This homework is piling up. I have to start setting my priorities. I can't eliminate johnnyjets.blogspot.com...so I'll just shorten it a tad...or a lot.

Since the e-mail addresses everything I was going to address here, I'll start with it:

"Dear JohnnyJets,

The Jets seem to be sitting pretty after a win Sunday to bring them to 8-3. Combined with the Ravens' inevitable defeat to the GREATEST FOOTBALL TEAM THAT EVER LIVED to drop them to 7-4 and the upset loss dealt the Broncos to leave them at 7-4, the Jets are in the wild card driver's seat.

Is it time to prepare for the postseason, rest Quincy Carter and let Bollinger take them the rest of the way?

Dave in Brighton."

Well, Dave, it's funny you should mention all this. Because the Jets are in the driver's seat for the post-season. Unfortunately, it's very unlikely (and darn near impossible) that the postseason berth will be from a division title, but the Jets control their own destiny in the wild card race. That Oakland win was huge on Sunday night in the snow.

And the news gets better, because the Jets don't need to depend on Brooks Bollinger to take them the rest of the way....I'm willing to bet (of course, I won't, but I say that for entertainment purposes only) Chad Pennington will start on Sunday against the Houston Texans (with me in attendance). Pennington is taking snaps with the first-team offense, and says there's only room for minimal improvement the way his shoulder is right now. So why wait another week, he says. I agree. With Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh the following week, it's a good idea to get Pennington back into the flow at home against Houston (which isn't to say that's going to be an easy task). I'll keep you posted as the week progresses.

Jets 13, Cardinals 3

The Jets really needed their defense to step up since Chad Pennington went down. The whole team collapsed in the game against the Baltimore Ravens...but since then, the defense has been BIG. On Sunday against Arizona, the defense came through late, stopping the Cardinals three different times in the last 6 and a half minutes, causing turnovers on three plays. Jonathan Vilma picked off a pass and recovered a fumble, and it doesn't hurt that the Cardinals stink, but the Jets won another game they had to win, and now they're 8-3.

Another highlight from Sunday's game was Quincy Carter hooking up with Santana Moss on a 69-yard touchdown pass that helped put the game out of reach. It was quite possibly one of the greatest offensive plays in Jets history, just because there hasn't been much out there to choose from. Another positive out of the Cardinals game was that when Carter got hurt early on, in stepped Brooks Bollinger, and he didn't do a bad job. I think by next season he will be a very capable backup, and it's a bonus that he got to see some NFL game action against a very non-threatening team like the Cardinals.

A couple of notes on the defense. First of all, they really have played well all year. And the past two games they've been very good against two sub-par teams. They gave up 3 points this week, and 7 points last week. Next week will be a test against Houston, and they need to respond, because things only get tougher after that.

The most upsetting thing about Sunday's game was what was happening in New England. The Ravens played horribly against the Patriots, and it made you realize that there's no way they should have scored 20 points against the Jets, let alone win that game. That loss against the Ravens still hurts.

Luckily for the Jets, though, they came out on top no matter who won the Ravens-Patriots game. A Ravens win would have put the Jets closer to catching the Patriots, but since the Patriots won, the Jets now have the upper hand in the wild card chase. (It's getting to be that time of year, where Wednesdays are going to be Wild Card Scenario days.) It would also help tonight if the Raiders beat the Broncos, but I'm not counting on that. I'm actually looking forward to the game, though, because it's snowing in Denver!

Time to get back to the homework. The Jets are 8-3, they need 10 or 11 wins to be in good postseason shape. We'll be talking about this some more in the coming weeks, but the remaining games are Houston, Pittsburgh, Seattle, New England, Saint Louis. After Seattle got crushed by Buffalo on Sunday, that game and the St. Louis game look a lot less daunting. Hopefully the Jets still have 3 or 4 wins left in them...and hopefully next week marks the return of Chad Pennington.

We'll have your e-mail tomorrow. Oh wait, before I go - I saw on the ESPN crawl that the Jets worked out a contract for Shaun Ellis, so that takes care of one of their big name free agents. That's very good news. I'll try to have more on that tomorrow.

Another quick rundown of my Sunday picks, at 12:50pm Eastern time:

I can't pick against the Jets this week, at Arizona. But I will say this - I'm very nervous. I'm confident in the defense - I think they'll have a field day with the Cardinals offense...but I'm not so sure about the Jets' offense. I expect them to run the ball well...we'll see if that'll be enough to get them a win. The Jets are 3 point favorites - I'll say Jets, 20-10.

Here's the rest of the NFL (I hit both on Thanksgiving):

BAL +7
PHI -7
PIT -10.5
CLE +6
MIN -5.5
TB -2.5
SD +2.5
TEN -2
NO +9.5
SEA -5
SF -1
DEN -11
STL +6

Enjoy the games! I'll be back tonight with a Jets recap.

Real quick, folks, just to get them in, my Thanksgiving Day picks, for entertainment purposes only:

I'll take both favorites - Indy by 9 over the Lions, and the Cowboys, giving three to the Bears. Just because the Colts are playing that well, and the Bears are playing that bad.

I pulled myself out of the doldrums with a big 11-4-1 last week, improving overall to 81-75-4.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

This is tough. The Jets fan in me really wants the Patriots to lose to the Chiefs in this Monday night game, but the no-money-earning teacher in me really wants the $75 bucks I could win in my weekly pool if the Patriots win. I think I'm just going to have to go to bed and check the score in the morning.

Well, here's some cheery news, before we get to this week's mailbag. Curtis Martin suffered a sprain in his knee during Sunday's game in Cleveland, and word out of the New York papers is that Chad Pennington may need season-ending surgery on his shoulder. One thing at a time. First, Martin. He plays through insane amounts of pain, sometimes to his and his team's detriment. So he'd have to be shot in the leg, I think, in order for him to not play - I think it only matters how ineffective he is. And based on his five second-half carries on Sunday, after the injury happened, I think the knee sprain won't make Martin too ineffective - he ran OK after the injury. As for Pennington, this would finish the Jets. With Pennington at quarterback, the Jets have a shot at beating the Steelers, Seahawks, Patriots, and Rams. With Quincy Carter at quarterback, the Jets maybe have a shot at stealing one of those games on defense. And the way Pennington was talking after Sunday's game, Quincy Carter might just be at quarterback.

Pennington says he's sure he'll play again this season, which is a bit reassuring. But before Sunday, it was sounding like there was an outside shot at Pennington being back for the December 5th game versus the Texans. The way it sounds now, that's definitely not going to happen, and it sounds like Pennington will miss at least a full 6 weeks with the injury (it was originally speculated that Pennington might not even miss the 4 weeks of the 4-6 week injury).

Anyway, that's some good news for your Tuesday morning. Let's look at the mailbag:

OK, maybe I should start checking to see if there's mail before I write that line. Because there is none. I'll do mail tomorrow if anyone feels like contributing. Otherwise I'll try to do a look-around the AFC East.

Jets 10, Browns 7

Let's see if I can get back on track this week with daily updates.

A couple of weeks ago, before the Baltimore debacle, I said the Jets' defense would have to start stepping up and win the Jets a couple of games while Chad Pennington was out. On Sunday, the defense didn't exactly win the Jets the game, but they sure put them in a position to win...and the offense almost didn't. There's not much to say about the game in Cleveland other than: the Jets won. They're 7-3, and they won. It doesn't matter that they scored just 10 points, it matters that they won. I feel like it's been more than 2 weeks since they last won...it feels like it's been much longer. But this was a game the Jets needed to win, and they did the job, and there's another game like that coming up next week (in Arizona), and the Jets just need to survive one more week without Pennington. There's an outside chance he'll be back for the Texans game on December 5th. If he's not, we'll worry about that then.

Quincy Carter didn't really lead the Jets to victory in Cleveland. He handed the ball off a lot, and Curtis Martin and LaMont Jordan had fairly effective games. Justin McCareins, though, was the difference. He came back to catch a slightly off-target pass from Carter on third down, then had to dive full out for the first down, and then caught a screen pass and took that in about 10 yards for the Jets' lone touchdown. Then the Jets' defense held the Browns down for the rest of the game. The Jets' defense played OK, but in reality, Kelly Holcombe played a horrible game. Next week, the D needs to step up again and shut down the Cardinals.

After the Cardinals game, the Jets have the Texans, Steelers, Seahawks, Patriots, and Rams. Tough games. But remember this, for all those who think the Jets have played a very soft schedule to this point: you're right, but the Jets have hung with the good teams they've played. The Jets beat the Chargers in week 2, and the Chargers are also 7-3, and the Jets could have beaten the 8-1 Patriots. So for the experts I've heard recently saying the Jets are going to finish 9-7, I say, don't get ahead of yourselves.

I'm not going to get too far ahead of myself, but hopefully the Jets have 9 wins after they play the Texans in 2 weeks. Then, is it unrealistic to think the Jets can split their last four games...or even win three of them? I don't think so...but I'll get into that a little more as the weeks progress. First, the Jets need to beat the Cardinals.

I want to get to the e-mails I haven't even looked at since last week (we'll still do mail call on Tuesday this week as well)...

"Dear Johnnyjets,

In the last 4 weeks, the Jets have lost to New England, beat 1-6 Miami, lost to 2-win Buffalo, and lost to a very solid Ravens team.
Quincy Carter is the QB for at least another week. And still looming in the final 4 weeks of the schedule are teams currently atop their divisions (at Pittsburgh, Seattle, New England, and at St. Louis).
So now to my question: Do Jets fans prefer the George Washington Bridge or one of the many other river crossings in greater New York?
I hope Johnnyjets takes the Lincoln Tunnel. Much safer.
--Dave in Brighton"

Wow, Dave in Brighton, getting smart. I think I addressed Dave's concerns in the paragraphs preceding the e-mail. Thanks for writing, Dave, and I look forward to hearing from you tomorrow.

Now, this:

"Hello Johnboy. Love your show! Thanks for taking my call.

I was wondering, did you know that 'Job then spongy jolts' is an anagram for 'Johnnyjetsblogspot'? It's one of many actually. But, surprisingly, the only anagram for 'Johnnyjets' by itself is 'Jest Johnny.' Interesting, huh?

Moving on... Do you think, in light of his refusal to run a pass play with eight seconds left from the three yard line in a 17-17 game, that Herman Edwards should coach with a dress on for the rest of the season? I do. (And if he wears high heels with that dress, he can use one of them to kick Lamont Jordan in the junk for failing to get that pass out of the end zone in the first half.)

One other question. I asked last week, but you failed to answer: do you wear a green cape?

Thanks. And Go [for a wildcard berth] Jets!

Love Always,
Al Montoya
Ann Arbor, MI"

As always, thanks for writing Al. Yet another week you bring incomparable information to this space. Jest Johnny. I'm not laughing. No, Herman Edwards should not wear a dress. He's a man with a plan...as evidenced by this anagram, formed by the name HERMAN EDWARDS: READ MAN SHREWD

Read that shrewd man. Anyway, our lives have all been affected once again by an Al Montoya e-mail. And, no, I do not wear a green cape. All of the time.

P.S. On a personal note, Sunday was one of the greatest pool days I've ever had. I'm working on one loss in my confidence pool going into Sunday night's Packers-Texans game (where a win by the Texans, even though I picked the Packers, actually works in my favor), and I had a big week in my spread picks for this site. I think I will also win my fantasy football game. And the Jets won. OK - your e-mails in the next posting - write away!

I'll try to get my act together by Sunday night for a Jets recap. For now, here are this week's picks: I am now 70-71-3 on the season after an awful 4-10 last week.

I'll pick the Jets this week, 35-3, because it's so darn unlikely that maybe it will just happen.

NYJ -1
BUF +1
BAL -8
PITT -4
IND -7.5
DET + 7.5
CAR -2.5
JAX - 3.5
TB -7.5
DEN -4
SEA -9.5
SD -4
ATL -2.5
WAS +10.5
GB -3
KC +3

Jets are nearing must-win time. Let's see how they do in Cleveland.

I'm not even sure why I'm still making these picks, because I'm so horrible at it, but I must. So here they are (I went 7-7 last week, and am 66-61-3 overall...so much for putting .500 in the rear-view mirror...and by the way, these are for entertainment purposes only):

The Jets/Ravens game is a pick 'em (I go by the USA Today on-line spreads). I really think the Jets can beat the Ravens. They're not letting the injury to Chad Pennington get them down - the team has faith in Quincy Carter. The Jets' defense is good enough to shut down the Ravens' offense...I expect the Jets' D to step up big-time in the coming weeks. Jets, 17-3.

Pittsburgh is a three-and-a-half point favorite over the Browns, in Cleveland. Is this a letdown game for the Steelers, after handing the Patriots and then the Eagles their respective first losses of the year? Maybe, but the Steelers still win. I'll take Pittsburgh and the points.

Indianapolis is a 9-point favorite over the Texans, in Indy. For some reason, I think the Texans will keep this one close. I'll take Houston.

Tennessee is giving five and a half to the Bears, in Tennessee. The Titans are better than the Giants, and therefore will be able to cover against the Bears. I hope.

In Atlanta, the Falcons are giving four to the Buccaneers. The Falcons have been disappointing at times, and the Bucs have been winning games they shouldn't win lately. I'm taking Tampa plus the points.

Jacksonville is a 3-point favorite over the Lions. Leftwich is out...you know what, I thought up until right now I was going Jaguars, but I'm making an audible. Let's go Lions, plus 3.

Seattle is a 1-point favorite over the Rams. The game's in Saint Louis, but I think the Seahawks will win. Seattle should have won the first matchup between these two teams, but blew a big lead late. It's tough to imagine the Rams losing at home in back-to-back weeks, but I think it's happening. I'd go the over on this one too (50), if I did that sort of thing.

Kansas City is giving three and a half to the Saints, in New Orleans. I think the Chiefs win this game, but just by three. The Saints always find a way to get me, so I'll take them plus three and a half, counterintuitively.

In Washington, the Redskins are three and a half point faves over the Bengals. I take Cincinnati...I keep expecting them to win a game like this....this week they'll do it.

The Packers are 4-point favorites over the Vikings. This one's tough to pick, but since it's in Green Bay, and Randy Moss will not play, I'll take the Packers, -4.

The Giants (UGH - They kill me every week) are 2-point favorites in Arizona. If the Giants don't win this one, it's Eli Manning next week. Giants, minus two.

The 49ers and the Panthers are a pick 'em. I go Panthers. No reason, really...I think the Panthers are less bad.

Sunday night, the Patriots are a 7-point favorite over the Bills. The Pats will probably win, but I think the Bills can keep it close. I'll take Buffalo, plus-7.

On Monday night, the Cowboys are home 'dogs to the Eagles, by six. I think the Eagles will win, but the Cowboys will manage to keep it close. I'll take Dallas plus 6.

Finally, I've been meaning to get to this all week, but I couldn't write. This is a bonus e-mail:

"Dear Johnnyjets,

I know I'm early (it's Wednesday), but the firing/resignation of Dave
Wannstedt got me thinking. From a bettor's perspective, don't you hate
it when a team quits on a coach? There is no way to tell whether Miami
will show up for the rest of the season, and on occasions they do take
their game seriously (after the bye week, perhaps?), there will be
little or no warning.
The same thing happened with the Raiders last year, after Callahan called his team dumb.
I predict it will be nearly impossible to forecast Miami games against
the spread for the remainder of the season. Thoughts?
Dave in Brighton"

Dave, I think my response to your e-mail here is simple. How can you tell the difference between the Dolphins before Wannedstedt was fired and the Dolphins after they've quit on him? In certain instances, I think the point is valid...but in the case of the 2004 Dolphins, they're just plain ol' bad, and I expect them to continue to be bad for the remainder of the season. I'll just keep picking their opponents.

Enjoy the games!

Did you know that if you say "strained shoulder" three times fast, it sounds a whole lot like, "HOLY SHIT I THINK THE JETS ARE IN A WHOLE LOT OF TROUBLE, AND I THINK I MIGHT CRY!!" (A note to the younger readers...I usually refrain from using profanity, mild though it may be, in my postings, but desperate times call for desperate measures.)

Chad Pennington's shoulder injury that I referred to yesterday, when I said he might play next week against Baltimore, is a strained rotator cuff, and Pennington won't play next week against Baltimore. He also won't play the following week at Cleveland. And the week after that, in Arizona, and the week after that, versus Houston, are also in doubt. Pennington is out 2-4 weeks. Happy 6-month-iversary indeed.

So the Jets' decision back in August to sign Quincy Carter, slightly controversial though it may have been, means that Quincy Carter will be the starter for the next couple of weeks, instead of Brooks Bollinger. Carter looked OK against the Bills on Sunday, in limited action...he handed the ball off to Curtis Martin in the end zone, which resulted in a safety, then later led the Jets to a score, hooking up with Santana Moss on a 51-yard touchdown pass on which the defender fell down. Not much of a body of work. However, let's hang our hats on this - Carter did lead the Cowboys to the playoffs last season. My hat's a-hangin' baby.

On the subject of Pennington being hurt, it is e-mail day, so we have this:

"Dear Johnnyjets,

Re: Pennington's shoulder woes. As a Boston resident and talk radio listener, I like to overreact and see doomsday scenarios before I have all the facts, which is why my question this week is:

Was $64 million too much to give a guy who started 29 games and missed 19 in 3 seasons from 2002 to 2004?

Is there any concern among team officials, or by you, the Voice of All Jets Fans Everywhere, that Pennington may be injury-prone through his whole career?

Dave in Brighton"

Dave, my friend, I'm going to trust your numbers, because it's late, and I can't really go looking them up....well, actually, let's do some quick math: 16 games in 2002, 16 in '03, 8 in '04. Total = 40 games. In 2002, Pennington didn't start the first four games, came in relief in the fifth game, and started the rest of the season. So the body of work we're looking at here is really 11+16+8 = 35 games. Pennington missed the first six games of 2003, came in relief in the seventh, so we'll say he missed 7 games that year. So we're looking at a guy who played in 28 of a possible 35 games. If he misses the full four weeks here, he plays in 28 of a possible 39 games.

My point, throwing all these numbers around, is that Pennington is not injury prone, he just got hit badly twice in two years. The broken hand/wrist was an awkward fall, and this hit on Sunday was a situation where he dove (dived?) instead of slid (slided?) and got hit square. I'm not ready to say Pennington is injury-prone yet...and the bobble-head doll on my desk is nodding in agreement as I type this. (If however, the bobble-head is healthier than the real-life version for the third straight year next season, and we're having this conversation again, I might change my mind.) Moral of this story: Pennington is well worth the money.

We also have a cryptic e-mail from our good friend Al Montoya:

"Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm... Hmmmmmmmmmmm...

-Al Montoya
Ann Arbor, Michigan"

Not sure if this is an ode to our favorite television anchor/reporter, or a reference to Pennington's injury. But thanks for writing....oh wait, Al sends us this also:

"Hey there. It's me, Al. Longtime reader, fourth time emailer... I've got a mildly amusing anecdote for you...

Remember last week when you chided me for suggesting that you should have amended your [warped] perspective on the Patriots' win over the Jets? You stressed in your reply that the web site is, "johnNYJETS.blogspot.com," not "johnNEPATS.blogspot.com." Well (get ready for some hilarity...), previous to your reply, I had always read the site's address as "Johnny Jets," as opposed to "John NY Jets."

See, I thought you had essentially dubbed yourself "Johnny Jets," short, no doubt, for "Johnny Jets: Global Protector of All Things New York Jets." (Because, ya know, your name IS John after all. By the way, do you wear a green cape?) Now I realize the error of my ways. Riotous, huh?

See ya.

-Al Montoya
Ann Arbor, MI"

Well, Al, unfunny though your story may be, it raises an interesting point. I think the name of the website can be interpreted in whichever way the reader chooses to read it. I'm fine with it either way. Johnnyjets has a better ring to it than Johnnymets...and I originally started with Johnnymets, intending it to be JohnNYMets...but I didn't want to confuse people with lots of capital letters in the web address, in case that affected the way it needed to be typed in. So, long story short, whichever way you wish. (I do, though, like :Johnny Jets: Global Protector of All Things New York Jets. That's got a nice ring too.)

All right, folks...I'd better get to bed before I strain my rotator cuff with all this typing. Tomorrow I'll recap the AFC East from last weekend.

Bills 22, Jets 17

Who invited the 2003 Jets? A disaster in Buffalo, just like last year. The difference is, this loss doesn't put an end to the Jets' season...it just makes things difficult. How can things be difficult, with the Jets sitting at 6-2, you ask?

For starters, Chad Pennington left the game with a bruised shoulder - apparently he left the game on his own accord, telling Herman Edwards he felt like he was hurting the team more than helping them. Pennington should play next week....but on the chance he doesn't, the Jets' hopes ride on Quincy Carter. And next week begins the rough stretch on the Jets' schedule. Baltimore comes to town, and if the Jets couldn't move the ball against the Bills' defense, imagine the success they'll have against the Ravens' D!! And here's the worst part of the loss to the Bills - it's a division loss. So the Jets are now 3-2 in the division, while the Patriots are 3-0. So unless the Bills can upset New England next Sunday, the Patriots will be sitting pretty atop the AFC East.

Here is probably the most frustrating part of the loss to me. The wind was very bad in Buffalo, and it was supposedly going to wreak havoc with the passing game. But in the first quarter the Jets came out throwing, and moved the ball right down the field. The drive ended with a missed field goal, but later, when the Jets scored their first touchdown, they moved the ball 80 yards, and 74 of those yards were in the air. So, why, I ask you, would the Jets resort to running the ball exclusively in the third quarter? For example, on 3rd and 9, trailing 17-10? Why run!!??!?!? Throw the ball!! So frustrating. I suppose Pennington might have felt like his shoulder was preventing him from throwing in that situation...but still, the Jets weren't moving anywhere on the ground - air it out a bit.

What a horrible afternoon. In case you're wondering, it didn't ruin the six-month-versary...but it sure didn't help things. I need to grade some papers...we'll continue to delve into this disappointment throughout the week. Your e-mails tomorrow too.

Sunday, 1pm, Jets (6-1) at Buffalo (2-5)

The Jets have a real shot at being all alone in first place by the end of Sunday. (More on the Patriots-Rams in a little bit.) Buffalo was the site of the end of the Jets' season last year, and that will be in the forefront of some of the Jets' minds this weekend. (You may remember, the Jets went to Buffalo with a chance to win the rest of their games to make it into the playoffs in Week 14 last season, and laid an absolute egg...Chad Pennington just wasn't sharp all last year after coming back from the injury, and this was the first game that we really saw it. In very cold temperatures, Pennington and the Jets lost, 17-6, beginning and end-of-season losing streak.) I have a feeling the Jets will continue what they started against Miami last week and just blow the Bills out of the water. This one probably won't be as close as the first game between the two teams.

The Jets will most likely be without Wayne Chrebet, who has a back problem, and if that's the case, Jerricho Cotchery will start in his place. The Bills might be without Josh Reed, but that won't really matter. What might matter is there's a chance Troy Vincent will play for the Bills...I think that would be his first action all season. So he might be rusty, but if he's effective, that could be a problem for the Jets. I don't think Lawyer Milloy will play - he also missed the game last month.

The Jets are starting to talk Super Bowl again. Not in a cocky way, but the same way they were talking about it when training camp broke back in August. They're saying anything less than a championship this season would be a disappointment, and they're talking about how they've done what they've needed to do. They know that the toughest part of their schedule is still to come - but you've got to win the games they schedule for you, and the Jets have done that 6 out of 7 times (and hopefully 7 out of 8). Next week, the Jets host Baltimore - and it's all uphill from there. But let's focus on this week for now - the Jets are favored by three in Buffalo. I say, 24-10, Jets.

As for the rest of the schedule - I had my worst picking week by far last week - couple that with the fact that I had my blog entry erased, and last weekend was probably one of the worst of the year for me. (The Jets win was on Monday, so that doesn't count for the weekend.) Anyway, I was just 5-9 last week, 59-54-3 on the season. I need to pull away from the .500 mark, for entertainment purposes:

(Here's a joke I thought of last week, that I hope doesn't offend any of my readers. We just had Jehovah's Witnesses come to the door. That part is not a joke - that really just happened. But here's the joke part - at the school, we had a Halloween parade last Friday, but one of the kids in the class didn't want to participate because his mom felt Halloween was worshipping the devil. Which is fine, whatever. But the other teacher I work with said, 'I've seen that type of thing a lot, usually Jehovah's Witnesses don't celebrate Halloween.' So, sarcastically, I say, 'Yeah, I could see why they don't like Halloween. They're very uncomfortable with knocking on stranger's doors and asking for stuff.' Oh man, am I funny. Just had to share that. OK - onto the picks.)

Philadelphia is a pick-'em at Pittsburgh. The only good thing about my blog being erased last week is that I made a mistake saying Baltimore had a good shot at unseating both the Eagles, then the Patriots, from the ranks of the unbeaten in consecutive weeks. A miscalculation on my part. That would be the position the Steelers are in now. Incredible - both are home games, too. I am sold on the Steelers right now, and am convinced they'll be a problem for whoever they play the rest of the year (earlier this year I kept picking against them because I felt Roethlisberger would lose eventually). Well, I still think the Steelers are better than I've been giving them credit for, but I think the Eagles win a defensive struggle this week to get to 8-0. It'll be close, though, so I'm glad this is a pick-'em.

Detroit is a 3-point favorite over the Redskins, in Detroit. I just feel like if the Lions can beat the Giants in Giants Stadium, they can beat Washington in Detroit. (The Lions also came close to winning in Dallas, but close doesn't count, as we found out with the Jets versus the Patriots.) But I digress. The Lions are the pick, giving 3.

Dallas is a one-point favorite against the Bengals in Cincinnati. Dallas needs a win to get back to .500, and this is a winnable game for them. I'll take Dallas.

The Panthers are giving 7 to the Raiders in Carolina. Neither team is very good, and I don't think one team is better by a touchdown. So I'll take the Raiders getting the points, even though I think the Panthers will probably win.

Miami is a 3-point favorite over Arizona in Miami. Arizona doesn't seem to be able to win on the road, and Miami doesn't seem to be able to win at all. I think Arizona has a better chance at winning on the road than Miami does at all. Arizona, plus the points.

Kansas City is giving three in Tampa Bay. The Chiefs are on a roll, so are the Bucs, but the Chiefs are a better team, I think. I'll take the Chiefs, -3.

The Giants are nine-point favorites over the Bears at the Meadowlands. Interesting few weeks for the Giants - they've played three straight games against NFC North teams, one week removed from playing the Packers. (The Lions are in a similar boat, playing their third straight against NFC East teams. Not that it matters, I just noticed.) I think the Giants win this game, but I don't see them blowing anyone out (not counting the Vikings, who the Giants just seem to own.) So I'll take the Giants to win, but the Bears to cover the nine-point spread, somehow.

Seattle's a 6-and-a-half point favorite over San Francisco. Seattle should be able to win this one in San Fran, by a touchdown.

Another one out west, San Diego hosts New Orleans, and the Chargers are giving six-and-a-half. The Chargers are still streaking, and the Saints always disappoint. So I think the Chargers will cover.

The Patriots are a 2-point favorite over the Rams in St. Louis. I guess coming off a 21-game winning streak the Patriots get the benefit of the doubt, and that's why they're favored...but all that counts right now is that they've lost one game in a row...and I think it's about to become two. Ty Law is out 4-to-6 weeks, and there are rumblings he might miss the rest of the season. Things have broken well for this team so many times in the past that they might be able to win through the Law injury, and the fact that RB Corey Dillon might not play, but at least for this week, I think, they'll lose. The Rams are also 4-0 under Mike Martz in the week following a bye week...not that that makes a huge difference, it's just another stat I like. So I'll take the Rams getting points at home - this one'll be a high scorer. I'd probably also go over the 48 over-under if I were picking those too.

In Denver, the Broncos are six-and-a-half point favorites over the Texans. The Texans have been playing well, and I'm not sure they win this game, but they'll keep it to 3 or 4 points. So I'll take Houston.

Sunday night, in Baltimore, it's Cleveland getting six from the Ravens. The Browns always play the Ravens tough, but with Jamal Lewis coming back this week, I think I like the Ravens.

Monday night's a tough one to pick. The Colts are six point favorites over the Vikings in Indianapolis. Indy's desperate for a win, and the Vikings are coming off a blowout loss at home to the Giants. I think Indy probably wins this game, especially with Randy Moss not likely to play, but I think Minnesota has the guns to keep it close. So I'll take the Vikes, plus the points. The over/under on this game, incidentally, is 58 and a half. That's a high-scorer. I'd probably take under if I were doing that....just so you know. 55.

Enjoy the games - the Jets are on in the New England area this week. You know where to find me if you need me - on the couch from 1-4. Thank goodness it's a 1 o'clock game - my wife seems to think people go out for their six-month wedding anniversaries, so I have to go out Sunday late afternoon. Hopefully it'll be a happy dinner....if the Jets lose, it'll be a miserable half-anni-versary.

Jets 41, Dolphins 14

Well, I was hoping the Jets would get some offense going...I didn't think it would happen this week, though. After a slow, excruciatingly conservative first and most of the second quarter, the Jets finally showed what they can do on offense. (I only wish they had opened it up like this last week - they might still be undefeated...Thaaaaat's right, Al Montoya - I'm "would've" and "could've-ing" again...we'll get to you later.) Chad Pennington threw for only 189 yards, but that's mostly because the Jets didn't throw the ball for the first 27 minutes of the game, nor the last 27 minutes. The big number with Pennington is his 3 touchdowns - for the first time since week one, he threw a touchdown to a wide receiver - and he did it twice! I have a feeling this is the turnaround game for the Jets' offense, which is a good thing, because the tough games are coming up.

Curtis Martin showed the national television audience what he's been showing regional television audiences all season long - that he's friggin' unstoppable. Martin rushed for 115 yards in two and a half quarters of work, including a 25-yard touchdown run where he just exploded down the sideline. Martin left with a bruised leg, but there was also plenty of garbage time (I have a feeling that if the game was close, Martin would have been in there). And in that garbage time, LaMont Jordan once again showed why he's a valuable member of this team: 115 yards and a touchdown for Jordan. He looked great too...it's tough to imagine what the Jets are going to look like next year without Jordan to pick up where Martin leaves off.

Wayne Chrebet dropped Pennington's fourth touchdown pass, but other than that the Jets' receivers had their best night of the season - at least as far as catching passes. Santana Moss had a big 47-yard catch-and-run - his first big play all season. Justin McCareins made a nice play on a slightly overthrown ball by Pennington, and then made an acrobatic play to get across the goal line for the touchdown; he had 56 yards receiving to lead the team. And Chrebet did catch the first touchdown of the game....before dropping one of the best passes I've seen Pennington throw all season.

The Jets' defense played another outstanding game. The only touchdown Miami scored that meant anything (their second TD came with 0:00 left in the game) came when John Abraham was on the bench tending to a dislocated finger. It's really unbelievable what Abraham means to this defense - the pressure he puts on the quarterback improves the whole unit. Jonathan Vilma had 9 tackles, leading the team, and Jon McGraw started in place of Reggie Tongue - McGraw had an interception.

Let's get to the mailbag, since the Monday night game is pushing everything off slightly:
First, an angry e-mail from a Michigan alum, referring to the Jets-Pats recap:

"From johnnyjets.blogspot.com, 10/25: "...The Jets should have won this game. That [Sowell] fumble is what makes this loss so tough. Still, the Jets had a chance to win it late, and didn't come through.... So all in all, the Jets matched up well with the Patriots. Which is what most of us, I think, expected. They should have won, which is what I expected, but I don't think most others thought that..."

I'm getting to this late b/c I am not as dedicated a reader of your site as I should be (and of course now the Patriots' whole season could go in the toilet if their injury situation doesn't improve even though they did it with back-ups all last year, but I digress), but I wanted to chime in on the above commentary from your site...

Those are the comments made by almost every player and fan of almost every team the Patriots beat during their 21 game winning streak. Sorry, but Sowell DID fumble. Brady DID lead the Pats right down the field at the end of the first half. Pennington's pass WAS woefully short and thrown into double coverage on fourth down in the closing minutes. Those are the plays or non-plays that decide games. The Patriots have repeatedly made the late game plays to win games (AND PROVE THEY ARE THE BETTER TEAM) while their opponents have not. I expected a higher appreciation for that from your esteemed web site. For shame!

-Al Montoya
Ann Arbor, MI"

Hey Al, first of all, Monday night - B.J. Askew - 6 carries, 23 yards, and Victor Hobson, 2 tackles. Second of all, it's johnNYJETS.blogspot.com, not johnNEPATS.blogspot.com. I'm here to talk Jets, not to praise the opposition. The Patriots did prove they were the slightly better team last week...but they're not much better. Last year they were much better - not this year. You'll see what I'm talking about on December 26th....when the Jets will NOT make the mistakes that will cost them the game.

I just said I don't praise the opposition...but I will say this. Tom Brady is a class act. I hate to respect an opponent I should hate, but I can't hate this guy. (I fell into this same trap with Peyton Manning a few years ago, but I've learned to dislike him, we'll see if the same thing happens with Brady.) But I happened upon the crappy Boston sports radio station Monday night, and I have to say why, because I hate listening to that station. I was setting my car radio to the sports station so that when I got out of my class, I would be able to hear the Jets game as soon as I turned on the car (I had a class from 7-10pm). Anyway, while I was doing that, they replayed a conversation from earlier Monday morning with Tom Brady on the morning show. He's just a class act - he's always a good interview, and here he is the early morning after a tough loss on the road (the first loss in 22 games), and he's giving good answers to somewhat tough questions. I understand he's under contract to do that sort of thing, but it's not like he's telling these guys that Pam Oliver needs a spanking or anything like that - he's a class act. But so is Chad Pennington.

OK, next e-mail:

"Dear Johnnyjets,
After hearing all this weekend's excitement over Terrell Owens copying Ray Lewis' dance, I was wondering if you ever do a dance in your classroom after accomplishing something good.
For example, when you taught the kids order of operations, did you spike a blackboard eraser on somebody's head? Did you do the worm after teaching them you can't divide by zero? Have you ever copied another teacher's dance, and if so, how did that teacher vow to get back at you?Just wondering,
Dave in Brighton"

Dave - actually, I'm not a fan of showing anyone up. However, if I tell a school that I would never teach at that school ever, and then I end up teaching a lesson against that school, and I teach a good lesson on that big stage, then I might steal one of their teacher's celebratory dances to rub it in a little more. And, no that teacher has never vowed revenge......yet.

So, that's it for tonight. I need to tend to some homework...The Jets are again in a tie for first place in the division at 6-1. Next week, it's at Buffalo. I can't imagine a scenario where the Jets lose that game.

I know no one got to read my original thoughts on Monday night's game between the Jets and the Dolphins, due to the frustrating erasing of my posting....but the whole scene surrounding Monday night's game has changed entirely.

I had written that there was a 2 percent chance the Jets would let the Dolphins pounce, continue the momentum they picked up by beating the Rams last week, and fall victim to an upset. And I said there was a 97 percent chance the Jets would beat the Dolphins soundly. (I also said there was a 1 percent chance Dan Marino and Ricky Williams would rejoin the team and lead them to victory.)

Well, now that the Steelers beat the Patriots, I think the Jets will be inspired. It didn't seem likely that the Patriots would lose anytime soon after they beat the Jets last week, but now, all of a sudden, a win moves the Jets back into a first place tie. So there is NO chance the Jets will let down Monday night, and I think I'll change my original pick - I had picked the Jets, 24-17. I think I'm upping that in both directions, let's go Jets, 31-10. Are you ready for some football!??!

Patriots 13, Jets 7

I'm not really sure how to go about writing about a loss. Hasn't happened until now. I've been spoiled so far, only having to write about wins.

I think we have a better idea after Sunday of where the Jets are. They are a very good team, perhaps not good enough to get to the Super Bowl right now, but a very good team. And, I think, the Jets are a lot more like the Patriots than I thought. Both teams are very similar defensively. I thought the defenses were weak, letting each other's offense drive up and down the field in the first half...but when it mattered, both defenses stepped up big time.

I can't get Jerald Sowell's fumble out of my head. The Jets should have won this game. That fumble is what makes this loss so tough. Still, the Jets had a chance to win it late, and didn't come through. That's the thing about this team, and I've mentioned it before - they always have a chance. Chad Pennington always gives the Jets a shot to win the game. He made a couple of bad passes on that final drive, but, who knows, if some things broke the Jets way earlier in the game, Pennington might have been in a position where he could have been running out the clock later on.

I'm starting to ramble a bit here. Let's go sequentially, in case you missed the game. First drive, Patriots kick a field goal. The defense bent, but didn't break. The Jets' first drive, they came all the way down the field, were on the verge of scoring, and Sowell dropped the ball around the five yard line. The Patriots came back and kicked a field goal. With about a minute and a half left in the first half, Pennington ran the ball into the end zone on a patented play-fake, giving the Jets a 7-6 lead. Then Tom Brady came back down the field, and found David Patten in the end zone for a 13-7 halftime lead. There would be no more scoring, and it's a shame the Jets only rushed three defenders, because Brady had about 30 seconds to find someone in the end zone. A man in his face could have forced a throwaway, and a field goal, and perhaps a different outcome.

The Jets had a few chances later on, but some dropped passes, and a couple of misfires by Pennington on the very last drive added up to a Patriots win. I'm going to take a little bit of issue with some of the playcalls in the third quarter. In a couple of instances the Jets kept running the ball and going nowhere when a pass mixed in might have moved the ball downfield. I think there were a couple of three and outs where the Jets ran three straight times. Wayne Chrebet only had one catch on the day, just FYI. And I think Santana Moss was pretty unsure of his hamstring. The Jets used him on a couple of fake reverses, once on a real reverse, and in my mind, I think they only threw his way twice. One pass was off his fingertips (he should have had it), and another was, I think, over the middle, and it wasn't the greatest throw. But my theory is that Moss couldn't sell his patterns too well, because of his leg. We'll see how he is next week. Actually, when Pennington underthrew Chrebet on the Jets' last play of the game, Moss was wide open shorter, but still past the first down marker. Oh well.

Justin McCareins had his biggest game as a Jet. I think the Jets tried to exploit his matchup with Asante Samuel, and they did a good job of it, for the most part. McCareins looked shaky at times, though - maybe it was the wet ball, maybe it was just me. But I'll tell you where he really looks shaky - and that's returning punts. McCareins had one really good punt return, the rest were, "Just make a fair catch, and hold on. Don't drop it!!" types of punt returns.

So all in all, the Jets matched up well with the Patriots. Which is what most of us, I think, expected. They should have won, which is what I expected, but I don't think most others thought that...and by 'should have', I mean the Sowell fumble - it wasn't a forced fumble, he just dropped it. Looking at the Jets schedule, the Jets have Miami, Buffalo, Baltimore, Cleveland, and Arizona coming up. All of those games are very winnable, with just Baltimore presenting another measuring stick. The Jets need to pile up wins against those teams, because after that, it's December, and the Jets will have to face Houston, Pittsburgh, Seattle, the Patriots, and the Rams. Not a tough schedule this year, which basically means, win the games you're supposed to win, and get into the playoffs. Hopefully by that second game with New England, the Jets will figure out a way to beat the Pats, and hopefully it'll be another game with first place on the line.

Before I wrap up, here's the Patriots' remaining schedule: at Pittsburgh, at Saint Louis, Buffalo, at Kansas City, Baltimore, at Cleveland, Cincinnati, at Miami, at Jets, and San Francisco. That schedule matches up pretty well with what the Jets have left. And looking at their opponents, I don't know which of those teams will beat the Patriots. It sure would be wild if the Patriots come into that Week 16 matchup with the Jets with a perfect season on the line...but now we're getting a little ahead of ourselves.

The Jets have the Dolphins next week, on Monday night. Hopefully on their way to 6-1. It would be bad news if the Jets take this Patriots loss hard, and drop one at home against Miami. Your e-mails tomorrow....Send 'em on in: johnnyjetsmail@yahoo.com.

Sunday, 4pm, Jets (5-0) at Patriots (5-0) - Gillette Stadium

I've been accused of being a homer. A person who roots blindly for his team, no matter what the situation. A person who always thinks his team is going to win, despite all evidence that seemingly points to the contrary. And all that has nothing to do with why I'm picking the Jets to beat the Patriots this weekend. The reason I'm picking the Jets to beat the Patriots this weekend is because the Jets have played the Patriots very well during New England's recent stretch of dominance, and if anyone is going to put an end to this winning streak, it's going to be the Jets. This weekend. I'm almost positive of it.

FYI, Jets fans, good article in this week's Sports Illustrated about the relationship between Chad Pennington and Herman Edwards. Two of my favorite men in the whole universe. And it is because of these two men that the Jets will find a way to beat the Patriots. Throw in a little Curtis Martin, and that's like a bonus. I've previewed this game all week - there's not much else for me to say about it. I'll keep quiet until Sunday...but I'll end with this: the Patriots are favored by six points over the Jets. That's way too much. I'm glad the Jets are underdogs by that much, and that not a lot of people are picking the Jets this weekend, from what I've seen. That can only help matters. I'm taking the Jets, 24-21. It's going to be a close one, but the Jets will pull through.

Here are the rest of my picks for this weekend, for entertainment purposes only, of course (I went 9-5 last week, a strong showing, but nothing compared to the 13-1 posted by Dave from Brighton...nice work Dave. Perhaps next year in this space we can compete against one another. We'll have to talk. Have your person call my person. Anyway, I'm 47-39-2 on the season.):

In Baltimore, the Ravens are a 5-and-a-half point favorite over the Bills. I haven't liked picking the Ravens much all season, but I have a feeling this one will be all Baltimore.

The Giants are home to the Lions, and New York is favored by six-and-a-half points. That seems like a big spread to me, considering we're talking about the Giants. I've been impressed by them so far this season, and I think they'll win, but I don't think the Giants will cover. I'll take the Lions plus the points.

Philadelphia's a 7-point favorite over the Browns in Cleveland. The only reason this might be kept close is because it's in Cleveland, but the Eagles are looking really good right now. I'll take the Eagles.

The Colts are a 9-point favorite over the Jaguars. Jacksonville kept themselves alive as contenders in my eyes last week...I'll take them plus the points in Indy to stay competitive.

The Vikings are giving six-and-a-half points to the Titans in Minnesota. Tennessee already pulled off an upset (or at least an upset in my eyes) at an NFC North opponent this year when they blew out Green Bay in Green Bay. I don't think it'll happen again, and Minnesota is a lot better than Green Bay right now. The Vikings are my pick.

Carolina is a 3-point favorite over San Diego in Carolina. I'm not sure why. I think San Diego is playing a lot better football right now than the Panthers. I'm taking the Chargers, getting points.

The Rams are a 6-point favorite over the Dolphins, in Miami. There's a slight chance the Dolphins will pull off this upset, since St. Louis is on the road. I don't know why I think that, I just feel it in my bones. But if I were putting money on the game, I'd take the Rams. So that's what I'll do here. Rams, -6.

Tampa Bay is a 7-point favorite over Chicago. This game's in Tampa, and it's probably the worst game of the week. Not probably, definitely. I'll take the Bears.

The Chiefs are a 3-and-a-half point favorite over Atlanta. The game's in Kansas City, but the Chiefs are not better than the Falcons. At least, I don't think they are. I'm taking the Falcons, getting points.

The Cowboys are reeling, and they're underdogs this week. Dallas gets three-and-a-half from the Packers in Green Bay. I'm taking the Packers. I think they're recovering from their recent struggles...Dallas has some recovering to do still.

In Arizona, the Cardinals are getting six-and-a-half from the Seahawks. Two losses in a row for Seattle. They'll put an end to that in emphatic fashion against Arizona. I'll take Seattle.

Oakland is home to New Orleans on Sunday night. The Raiders are favored by three points. Actually, this is the last game listed on the list, but I wonder if there's a Sunday night game this week opposite Game 2 of the World Series. Oh well, this might be a 4 o'clocker. Either way, the Raiders are favored...I'll take the Saints, getting points.

Monday night (for sure), the Broncos are giving six to the Bengals. Denver should run all over Cincy. I'll take the Broncos.

Enjoy the weekend - World Series and Football! And check out johnnymets.blogspot.com for an update there. I'll try to keep updating that site for the World Series.

The following is an open letter-style warning to Red Sox fans, wherever and whoever you are:

Dear Red Sox Nation,

Congratulations on beating the Yankees. The historic accomplishment by your Boston Red Sox is certainly worth being proud of - the Sox did what no other team in baseball history has done. It's really unbelievable when you think that of all the times for a team to come back from a 3-0 series deficit, it happens now, against the New York Yankees, after a 19-8 loss. Just unbelievable. Really.

But be careful. I can't tell you how many times I heard, from many different people, on Wednesday night, that "THE CURSE IS OVER!! THERE IS NO MORE CURSE OF THE BAMBINO!!" There's a curse all right. And it remains to be seen whether or not this curse has indeed been beaten.

Now, I know how silly it seems for a rational human being to believe in a curse. 1978: The Yankees were just playing better baseball, and Bucky Dent got a pitch to hit. 1986: I didn't believe Bill Buckner was the byproduct of a curse. Just a bad luck play. Besides, as I tell everyone I know, the game was already tied when the ball went through Buckner's legs, and who knows what would have happened in extra innings? Maybe the Sox would have won. (Of course, the Mets won that World Series, and there is your New York Mets connection to this story.) That losing streak stemming from the World Series in 1986 continuing into the 1995 post-season - just more bad luck. It wasn't like Sox fans were being teased with close calls - the Sox were getting swept in those series...just not playing great playoff baseball, I guessed.

Then came last year. You know the story. 5 outs away. Aaron Boone. I became a believer in the Curse of the Bambino. 1946? 1975? 1978? 1986? 1988-1995? I've reconsidered - those are all byproducts of a curse.

Which brings me back to my original argument - all you Red Sox fans who believe the curse has been broken. The curse has nothing to do with beating the Yankees. Sure, beating the Yankees after trailing the series 3 games to none, and winning Game 7 at Yankee Stadium may be the cure to the curse, but the curse is that the Red Sox haven't won a WORLD SERIES since 1918. Not that they haven't been able to beat the Yankees (that's just been a large part of the curse). The Yankees had nothing to do with "Pesky Holding the Ball in '46" or "Game 6 (Bill Buckner)" (and the ensuing 1986 Game 7, by the way).

So celebrate. Celebrate an American League Pennant. But just remember - an American League Pennant does not equal an end to the curse. I remember a dramatic, come-from-behind ALCS win by the Red Sox in 1986 that did not lead to a World Championship. It led to a situation where the Sox were one out away from a Championship (2 outs in the top of the tenth, with a 2-run lead)...but then the curse kicked in. This sure has been a dramatic run, but the Curse has been around way too long to not make another appearance. For the sake of all my friends in Red Sox Nation, I hope it doesn't. But I, for one, am recommending you take precautions. It sure is nice to beat the Yankees...but World Champion sounds a lot better than American League Champion.

Good luck in the World Series.
Johnnymets.blogspot.com

This is the time of the week where I devote an article to the opposing team. But we all know plenty about the 5-0 New England Patriots, winners of 20 games in a row, winners of two of the last three Super Bowl championships, etc., etc. So we'll just continue my week-long preview of the big game.

Incidentally, some good stats in the New York Daily News on Wednesday. Something I forgot, partly because I stopped keeping track of this at the end of last year, when Pennington started to pitch poorly: Chad Pennington, in his career, has thrown 31 touchdown passes and no interceptions in the red zone. That's my favorite stat ever. I hope he keeps it up. I think Pennington threw an interception inside the 25 against the Pats last year (one of five on the night) that was close to breaking that perfect streak, but the fact remains, he's perfect. The Patriots could challenge that streak...but again, I hope it stays alive.

Another good stat - the Jets are the last team to beat the Patriots in New England. In December, 2002, the Jets beat the Pats 31-17. It was an absolute butt-kicking, if you remember. I think it was a Sunday night, and Tom Brady had one of his worst games - the Jets beat him up pretty good, en route to the division title. Just FYI. It's not impossible for the Jets to win in New England. And another note - Curtis Martin always plays well against his former team. Especially considering he's having such a great year to begin with.

I hate to shortchange another article, but I have lots of homework this week, and there is another New England-New York game I should turn my attention to tonight. If time permits, and I'm not exhausted at the end of the night, johnnymets.blogspot.com might feature a recap of Game 7 of the ALCS.

There were some website problems last night, contributing to no posting this morning. Sorry about that. There were also no e-mails to talk about, so I had nothing to post from the mailbag.

This is supposed to be an AFC East preview, but really, do we need to look at the entire division? The Bills are 1-4, the Dolphins are 0-6, and the Jets are playing the Patriots this week. I think we all know that this whole week is an AFC East weekly preview, specifically, Jets-Patriots.

I talked sometime last week about how similar Chad Pennington and Tom Brady are in their playing styles. Neither one consistently lights up the stat sheet, although Brady will have a big game more often than Pennington. Look at their stats so far this year, though:

Brady: 84/143 (58.7%), 1159 yds., 10 TD-5 INT, 93.5 rating
Pennington: 107-152 (70.4%), 1151 yds., 5 TD-2 INT, 97.8 rating

Both are very efficient, as evidenced by their ratings. Both are accurate, as evidenced by their completion percentages (I actually only threw that in there because Pennington is on a record pace in that category). But both are smack dab in the middle of the pack in yardage. Daunte Culpepper leads the league in most categories - 1766 yds., 18 TD-3 INT, 72.2 completion percentage - just FYI. Daunte Culpepper produces Chad Pennington's numbers in one possession. Oops - I think he just threw for another touchdown.

Another point I want to bring up before I go back to doing my homework is that during the Patriots' 20-game winning streak, they only beat the Jets once. That could be a point of pride for the Jets (just don't tell them that if you extend the Patriots to winning 21 of their last 22 games, that 21st game would be the Jets during last year's 0-4 start). Did that stat make sense? I'm not sure. But it would be nice for the Jets to be able to show up just once in the winning streak archives, as opposed to the other members of the division (I think the Dolphins will end up on there three times...if not more if the Jets don't win on Sunday). But it would be especially nice for the Jets to be known as the team to break the streak.

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.