never truer than on special teams, where the Patriots won a huge victory in field position. Stephen Gostkowski had a monster day, hitting all four of his field goals but also putting all six of his kickoffs into the end zone, five of which were unreturnable.

"Early in the season, kickers' legs are fresh and they can put the ball back there," said Washington, who had only one kickoff return for 24 yards. "On special teams they really blocked us up."

Ben Graham and the Jets' punt cover team struggled with a 27.3-yard net on four punts, while Chris Hanson and the Pats' cover unit didn't allow a return on three punts.

Put that all together and the Jets' average drive start was their 21 while the Patriots' position was twice as good, their 42.

"It's hard going there, when they're playing with a short field," said LB Calvin Pace, "but that being said, I think we did a good job holding them to field goals."

That's the thing that can get lost in a game like this, which came with all the expectations, the full stadium, the thought of finally ending this schneid to the players who live several hours up I-95 and put their game pants on one leg at a time.

Fans can and will be upset that Cassel wasn't harassed more, that the offense bogged down, that calls went the visitors' way and not to the hosts. But don't throw the baby out with the bath water. The Jets showed too many good things all summer and into the season opener.

"I think we, as a team, should see there's a lot of room for improvement," said Favre, "but we're not far off. When we will turn that corner, I have no idea. ... We had the opportunities. We just have to find a way to clean up some of the mistakes we made, and each person, starting with me, has to find a way to make one or two more plays that are there. It's not like we have to find those plays — those plays were there for us."

And against the team, minus a very big part, that suffered its only loss in Super Bowl XLII. Get down if you will, but get up in time for next week's game, and the one after that, and the one after that. LB Eric Barton said head coach Eric Mangini told the Jets:

"Keep your head up and move forward. It's Week 2 of the season, not the end of the world. Let's go back to work tomorrow."

The 0-2 Chargers in San Diego will be waiting a week from Monday night. No better place than the balmy breezes of the West Coast, no better time than in prime time to start to show people you're turning the corner.

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