Just when I was ready to declare these Jets "for real" this season, I witnessed this mind-boggling completion to a 16-play, 77-yard drive covering 8 minutes and 41 seconds with the score tied at 14 in the third quarter:
- Third-and-goal from the 2, three tight ends in the game for the Jets. Handoff to Cedric Houston, 0 yards, 1 injury.
- Timeout.
- Fourth-and-goal from the 2, three tights ends in the game for Jets. Play-action fake by Chad Pennington. Rollout to the right, 0 yards, 1 interception.
Total: Two plays, one timeout, one injury, one turnover, zero points.
"That was the plan," Jets coach Eric Mangini said in his postgame news conference. "We were gonna drive the length of the field. We're looking to score touchdowns, not field goals."
Sure, guts are good. But you just don't leave points on the board against Peyton Manning. That's just not smart. You also don't go with three tight ends on fourth-and-goal from the 2. Everyone knows you're going to pass, so make it a little easier for your quarterback. Playaction was meant for second or third down. Not fourth. It doesn't fool anyone. (What would you do in the situation? Vote here.)
For once, perhaps Jets fans wouldn't mind a little Herm Edwards attitude for a few hours today. The Colts then marched down the field for a field goal and a 17-14 lead.
Just when I was ready to possibly contemplate being a first-time caller, long-time listener and discussing head coach Eric Mangini's poor decision, Justin Miller returns a kickoff 103 yards for a touchdown and a 28-24 lead with 2:20 left. It should have been 31-24 with 2:20 left. Then, Jets fans could at least be comfortable knowing their team was going to overtime.
With that much time left, was I the only one thinking "That's waaaaaaaaay too much time to give the best quarterback on the best offense in the league to work against the Jets?"
Touchdown, Colts!
Just when I was ready to turn the television off with eight seconds left, I saw Leon Washington lateral to Brad Smith. Then I saw Smith throw across the field to Laveraneus Coles, who lateraled to Pennington, who threw back across the field to Justin McCareins, who then lateraled back to Smith, who then lateraled back to Coles, who then tossed the ball away to Nick Mangold as he was being tackled, who ran for a bit before tossing back to Washington who couldn't handle the high throw.
Jets lose, 31-28.
Damn, these Jets are exciting to watch. They can't stop the run, and they can't really run the ball (sorry, but the Colts' run defense stinks), but they are fun to watch. And they're for real this season. Will they make the playoffs? Who knows. But they'll compete in their division.
Comments (5)
If the Jets used Herm Edwards' attitude today, they would NEVER have tried an on-sides kick in the 3rd quarter, they wouldn't have used Smith as a QB on 3rd down, & they would have lost a boring game by two or three touchdowns. As you mentioned, the Jets are weak in many skill positions. Mangini compensates by using a wide-open game plan. The Jets won two games this year by scoring TD's when field goals were available. I question the call for a pass on 4th down, but not the try for a TD.
And I'm enjoying the heck out of the Jets this year! You're right. They are so competitive. There's nothing wrong with with playing to win while re-building.
Jerry, right on.
Wayyyyy too much being made of the decision to go for the touchdown. I wasn't wild about the decision at the time, but you cannot say that it would have changed the outcome of the game. Too much happened after that mid-3rd quarter play. I appreciate the aggressive play-calling with this young team. It really was a well-executed gameplan overall - especially since the plan could easily have been blown up after the first Jets turnover and subsequent Colts touchdown. But Mangini & Co stuck with it, the Jets won the time of possession battle and darn near stole the game.
I think Mangini is going to be a great coach, but you need to get the points there. While hindsight is 20/20, the defense had been doing a good job (14 points, one on a very short field after the turnover). It was clear at that point that it was going to be a very close game and every point mattered.
Way way to much being made out of the fouth down call.
Herm's team would not have even been in the game at that point. Magic Man's team plays to win. Let's see how they do in Jacksonville this weekend and then look at the remaining games. This is not a 4-12 team ! Detroit, Green Bay, Oakland,Houston, Miami (2x) Buffalo at home. Can you say wild card? It's been a long time since I have seen the stadium rocking as it was on Sunday afternoon. The defense will improve.
If the surprise onside kick hadn't worked, you'd have people screaming what a stupid move it was, and how you can't give such a great offense such great field position. On the other side of the coin, had the 4th down play worked for a touchdown, everyone would be loving it and calling Mangini gutsy and a genius. So basically, you can't have it both ways. That's what you get when you have a gambling coach who is willing to take chances to win. That's who he is and you gotta live and die with that. I personally would rather have Mangini who takes chances, whether they work or not, than Edwards, who probably would've taken the three points but the Jets would've probably lost by a bigger margin, 'cause he will not have called all the other Mangini gutsy calls...