NO MORE CUSHION

It doesn't matter who the head coach is, it doesn't matter who the quarterback is. It doesn't matter, really, who any of the players are. Year in and year out, the Jets are so frustrating to root for.

They looked like they were sleepwalking out in San Francisco on Sunday...not a good sign considering they have a similar trip to Seattle coming up in two weeks. (And that Seattle game looms threateningly [as do all of the Jets' remaining games], because I thought they'd beat either the Patriots or the Jets. They barely didn't beat New England, so I don't think that bodes too well for the Jets. Seattle is just a tough place to play...I don't know that both New England and the Jets go there and win. Uh-oh.)

As I mentioned last week, I have a bad feeling about all of the Jets' remaining games. And with Sunday's game a 4 o'clock start, I had too much time to dread the game. And I got to reading and thinking. And in the Sunday paper it said the game was the first for the Jets at San Francisco since 1998. And I remember that game like it was yesterday. It was the season opener - Glenn Foley was quarterback for that game and one more before he got injured and lost the job to Vinny Testaverde. It was a shootout - tied at 30 going into overtime. I think Foley threw for 400 yards.

The Jets backed up the Niners in OT, before Garrison Hearst ripped off the longest overtime touchdown run in history - what was it, 96 yards? So thinking about that made me feel even worse about this game, even though there's really no connection at all.

The past two weeks have just been terrible. Bad penalties (Eric Barton last week against Denver...he's in my doghouse. I still hold a playoff 4th down roughing the passer penalty against San Diego against him.). This week Kris Jenkins jumped offsides on a 4th and 1. That's something the Niners should be doing against Brett Favre - not the Jets against Shaun Hill.

And what the Jets have done is stretch themselves to the limit of this tiebreaker they own. With the Patriots and Dolphins winning, the three teams sit at 8-5. The Jets, by virtue of their division record, have the advantage over both teams.

But all that does is put them at the top of the standings for now. The reality is, the Jets have no wiggle room. They control their own destiny, but they have to take advantage, and the only way to do that is to win their final three games. They can't rely on external help - they just have to win.

I can't believe I even mentioned the possibility of a first-round bye. The Jets are starting to look like they'll need to win three playoff games if they are going to make it to the Super Bowl....if they make the playoffs at all.

I'D RATHER THAT THEY PLAY AT ONE

I do not like 4 o'clock games,
They make me wait and wait.
Today's makes two weeks in a row,
The Jets game starts so late.

It's different than the 8 o'clock
Or Monday night affair,
Those games are the centerpiece
In which everyone can share.

The playoffs, too, are different
It's a different level of game
I can wait until four or Saturday night
But regular season's not the same.

My routine has me ready at 1 pm,
That's when I'm psyched the most,
To wait three hours from that time
Is tough for someone on the East Coast.

So today with the Jets in San Francisco
I'll be as patient as I can
I'll postpone dinner and children's baths
I'll be less dad than fan.

Because that's what 4 o'clock starts do
They turn everything on its head
And the worst thing is when the game's over,
I feel like it's time for bed.

HOPE FOR 2008

I know football is in the rear-view mirror, but allow me one more posting, to end a disappointing football season on a note of hope.

The schedule isn't out yet, but the Jets know who their opponents will be in 2008:

At home: Buffalo, Miami, New England, Cincinnati, Denver, Kansas City, St. Louis, Arizona
On the road: Buffalo, Miami, New England, Oakland, San Diego, Tennessee, San Francisco, Seattle

Now, other than the fact that it's a pretty weak schedule (and the Jets didn't even finish in last place - imagine Miami's schedule!), the schedule features the Jets against the NFC West. Good things happen when the West comes up in the Jets' NFC Opponents rotation.

1998 - This was before the realignment that resulted in a very balanced schedule. The NFC West at this time was Atlanta, San Francisco, New Orleans, Carolina, and Saint Louis (the Arizona Cardinals were in the NFC East, and the Seahawks were still in the AFC). The Jets went just 2-2 against the West (not playing New Orleans, and losing the opening day heartbreaker to the 49ers), but they made it to the AFC Championship game.

The Jets played the NFC East in 1999, the Central in 2000, then:

2001 - Again, the Jets were just 2-2 against the NFC West, not playing Atlanta, but they made the playoffs.

The Jets faced the NFC North in 2002, the East again in 2003, then:

2004 - In the realigned divisions, the Jets took 3 out of 4 from San Francisco, Arizona, Seattle, and St. Louis, losing to the Rams on the last day of the season, but still clinching a playoff berth. They beat the Chargers in the playoffs, but lost to the Steelers.

In 2005 it was the NFC South, then the North in 2006, and the East last year. It's the West's turn again in 2008...and good things happen when the Jets play the NFC West. There have been playoff appearances in years where the Jets play the other divisions, but there's something to the fact that the Jets have made the playoffs the last three times they have played the likes of the 49ers and Rams.

And I've got nothing else, really, to sustain me from this 2007 season, so I'll just hang my hat on that.

Jets 22, 49ers 14

I forget if I ever mentioned this, but Jonathan Vilma has an on-line diary running on ESPN.com, on the NFL page. I read it a lot during training camp, and I thought it ended before the season started. I thought it was a "life of a rookie during his first NFL training camp" sort of thing. But last week I was tooling around the NFL page on ESPN.com and I saw the diary, and read it. It was right after the Jets-Bills game, and if you remember, at the end of that game, as the Bills were driving late in the game, Vilma had a pass in his hands but dropped it. It would have been his first career interception. He wrote about that in his journal, saying something along the lines of, "If you saw the game, you know that I almost had my first career interception. That would have been a big one. I hope when I do get it, it is a big one, and I return it for a touchdown." Something along those lines. Go look it up if you want to read exactly what he said. (But not until you finish reading what I have to say.)

The point of all this is that Vilma got his first interception on Sunday, against the 49ers. And it was a big one. HUGE. Granted, it was partly a bad decision by Tim Rattay, partly a great play by Vilma, and although he didn't return it for a TD, I'm looking forward to see what Vilma has to say about his first career INT.

It came with 1:30 left in the game, after the Jets were forced to punt after another unsuccessful attempt to put away an opponent. After the interception, the Jets FINALLY put the game away on a touchdown run by Curtis Martin, his second of the day.

I partly take the blame for this game being so close. There was an event at my school that caused me to miss the first half of the game. I made it to a bar to catch the entire second half, which included all of the Jets touchdowns, and, now that I think about it, perfect defense. The 49ers didn't score once. So, I think if I had been watching the entire game, it probably would have been a blowout.

For the first time in their history, the Jets are 5-0. So I don't really know how to react. I, like every other Jets fan, have never seen the Jets start a season this well. My concern (because when you're a Jets fan, there always tends to be a concern) is that the margins of victory are getting narrower. This game was a 1-point game, not 8, as the final score indicates. Last week, of course, was 2 points. There's not much more margin for error.

The other thing about the final score is that it didn't have to be that close. It could have easily been a three-point Jets lead towards the end of the game, as opposed to one. Trailing 14-3 at halftime, the Jets scored a touchdown early in the third quarter. Instead of just kicking the extra point, the Jets went for two to try to make it 14-11. They failed, so it was 14-9. When the Jets scored their next touchdown, they had to go for two, and failed again. Hence, the 15-14 score late in the game. This type of game management is one of Herman Edwards' weaknesses as a head coach, and I thought it would be solved this year. But apparently it has not been. The fact that he's going for two in that first instance shows a lack of confidence in his offense, to me. By trying to make it a 3-point game, instead of accepting a 4-point deficit, I am led to believe that Edwards doesn't think the offense can get another touchdown. Maybe it's just me...but I don't think so. And if I'm sitting there knowing that the Jets should NOT be going for two, how come he doesn't know that. That's all I'm wondering. I still love ya, Herm.

A couple of breakout games on Sunday. Martin continues to be great - he had 110 rushing yards and the two touchdowns. But LaMont Jordan finally saw some action. I only saw one drive where he touched the ball a couple of times, but that drive ended with Jordan taking the ball into the end zone from about 15 yards out. So the calls for Jordan to get more playing time are going to pick up again (from more than just Mark in Miami). Also finally getting some balls thrown his way was Anthony Becht. I think the Jets finally lit a bit of a fire under Becht by using Chris Baker so much. And I think Becht was given a shot after a key Baker fumble last week. (Becht has been the starting tight end, but Baker has seen the majority of balls thrown his way.) In this game, Becht had four catches for 47 yards, but it wasn't just that. Becht was thrown the ball on the run, and each time that happened, he barreled over a defender. That hadn't been happening in recent years - Becht would catch a pass and be tackled right away. In short, he looked like an NFL tight end on Sunday. I don't know whether his performance merits the Jets keeping him when he becomes a free agent at the end of the year, but it definitely meant he should have more passes thrown his way. (I have a feeling this also depends on whether or not Santana Moss is back in the picture anytime soon. I don't think he played in this game at all, unless it was early on. But, obviously, Chad Pennington had to find other targets.)

So it's finally here. The Patriots beat the Seahawks, the Jets beat the 49ers. They will both meet next week at 5-0. And, as I wrote here a few weeks back, the Patriots will have the added burden of trying to wash away the bad sports taste left by the Red Sox in New England fans' mouths. The Jets will try to end the Patriots' record 20-game winning streak. I am going to have to be on my A-game this week. Can't miss a posting. No excuses. Send your e-mails by Monday night...they'll be here for Tuesday. Let the hype begin.

Jets (4-0) vs. 49ers (1-4) at the Meadowlands, Sunday, 1pm

The Jets should have no problem with the 49ers this week. Yes, the Jets are dealing with some injuries - to the offensive line, to Santana Moss. But the 49ers are much worse off than the Jets. Two of their best players are hurt - one on offense, one on defense. And I read today that the 49ers' pass defense is horrible, which I didn't realize. That's good news for Chad Pennington, even without Moss. I bet Justin McCareins has his biggest day as a Jet this weekend. Look for the Jets to finally open it up in the passing game...at least, I hope. This is the week to do it. The Jets are not making a big deal about being 4-0, but at the same time, they're well aware they're on the verge of being the first Jets team to go to 5-0. I'm just jumping straight to the pick here - in the last of the "soft" games, before the big matchup with New England next week. The Jets are 10-point favorites. I predict a push. Jets, 30-20, if they air it out...Jets, 20-10 if they play the same conservative game.

Elsewhere, for entertainment purposes only, the rest of the NFL (I was 5-9 last week - what a horrible week - and I'm 38-34-2 on the season):

Winless Buffalo hosts winless Miami. One team has to win, even though I'd love there to be a tie to keep both winless. Buffalo is a better team than the Dolphins, plus, they're home. I even think Buffalo is six points better than Miami, so I take the Bills, -6.

The Patriots are a 4-point favorite over the Seahawks. In New England. Seattle has shown they can win on the road this season, but this might be a bit too much. Still, I think they can keep it to within a field goal. I'll take Seattle, +4.

The Eagles are a nine-point favorite over the Panthers. Some say this is revenge for the Eagles for last year's NFC Championship game. I say, these are two different teams. The Eagles are much better, the Panthers much worse. Again, though, nine points seems like a lot. I think the Eagles win by 7 or 8. So I take the Panthers plus the points.

Cleveland is giving three, in Cleveland, to Cincinnati. I think the Bengals are better than these spreads they've been getting the short end of. And I think this is a game the Bengals can win. So I take Cincy, plus three.

The Lions are a two-and-a-half-point favorite at home over Green Bay. I refuse to believe the Packers are this bad. This is the last week I'll take Green Bay. Don't let me down, Favre.

Chicago is a one-point favorite over Washington, in Chicago. I have to go with Washington, even though they keep letting me down.

Tennessee is giving six-and-a-half to Houston, in Tennessee. After what the Titans did to the Packers on Monday night, I have to take them this week. Who wouldn't? They may win by 50 at home.

Atlanta is a four-and-a-half point favorite over the Chargers at home. I think I'll take San Diego, because I think the Falcons are not for real, despite the 4-1 record. Just a hunch.

Jacksonville is a home underdog, getting two points from Kansas City. I'll try the Jaguars one more time here. If they can't win this game, they're not a real contender either. JAX, +2.

In Dallas, the Cowboys are giving three to the Steelers. Not sure who's the better team here. Pittsburgh's overachieving, Dallas is underachieving. I'll go with the overachievers. Pitt, +3.

Denver is giving two points to Oakland, in Oakland. I'll take the Broncos, because the Raiders are not good.

Minnesota is in New Orleans, and is a three-and-a-half point favorite. I can't figure out the Saints. I thought they were going to be a good team, then last week they lay an egg against the Bucs, who are downright bad. I think they may surprise people and come back and beat the mighty Vikes. But I'm not going to pick them, because I can never pick them right. I'll take Minnesota, minus-three-and-a-half.

On Monday night, the aforementioned Buccaneers are in Saint Louis to play the Rams. The Rams are six point favorites. Another Monday Night Football blowout. I take Saint Louis by a whole lot more than six.

Rather than a San Francisco 49ers-focused preview here, this entry is more of an injury report. Yesterday I wrote about Pete Kendall and Brandon Moore. Today, Santana Moss' name appears on the injury list for the Jets. Moss strained his hamstring late in the third quarter of last week's game against the Bills on one of his best punt returns of the year so far. He returned to the game for one play, then we didn't see him again. Moss is listed as questionable for the 49ers game. The Jets should be able to beat the 49ers even if Moss doesn't play. My fantasy team, unfortunately, I can not say the same for.

The good news for the Jets on the injury front is bad news for San Francisco. I mentioned before, Julian Peterson is out for the year. Now it appears the 49ers' leading receiver so far this season, tight end Eric Johnson, won't play on Sunday because of broken ribs. That makes a thin team even thinner.

One last football note - Mark, you'll get your wish this week. The Daily News reports that Herman Edwards will give plenty of playing time to LaMont Jordan this week. No word on why he decided now is the time to do it, and it remains to be seen whether or not it actually happens, because we've been hearing this for three years now.

Let's shift the focus to baseball for a minute, since 100% of my readers root for either the Red Sox or the Yankees. If I write something baseball on johnnymets.blogspot.com, I will direct your attention there. Being that I haven't written much football today, I'll just finish up here with a couple of baseball notes.

I'll mention this again before the post-season ends, but I have an obsession, which some of you know about. If I have no rooting interest in the post-season, I want the World Series to feature two teams who have never played each other before, so that eventually, every team will have faced every other possible team for the championship. (This doesn't just apply to baseball - it applies to every sport. And even when I do have a rooting interest, I root for a team to face my team that they've never faced before.) I hope I'm not confusing you. For example, we've had a good run in baseball and football the past few years:

Baseball: Yankees vs. Marlins, Angels vs. Giants, Yankees vs. Diamondbacks, Yankees vs. Mets.
Football: Patriots/Panthers, Raiders/Buccaneers, Rams/Patriots, etc..

The Yankees are by far the world leaders in this category. By my unofficial count, I think the Yanks need to play only the Expos, Brewers, Rockies, and Astros to complete the full set. So, needless to say, I am rooting for the Astros to win the NLCS, get to their first World Series, and set up a new matchup, no matter who wins the ALCS.

Speaking of the ALCS, I don't want to upset any of my loyal readers, but the Red Sox are absolutely cursed. If they didn't win in 2003, they're never going to do it. I maintain that. This year's curse appearance definitely has to be Schilling's ankle, in case you're looking for something to point to. I wish you Sox fans good luck...but I also offer my condolences.