JETS 32JAGUARS 3
See what can happen when the New York Jets remember when kick-off is and actually play for 60 minutes?
After last week's lucky victory against the Dallas Cowboys, the Jets needed a laugher in the worst way, and they finally got it against the pathetic Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Jets wasted little time in putting distance between themselves and a Jaguars team that beat them two years ago in old Giants Stadium as Mark Sanchez opened the game completing four consecutive passes highlighted by a 33 yard pass to Dustin Keller and culminating in a 17 yard touchdown strike to Santonio Holmes.
For Keller, this was the break out performance the Jets have been waiting for from him for some time. He had six catches for 101 yards and a touchdown. It was Keller's best individual performance for Gang Green since Week Two of the 2010 season when he had seven catches for 115 yards against the Patriots.
If the Jets offense has any plans of doing big things this season, they have got to get Keller more involved in the offense, and Sunday may have been the right start.
Moments after the Jets touchdown, the Jets defense, which was much maligned last week, stepped up and sacked quarterback Luke McCown on the second play of scrimmage for Jacksonville to extend the Jets lead to 9-0.
After that the Jets kind of went into a shell. Their offense struggled to run the football, and Mark Sanchez threw two interceptions and never again found Santonio Holmes and Braylon Edwards open. The only scoring the Jets could muster for much of the second and third quarter were two Nick Folk field goals, as the stubborn Jaguars hung around all afternoon.
Luckily for Gang Green, their defense was up to the challenge; they picked off McCown four times on the afternoon. The sad sacked quarterback threw for only 59 yards and had a 1.8 quarterback rating, before he was pulled for rookie Blaine Gabbert.
The Jets offense didn't wake up until late in the third quarter when Keller made a fantastic 37 yard catch and run to move the ball to the Jets 45 yard line. Sanchez then found Santonio Holmes for 18 more, and, finally, Keller for a 11 yard touchdown to give New York a 22-3 lead.
The Jets put this game on ice when McCown was intercepted by Antonio Cromartie; however, the clumsy cornerback forgot to put the ball in his right hand and reach for the pylon when he was falling out of bounds near the goal line. Cromartie's clumsy mistake forced the Jets into a first and goal at the one, and thankfully, they were able to plug it in when Shonn Greene dove over the top to score. Box Score.
Even though the Jets won and won big, there are still major concerns, beginning with Nick Mangold who left the game in the first quarter after a Jaguar fell on his ankle when the pro-bowl center was trying to run block for Greene. Mangold left for X-Rays, which came back negative, but he didn't return to the game. Colin Baker came in to replace Mangold, but the Jets are already thin at center after they lost Robert Turner in pre-season with a season ending injury.
If Mangold misses time, the Jets will be forced to look around for a center. Shaun O'Hara, who was cut from the Giants because of his injuries is available and could come at a cheap price if he is fully healthy.
Also, safety Jim Leonhard left the game for a short time after pulling up and holding his calf. Leonhard missed the rest of the season last year when he broke his hand. Leonhard returned to the Jaguars game and played the rest of the day. He will be reevaluated as well.
Then there is the fact that the Jets still can't run the football. Greene had only 49 yards on 16 carries, and LaDainian Tomlinson didn't have much impact on the game either. For a team that prides itself on ground and pound, the Jets have been forced to rely mostly on their passing attack. Fortunately for the Jets, they played two of the worst secondaries in the league, allowing Mark Sanchez to find open receivers.
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