COHEN'S CORNER SPORTS

LIONS 24 JETS 17 The circus has once again arrived in town. Forget about the fact that the Jets lost this game to a very good Detroit Lions team by seven points, because in retrospect it felt more like a 31-point deficit than a single touchdown. The Jets were outplayed, out-coached, out-hustled, and out-classed by the Lions in every aspect of the football game on Sunday. Not once did it ever feel that the Jets were in the game, nor did it ever feel they had the capability of coming back and making it interesting. If they did, it would have been a crime since it would have masked this Phantom of the Gridiron disaster show. The Jets lost because they are, sadly, the New York Jets. They lost for the same reason they lost last week to the Bears; the same reason they lost the week before to the Packers, and every loss for that matter during the Rex Ryan era. The Jets lost because as a team they lack discipline and the proper coaching, and they lost because they STILL do not have a ...

Derek Jeter ended his brilliant career as a New York Yankee the only way he could. With the chants of "Derek Jeter" and "Thank You Jeter" roaring through the entire stadium, Jeter came up to bat in the bottom of the ninth inning in a game that was already tied at five. Two men were on, there was one out. Jeter didn't wait to suspend the drama any further. It was his last game at Yankee Stadium, likely the last game he would ever play. He's been in these situations his entire career -- another pressure situation is nothing to him. He lined the first pitch he saw from Evan Meek to right field with that ever familiar pull swing that has been a trademark of his 20-year career. The hit was deep enough to drive in Antoan Richardson with the winning run to make it 6-5. Jeter extended his arms into the air as his teammates mobbed him, soaking it all in with him. After hugging each of his teammates, he began to walk toward the dugout, before catching a glance o...

GIANTS 45 REDSKINS 14 Any doubts about the efficiency of the New York Giants offense were finally put to rest in a convincing 45-14 victory over the Redskins in Landover, Maryland on Thursday. The Giants rolled up 441 yards of offense on the Redskins, with Eli Manning proving to be the star of the show, zinging the football all over the ball park for 300 yards and five total touchdowns. The Giants set the tone early. A sack and fumble of Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins set the Giants up at the Washington 32, and it didn't take long for Eli Manning to do his thing. After a couple quick completions, Manning hit tight end Larry Donnell from five yards out to give New York a 7-0 lead. After a Redskins three and out, Manning hit a streaking Victor Cruz for 36 yards down the sideline to the Washington 39. After a couple of Rashad Jennings carries, Manning hit Donnell for eight more to the Redskins 14, before connecting with Donnell two plays later for a six yard touchdown to m...

Inspite of four straight losing seasons, little major league talent with the big club, and a nearly 3/4 empty stadium for much of the past few seasons, it doesn't seem to matter at all to Fred and Jeff Wilpon: they have endorsed the efforts of Sandy Alderson and Terry Collins, signing both of them to extensions beyond 2015.  Mediocrity is bliss when it comes to the Mets. As long as the team shows some progress, but not enough progress to get a fan base excited is good enough for ownership as well as the number of delusional Met fans that STILL believe Alderson is the next Frank Cashen. Granted the Mets have played better -- somewhat -- in the second half of 2014. Their pitching staff carried them for much of the second half of the year. In fact that is where the kudos begin and end regarding Alderson. Alderson came to New York and was asked to rebuild the farm system, and did so especially with the starting pitching staff. The Mets will head into 2015 with a strong starti...

BEARS 27 JETS 19  It didn't take long for the Jets to put themselves in a proverbial hole that they would never dig themselves out of. On the second play of the game, Jets quarterback Geno Smith faked a screen to the left, turned around to his right, and tried to pitch a screen pass, but instead of finding number 21, Chris Johnson, he found number 21, Ryan Munday of the Chicago Bears. Munday went 45 yards for the game's opening touchdown to put the Bears up 7-0, setting the tone for the next three hours. Geno Smith was bad. He cost the Jets with turnovers, misreads of the Bears defense, throwing the football off the wrong foot, and throwing incomplete passes that were just past the outstretched hands of his receivers. While the Jets mistakes were team inflicted, it was Smith's errors that stood tall on Monday night. While the final stat line says Smith threw for 256 yards and two interceptions, it could have been much, much worse. And it felt worse. On the Jets s...

GIANTS 30 TEXANS 17 It's about time. The New York Giants are officially off the schnide after a convincing 30-17 smackdown of the Houston Texans on Sunday at MetLife Stadium, to capture their first victory of the year. While it wasn't pretty early, the Giants found a way to get past their own mistakes thanks in part to the fact that Houston couldn't get out of their own way either. The Giants fumble the football in the red zone? No problem, the Texans turn it back over on a Ryan Fitzpatrick interception. The Giants botch a field goal attempt? Doesn't matter, the Texans can't move the football on their next possession. Houston's own incompetence gave the Giants a chance in this game, and with that free ticket, Eli Manning took full advantage. Midway through the second quarter Manning engineered a nine play 83-yard drive that culminated in Manning hitting Victor Cruz in the flat for a 26-yard touchdown. It was the first touchdown of the year for Cruz -- bu...

Texans @ Giants  1:00 p.m. CBS  For the second consecutive year the Giants open the season at 0-2, and for the second consecutive season everyone thinks the Giants are on the brink of watching their season fall apart before the month of October. The Giants didn't look good last week against Arizona. Penalties on defense and mistakes on special teams cost the Giants dearly turning a 14-10 lead into a 25-14 loss last week. Now the Giants have to win against the Texans (2-0) or the calls for Tom Coughlin's head will only get louder, if they are not loud enough already. Key Match-up : Giants offense against Texans defense. The Giants are ranked 30th in the NFL in total offense. While Eli Manning played better last week, he still has to get on the same page with his receivers, who have let him down with way too many drops. When Larry Donnell, the Giants back-up tight end is leading the team in receiving, you know things are not good for Big Blue. Not to mention, the Gian...

Bears @ Jets Monday, Sept. 22 - 8:30 p.m. ESPN One would have to think that Marty Mornhinweg will not be calling time outs this time around in a crucial spot when the Jets take on the Bears on Monday night, at least that's what the Jets should hope. Sunday's heartbreaking loss to the Packers is going to stick to the Jets for a while, even Geno Smith saying it took him longer than usual to get over that loss. The Jets held a 21-3 lead before watching the Packers take full advantage of both a leaky Jets secondary and some Same Ole' Jets tricks en route to their 31-24 win over Gang Green. Now the Jets (1-1) have to refocus and get ready for another tough task against the high-flying Chicago Bears offense. Key Match-ups: Jets defense vs. Bears passing attack. Much has been made about the Jets maligned secondary, and the proof was in the pudding last week when the Packers torched the Jets for 346 yards through the air, with 209 of those yards going to receiver Jordy Ne...

PACKERS 31 JETS 24 Here's the bright side Jets fans, nobody expected Gang Green to win this game. For two quarters the Jets had us all tricked. They were rushing Aaron Rodgers all over the field; forced him into a turnover on the opening play of the game, and cashed it in for six on a Geno Smith scramble. They sacked Rodgers two more times, and cashed that in for six more points, when Smith hit a wide open Eric Decker streaking down the sideline to make it 14-0, Jets. Before anyone knew it, Gang Green held a 21-3 lead over Green Bay. Talk about stunning. Then the Jets decided to be the Jets, and the Packers decided to be, well, the Packers. Green Bay hit a couple of field goals, and all of a sudden 21-3 became 21-9 and things didn't look so bleak for the Green Bay. The Jets helped ... a lot. Geno Smith threw a pick inside the red zone, and the Packers took full advantage as the first half drew to a close. The dagger coming when Rodgers hit Davante Adams for 24-yard...

CARDINALS 22 GIANTS 14  The Giants are back in a very dark place right now; a place they are all too familiar with after last season's 7-9 disaster, which began with a hideous 0-6 start. Once again the Giants are wondering when they will ever win a game. This year's Giants are now 0-2 after losing inexplicably to the Arizona Cardinals at MetLife Stadium. Those ready to throw Eli Manning under the bus as if he were the Big Blue version of Mark Sanchez better hold off. This loss is not because of Manning, it has everything to do with the guys around him. The receivers who can't hold onto the football; the defense that can't avoid holding penalties if their lives depended on it, and a special teams unit that couldn't run down a turtle, let alone Ted Ginn Jr. The Giants lost this game as a team, not because of one man. Manning put the Giants in position to win this game many times over, and each time his teammates failed him. Starting with the defense, they...

Jets @ Packers - 4:25 CBS  After stumbling and bumbling their way to a 19-14 victory over the Raiders on Opening Day, the Jets are going to need their best effort on Sunday against the Packers. While Green Bay lost their opener to Seattle, they are still the Packers. They have one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL in Aaron Rodgers, and when given the opportunity, have the best passing attack in the league.  This is a tall task for a Jets secondary that is still beaten up by injuries and lack of depth. Dee Milliner will not start on Sunday, but might see some action on Sunday. That is little consultation. Milliner didn't light up the world last year, although he did play well the last couple games of the year. He has had a hard time getting on the field this year with a high ankle sprain, and chasing Packer receivers isn't exactly the right method of rehab.  Antonio Allen and Darrin Walls who both played well against the Raiders will get the start against ...

Cardinals @ Giants - 1:00 FOX The Giants cannot be encouraged coming into their week 2 battle with the Arizona Cardinals. They heard all summer that their offense was dreadful, and it showed in a big and disturbing way on Monday night against the Lions. The Giants couldn't do anything offensively. Every time Eli Manning set back to throw he was either under tremendous duress, or throwing costly interceptions. Manning threw two picks against Detroit; one of them a miscommunication between Manning and his receiver, the other a bad job on Manning's part not reading the safety. The West Coast Offense that had been installed by new OC Ben McAdoo is now under fire, and many people are wondering why the Giants even changed their philosophy, or whether Manning is washed up as a quarterback. Just look at this classic overreaction by one Giants Fan: Giants' Fan Burns Jersey . To say that the Giants need a victory on Sunday would be the biggest understatement of the year, b...

JETS 19 RAIDERS 14 It wasn't the prettiest of efforts but the New York Jets found a way to get a victory on Opening Day, outlasting the equally mediocre Raiders 19-14 at the Meadowlands on Sunday. The Good: The Jets defense was as stout as predicted. They suffocated the Raiders offense, holding them to only 25 yards rushing, and had rookie quarterback Derek Carr running for his life for much of the afternoon. With the exception on an early touchdown pass to Rod Streater and a last minute heave to James Jones, the secondary played fairly well. They did a great job in tackling and held Carr to only 151 yards passing. However, the one big concern for Gang Green: the offense. The Jets were flagged for 11 penalties, eight of them coming on the offensive side of the ball. Offensive guard Willie Colon was flagged three times by himself, which hurt a couple of Jet drives. As for Geno Smith the stats say he completed 23 of 28 passes for 221 yards, but outside of a crisp openin...

Glory Hallelujah! The NFL is back for real this time, and with it all of the good things that come with it. From Football Friday's, to Fantasy Football; Football Sunday; pregame shows (i.e. Open Mike on MTRradio at 11 a.m. ;-) ; tailgating, and everything in between, it has been too long since football fans have enjoyed a Sunday afternoon. This season the Seattle Seahawks come into 2014 both the reigning champion and favorite to win it all again. It has been 10 seasons since the New England Patriots repeated as Super Bowl champion, and many expect the Seahawks to become the first team since those '04 Patriots to accomplish the feat. Will they do it? Can Peyton Manning and the Broncos rebound from a humiliating Super Bowl loss? Do the Patriots have anything left? Can the Bengals get over the playoff hump? Will the Cardinals overtake San Francisco and Seattle for a playoff spot? Here are my predictions: AFC East: 1) New England Patriots, 11 - 5: Tom Brady might be getti...

Jets vs. Raiders Sunday 1:00 p.m. ET TV CBS The wait is finally over, the preseason is now to the side and finally the real thing is about to begin. Football returns this weekend with a full slate of action, and now we are going to find out whether or not the retooled New York Jets are as good as they've been talking about all summer long. The Jets have talked, and talked, and talked that they are ready to become a playoff team again, harkening back to the days of 2009, 2010 and 2011 when Rex Ryan couldn't help himself but make one bold proclamation after another, no matter how foolish it made him look in the end. After walking the John Idzik tightrope last season, Ryan and the Jets are back to their old tricks. Just take their recent missives to the media this week as they prepare for the Oakland Raiders in Week 1. " Woody Johnson is on record that he is not satisfied with 8-8. “Hell no, I want to be better than that,” Ryan said, “and we’re gonna be better ...