WORTH IT?

The time has come to ask the question that has been on the mind of Jets fans since August - Was it worth it to get Brett Favre from the Green Bay Packers for the 2008 NFL season?
Favre ended up costing the Jets:

1) A conditional fourth round pick.
1a) Since he played in 50 percent of the plays this season, the pick jumped to a third-round selection.
(Had the Jets made the playoffs, since Favre played in 70 percent of the Jets plays, it would have become a second-rounder, a first-rounder if Favre took the Jets to the Super Bowl.)
-And since it is now a third-round selection, the Jets get a Packers seventh-round pick in 2010.

2) A head coach.

3) Probably at least one season once Favre decides to retire, since the Jets have no one ready to take the reins.

The Favre trade won't go down in history as one of the worst trades of all time - the Jets only gave up a third-round pick (if I have the correct info) for a future Hall of Famer.

It's the more intangible stuff surrounding Favre that makes one really question this trade.

I'm willing to bet the rumors that Favre didn't like playing for Eric Mangini (he named his son for Brett Favre - what more would Favre want?) were a big factor in Mangini being fired a day after the season ended. I bet it rubbed Favre the wrong way that he was made to run a lap for a transgression (I forget what it was - but I remember that it was lead-story news, that Favre had to run a punishment lap in Jets camp) when he first arrived. And now the Jets are without a coach, and entering a transition stage. Mangini could very well be looking for a job anyway had he not had Favre at quarterback this year - but with the firing of the coach seeming to link so closely to Favre's ineffectiveness this past month, this is a strike against trading for Favre.

Then comes the question always surrounding Favre - when will he retire? People close to the Jets seem to want him to come back (and perhaps that's why Mangini is no longer the coach), because the Jets have no one to take over at quarterback if Favre goes. So a lot depends on this MRI that Favre had the day after the season ended - if he's healthy enough, I have to believe he'll be back next year. So really, the Jets will be getting two years out of Favre, hopefully a better year, in which case the jury remains out on the Favre trade.

If Favre decides to retire, comes back with a shoulder injury, or in any way strings the Jets along in his retirement decision, it becomes a terrible, terrible trade, which sets the Jets back a couple of years in both the quarterback and head coaching positions.

Where do I stand right now? Well, I want to make this clear - I do not think the Jets would have had the kind of success the Dolphins did this year, or even that they did (9-7 is still a rare Jets winning season), had Chad Pennington been the Jets quarterback. Pennington probably would have been hurt again. The one big difference between Pennington this year and last is that he had adequate protection - something that Favre did not have at the beginning of this year. Favre is tougher than Pennington - he absorbed the hits better (or maybe not - the MRI results may let us know that). So while I love Pennington, I'm not going to sit here and say that the Jets came up short on this Favre deal because look at what Pennington did with Miami. I said it at the time - it was best for both parties to part ways when they did.

And I'll add this - I was excited when Brett Favre came to the Jets. I wasn't looking forward to the NFL season with my usual zeal this year, until the Favre trade happened. And he came through for 3 months, giving Jets fans a lot of excitement. Problem is, the season is four months long. Five if your team is one that makes the playoffs, and the bottom line is that the Jets did not do that.

So I'm not ready to say the Favre trade was a disaster. But it certainly hasn't been a success. And depending on what happens this off-season, it could head towards disaster more quickly than it emerges as a success.

NFL WEEK 17 RECAP

The 2008 NFL season is over.

Congratulations to Chad Pennington on winning the AFC East with the Miami Dolphins. I was reminded watching the game of the Jets' last division championship, which they clinched on the final day of the 2002 season, when Pennington beat the Packers (led by quarterback Brett Favre) at the Meadowlands. I thought that was kind of funny. Anyway, it couldn't happen to a better guy. Of course, Pennington handled it with class...though I wouldn't have blamed him if he had flipped off the crowd on his way off the field. I hope he wins the Super Bowl.

Before we get to the playoffs this week, though, a look at the week's final season:

BEST GAME OF WEEK 17: A couple of games came down to a final field goal - but all involved teams that had most everything wrapped up. I guess the Panthers-Saints goes as the best, because the Panthers earned themselves a bye with the win, after the Saints came back in a huge way in the game, and Carolina still managed to pull off a last-second win.

BEST PERFORMANCE OF WEEK 17: The Ravens went out and took care of business - I'll give the nod to either Joe Flacco or Le'Ron McClain - Flacco had 297 yards passing, McClain had 70 yards rushing and scored twice.

WORST PERFORMANCE OF WEEK 17: The Dallas Cowboys laid an absolute egg against the Eagles with everything on the line. (The Broncos didn't play much better controlling their own destiny, nor did the Buccaneers, but the Cowboys were the worst.) The Eagles did a nice job, but the Cowboys did worse than the Eagles did well.

BEST GAME IN PLAYOFFS: Next week I think the best matchup might be Eagles-Vikings, though there's something intriguing about that Chargers-Colts game too. I think the Chargers have the potential to be the Colts of two years ago - a very average regular season, getting hot at the right time and making their championship run. This is the same team, after all, that has been a playoff threat then disappointment in recent years - maybe this is the year they turn it around. Not that I want them to...but it might happen.

BEST PERFORMANCE PREDICTED IN PLAYOFFS: There's not much here to predict - this prediction stuff is all over (though I will pick playoff games again starting Friday/Saturday). I will say this though - I'm in a playoff player pool, where you pick players with the hope that they get lots of points and go deep into the playoffs. My friend who I'm doing it with and I were talking about who would be a good quarterback pick, because there's really no obvious choice, the way Kurt Warner has fallen apart and with no other clear cut great quarterback out there this year. It occurred to me this weekend that Matt Ryan might be the choice - because I bet Atlanta upsets Arizona next week, and he puts up good numbers.
-Last Week: I said a 24-10 win by the Dolphins (off by 7 points there), on a 19-23, 279-yard day, 1 throwing, 1 rushing touchdown for Chad Pennington. He was 22-30 for 200 yards and 2 touchdowns. Just another solid Pennington day...and my prediction was close enough for me.

**UPDATE** - Eric Mangini has just been fired by the Jets. I would have fired him last week, after the Seahawks loss, but that was totally reactive. After what I read about Woody Johnson (Jets owner) this morning, I suspect that this was a reactionary move. Maybe they should have taken a week to cool off. I don't love the idea of starting over with a new coach. I just hope a replacement is named quickly...and I hope the other reports recently that Brett Favre did not like playing for Mangini did not factor into this decision.

So here we are again, the Jets looking for another head coach. Same old Jets.

HYPOCRITICAL

I am not cut out of the cloth you need to be cut out of to be a coach in the NFL. I'm also not cut out of the cloth you need to be cut out of to be coached by the people who coach in the NFL.

So maybe I'm not the best person in the world to comment on this situation. But it's kind of got me riled up, so I'm going to.

In today's New York Daily News, Eric Mangini is quoted a few times criticizing Jets TE Dustin Keller. His slowdown in production has coincided with the Jets' tailspin the past month. So, yes, Keller could be in a position to be criticized...but that seems unfair to me.

At least Keller has showed up for most of this season. Jerricho Cotchery hasn't been a factor since Week 3. Laveranues Coles hasn't done much all year either. And none of those people can be any kind of a factor without production from their quarterback, Brett Favre.

So sure, criticize the rookie. Say that this isn't bowl season he's prepping for, that the NFL is 17 weeks long...longer, if you make the playoffs. But spread the criticism around to others who deserve it. And don't forget to look in the mirror. Because this entire team was not prepared to play 17 weeks - they played a 12-week season. And that begins and ends with the head coach - not a rookie tight end.

I SUPPOSE IT COULD BE WORSE...

The NFL certainly provides plenty of fodder for someone looking to put in perspective their team failing to make the playoffs (I am aware it isn't official that the Jets aren't in...but it might as well be...). So I present to you a list:

At Least:


1) Laveranues Coles didn't shoot himself in the leg and then have David Harris try to cover the whole thing up.

2) Then later find out that Coles was uninsured when he had a traffic accident in the off-season.

3) Shaun Ellis didn't punch Brett Favre in the weight room.

4) There is no such thing around the Jets as "Mustache Monday".

5) Eric Mangini's children are too young to have columnists question their decisions about who they married.

6) A slew of Jets wasn't suspended for using a banned substance hidden in another substance. Of course...there was that one instance.

7) They're not the Oakland Raiders.


The Jets do have their own problems, coaching and off-the-field (both involving one Shaun Ellis). But looking at the landscape of the league, those are a little more run-of-the-mill than the things going on elsewhere.

I THINK I MAY HATE THE JETS

I'm so mad right now. Problem is, I don't know who I'm mad at.

I don't know if I'm mad at myself because I saw this coming for weeks, and I didn't let myself believe the Jets would take a page from the Mets' end-of-season playbook and take a nosedive. I knew for a long time everything would come down to that last game of the season against Miami, but I'm mad for never thinking that it would be Miami who would be in the driver's seat when that game came along.

I'm mad at Eric Mangini for playing for field position early in the fourth quarter when he could have kicked a field goal and for doing the exact opposite later in the game, playing with awful field position. And for letting his team imitate the 1994 Jets in terms of collapses.

I'm mad at Brett Favre for being so old and wearing down as the season has gone on. It's no coincidence that he's questioning his ability to stay in the game and whether he's too old and the Jets look like a team that's out there sleepwalking through their final month.

Most of all, though, I'm mad at the franchise. I feel like a little kid - I just want to kick them in the shins and yell, "I hate you I hate you I hate you". I feel like I'm wasting so much energy on these teams for nothing in return.

I hate that the Jets are taking 10+ years off of my dad's priority on their season ticket list.

I hate that the Jets have never had their own stadium.

I hate that the Jets turned their back on one of their most successful quarterbacks ever and he's going to lead his new team to the playoffs on the field against the Jets.

I'm feeling very angry right now, and I don't want to write anything I may regret. It's hard to say that after 30 years I'm just going to stop rooting for the Jets forever.

So it's not a permanent divorce...yet. But we're taking a break. Next week, I'm a Chad Pennington fan. I'm flat-out rooting against the Jets. I'm not proud of it, but I feel like I have to do it.

First of all, I want to see Pennington do well.

Secondly, the Jets don't deserve the playoffs.

And lastly, if they made the playoffs, they wouldn't win anyway. At least with Pennington, a team has a chance.

When the season is over and I've had a chance to cool down, we'll see where things stand. But I'll tell you this - I'm not looking forward to an off-season of Brett Favre stringing the Jets along, only to look like he's washed up when the season gets into its late stages. I feel like he's already set the franchise back a couple of years. If he hangs around any longer they'll be going backwards even more.

I know this - I don't think I could make it through an NFL season without a team to root for. So I don't think I'll be totally jumping ship on the Jets. But we're certainly cooling things down for a while. Starting in Week 17.

CALLED TO THE HALL

I have lots of problems with lots of things. Trouble is, with some of these things, here's the way my mind works:
1) acknowledge problem
2) obsess over how troubling the problem is
3) move onto another problem to obsess over

Rarely does 2a) happen, but in this case it has. 2a) is this: Think of solution to problem, publish it on blog, and solve problem.

Here's what I've solved.

The problem is election into the baseball Hall of Fame. I have a big problem with the fact that a guy is not a Hall of Famer one year (maybe on his own merit, maybe in comparison to the people he's up for election with in a given year), and then in succeeding years, he gets closer and closer and closer to election, until one January day he gets the call and suddenly, he's a Hall of Famer! (Two things - I realize this system worked for Hall of Famer Gary Carter, but it's flawed to me, no matter which person I idolize benefits. Also, I realize that this is not the only problem with the system, but it's the only one I'm solving.)

Now, this is big news up by me these days because of Jim Rice, and how close he has gotten this year, and how likely it is that he will get in next year, after 15 years of eligibility (I think I have that right....I'm going sans looking up information here). (Also note that this is Jim Rice, pictured below. He's the Red Sox player about to be tagged out at home by Gary Carter in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series.).

What makes Rice a Hall of Famer now, after all these years, when he barely got 30% of the vote his first few times out? (Actually, with Rice, it's quite simple - the media are lording it over him that they control his Hall of Fame fate, because he was a downright jerk to them when he was playing. Since the media always gets the last laugh [you listening, Roger Clemens?], and he didn't stay on their good side, he's paying the price.)

My solution to this whole thing - wait more than 5 years on marginal candidates before you vote. Maybe give it ten years, and only leave them on the ballot for five years total. This way:

1) We're not subjected to year after year of voting, where a guy inches closer and closer and finally makes it.
2) A player, instead of campaigning and trying to win votes after his first year of eligibility and seeing how many more votes he needs, can spend 10 years building the case for candidacy before anyone votes at all.
3) A player like Jim Rice, who ticked off the writers, can have a longer cooling-off period (but, really, when it comes down to the media, they have long memories, and will hold the grudge no matter what).
4) With a player who is a lock for the Hall of Fame, the commissioner can step in and do something positive for the sport - waive the waiting period, or declare a 5-year waiting period, and that player can get in sooner.

I just thought I'd weigh in - it's rare that I can complain about something and offer some ideas to make it better. So I'm taking advantage of that opportunity.

AN E-MAIL: Thanks to Rob in New Jersey, who heard my desperate plea for e-mail and answered...in reference to my post last week about the Mangini cell phone ads:

"I was going to post a comment, but I didn't feel like taking the time to set up a log-in. Plus, I could tell you were jonesin' for an email to this address.

Re: Magini's Razr phone commercials... It also took me several viewing before I got the point.

Even though I agree with your take on the ads, allow me to pose an alternate theory: could it be that everyone in the city with a stake in Jets' outcomes or with things that cause angst is chucking his phone in frustration and they just end with Mangini showing his particular brand of frustration as a way of illustrating why the phones are turning up embedded in walls? In other words, could they be trying to make us think that Razrs are getting embedded in walls all over the place as people have things - Jets related or not - digust them? Hmmmm..."

If you want to meet someone who has obsessed over this longer and given it more thought than I, meet Rob. I think he's right - that's probably where all of the phones came from. It never seemed right that Mangini had about twenty phones and was chucking them into things all over Jersey. Thanks for making sense of that, Rob.

That said, I think we can all agree that if that is Belichick's voice at the end of the commercial (and the more I hear it now, the more I think it is), it's gotta be driving him nuts that he's tagging the end of a commercial starring Eric Mangini.

CAN IT BE?

If you've watched the NFL at all this season, you've seen the ad. If you're anything like me, it took you about 10 times seeing it (from the beginning of the season until about mid-season) to realize what was going on. It's the Motorola Razr ad, in which Eric Mangini is the guy flinging his phone around in anger, and since it's such a sleek phone, it embeds itself into whatever it was thrown at - a car, a ceiling fan, a boat. (Like the wall in the picture at the top left, but that's not from the same commercial.)

Part of what I want to comment on is the fact that this commercial portrays Mangini as the coach of a team that didn't play well, presumabely more than once, since these phone have been thrown so many different places. The commercial has been airing since the beginning of the season, with the Jets coming off a playoff appearance - no one involved with this commercial, I'm sure, saw the 4-win season coming. So it was a little prescient, and I'm sure if Mangini had any inkling that his team would be this bad this year, he wouldn't have done this commercial.

But that's not my main comment. After seeing the commercial for about the 100th time in the past couple of weeks, and thinking for about the 97th time, "Why would they use Eric Mangini in this commercial?", I heard the tagline for Motorola. It's a voiceover, and the voice they use sounds an awful lot like......Bill Belichick. Now, I don't know if it's him or not...I'll leave that to more inquisitive minds, like naturalbl0g. Part of it is likely - NFL coaches have a deal with Motorola, they wear their headsets and all, and if Eric Mangini is in a commercial, why not Belichick? But part of it is also unlikely - I don't think Belichick would do endorsements. But if it is him - interesting that his voice-over is the tag on a commercial starring Eric Mangini, no? Especially this year, with the spy-gate follow-up to "The Hug" of last year.

This isn't a major deal - it's just something I've been meaning to write about for a couple of weeks. And I thought now was a good time.

PLAYOFFS: I'll comment on the playoffs Sunday night as my last act before resuming a normal school schedule. Thanks to everyone who is participating in the playoff picks.

NOT HOW, BUT HOW MANY?

The question on everyone's mind this weekend is not "How will the Patriots beat the Jets?", but "How many points will they score?" I'm here to tell you that I think the question should be, "How can the Jets beat the Patriots?", because they can, and they will, hand New England their first loss on Sunday afternoon.

And I'm Johnnymets' common sense, and I'm here to tell you the way it's really going to be this weekend.

Everyone's talking about how fired up the Patriots are going to be this weekend because of the Jets, and how they "wronged" the Patriots by revealing them as cheaters to the outside world. Eric Mangini broke some unwritten rule about betraying trust, so the Patriots are going to show the Jets what's what and who's who and all that. I say, the Jets will be fired up! You're 3-10. You have a chance to re-write the history books this weekend. If there's ever a game you're going to want to go out and prove yourselves in, this is the one!! How can you not be fired up?! You didn't disrespect the Patriots by breaking an unwritten rule - they're disrespecting you with all this talk about running up the score on you!!!!!

The Patriots never said they were going to run up the score. It's been the media and fans who are talking about the Patriots putting up 70 points on the Jets. The Patriots have just gone about their business. You'd better believe, though, that they have had this game circled on their calendars for a long time. They feel like the Jets disrespected them. And no team is better at turning disrespect into a beating on the field than the Patriots.

What about the running game? When was the last time the Patriots ran the ball well? October? And they couldn't stop Willis McGahee a couple of weeks ago. Thomas Jones will run up and down on that team. They've been exposed the past couple of weeks, and that works to the Jets advantage.

hahahaha. Thomas Jones? What has he done this year? One rushing touchdown??? That's only one more than I have. The Jets haven't had as ineffective a red zone runner since Blair Thomas. And the Patriots will be just fine running the ball against the joke that is the Jets' defense. Even if they don't....they seem to be doing OK throwing the ball.

My only hope is that the Jets don't open their mouths this week. Sure, you might say this trash-talking stuff means nothing once the game starts, but the Jets don't need to give the Patriots any incentives. They need to treat this week like business as usual, and then let their actions on the field Sunday speak for them.

The Jets don't need to say anything else to get the Patriots fired up. They did their damage in Week 1 - which, by the way, the Patriots won, 38-14. Pretty handily, I'd say. I suspect the only thing the Jets' actions will be saying on Sunday is "We are an inferior football team".

Finally, I need this Jets win. It's tough enough as it is living here in New England as a Jets fan, while the Jets are awful, without the Patriots going undefeated. I don't need that to continue. Plus, my fantasy football season is over...I need this game to give me one highlight of this football season.

Maybe if you used me once in a while when you made your picks, you wouldn't be having such an awful football season. You keep using that stupid heart of yours. Nice work drafting Matt Leinart in the fantasy league this year, by the way. How has that worked out? Marvin Harrison too?

This isn't about my fantasy league. We don't need to drag that out now.

OK. Right. So I shouldn't mention that I knew you were going to lose to your brother, even though he doesn't even care, barely checks his team, and beat you soundly in a must-win situation for you, when he was already out of playoff contention.

There's no need to mention that.

What do you care? It's not like anyone reads the blog anyway.

OK. Stop it. I pick the Jets to pull off the upset of the decade this weekend, and beat the Patriots, 13-10. (There might be some weather to contend with on Sunday, too.)

Yeah, 'whether' or not the Patriots will get to 100 points. I say Patriots 52, Jets 10.

HERE'S JOHNNY

Considering it's late November, and I didn't think I'd be following much baseball this deep into the off-season, I'm pretty thrilled with the moves the Mets have made. Tuesday they traded Guillermo Mota for Johnny Estrada, solidifying the catcher position the day after they shored up second base.

I've thought highly of Estrada ever since he came up with the Phillies. I don't know if he was talked up a lot by the Philadelphia media, or I just heard a lot about him because he was a young guy coming up on a rival team in the NL East, but I remember thinking that the Braves made a great move trading for him. And I know that Estrada is better than anyone else available on the free agent market - and I think, for the Mets, that includes Jorge Posada. When you combine offense and defense, and their ages (Estrada is five years younger), I think the Mets got the best catcher available (even if his availability comes as a surprise) this off-season.

There are questions. Estrada is coming off post-season surgery on his knee, and had a bone spur removed from his elbow. So I guess there's some recovery involved. There's also the matter of Estrada playing for his 5th team in 7 years in the majors. He's been traded away from every team - which either means four other teams didn't want him, or four other teams really wanted him badly. I don't remember hearing much about Estrada as a clubhouse problem, so let's hope it's the latter. (From what I'm reading really quickly online, it seems Estrada's first - and only - season in Milwaukee was a disappointment, to fans and to him. He's owned up to how badly he played. So maybe it was a 'get value for him now, since fans are down on him' type deal.) The Breweres are rumored to be seeking Jason Kendall...they really have no catcher now that they've dealt Estrada.

I think this is a great deal for the Mets. You can't beat unloading an erratic (and cheating) reliever, and getting lots of value in return.

They say you win with what you have up the middle, and now the Mets have Estrada, Luis Castillo, Jose Reyes, and Carlos Beltran up the middle. The one gaping hole there is the pitcher's mound - and that's Omar Minaya's next challenge.

AND ON THE FOOTBALL FRONT

Thanksgiving is probably my favorite holiday. I love the fall, I love getting together with the family, and I love eating. I also love watching the football with everyone. So when I saw the NFL schedule this year, I especially couldn't wait for Thanksgiving, to watch the Jets upset the Cowboys on national television, as they showed the world what they were made of!

Needless to say, that excitement has worn off. Lots. I was disappointed the Jets won last week. And I'm hoping the Cowboys embarrass them on Thursday...this coming from a guy who hates the Cowboys. You know where I stand on this - the whole Chad Pennington thing has just left a really sour taste in my mouth.

The more I think about it, the more I realize that last year's playoff appearance was one of the worst things that could have happened to the Jets, specifically, to Eric Mangini. He was given last year, they could have been awful, and he could have built things up his way. But they surprised everyone, he was the Boy Wonder, Man-Genius, and that created pressure. So this year, there was no question that Pennington was going to be the starting quarterback, and the playoffs were the expectation, especially with the addition of Thomas Jones, and it didn't work out. People didn't play well, and it was magnified even worse because of the expectations caused by last year.

Maybe Chad Pennington shouldn't have been the starter from the beginning this year. Maybe then I would have been more willing to root for Kellen Clemens. But after leading the Jets to the playoffs last year, Mangini had to go with Pennington. He had no shot to start building with his own quarterback - he would have been killed. Then he was killed for going to Pennington too late. I still don't agree with the decision, but at least Mangini has things on his terms now. The problem is, if the Jets don't rebound and win next year - he probably won't get a fourth year on his terms. So now the Jets are playing out the string - with some really tough games left on the schedule. And 'the string' starts Thursday. I suspect the performance against Pittsburgh will be the exception, rather than the rule.

I'll make a special Thanksgiving pick Wednesday, then I'm heading to New York for the Thanksgiving weekend, and I'll be back next week.

PLAYOFF PICKS

Had to get these on before the games get underway. Last week I was 3-1 picking the winners, 2-2 against the spreads. Just know that, before you take these picks and run with them to your local Las Vegas sportsbook, that I have no clue this weekend. I'm just making picks because I like to do it. Also know that I am doing awfully in the pool that I am in, and this could be the last you hear of it - I need to have a humongous weekend in order to get myself back in the running. That said, here are my picks:

SATURDAY

Indianapolis at Baltimore (-3.5): I'm a dope, but I like Indianapolis. I know defense is what wins championships, but I just haven't bought into the Ravens this whole season. If one home team were to lose this weekend, this would be the team. So I'm going Colts 28, Ravens 20 (but I wouldn't be surprised if it was Baltimore, 23-20). Over/Under is 41.5. I'm putting half my remaining pool money on Indy plus the points, and the over. If I win, I continue, if I lose I'm out.

Philadelphia at New Orleans (-5.5): I'd go with New Orleans minus the points. I think the week off helps them a lot, they were stumbling down the stretch. I think they put on a strong performance here. Saints, 26-17. I only have 43 points there, so I guess I'm thinking under the 48.5.

SUNDAY

Seattle at Chicago (-8.5): This seems like a lot of points, but I also think Seattle is the weakest team left. And I think Chicago will play a safe game (run a lot) and win easily. I say Bears, 27-10. The over/under is 37.5. How about that. Barely under, I guess.

New England at San Diego (-4.5): My heart says San Diego easy, my head says the Patriots have a real good chance of winning this game. I will pick the Chargers by a touchdown, but it will come in the final two minutes, and it will be tight. Chargers, 31-24. The over/under is 46.5. I think there will be a lot of scoring.

I guess I'm thinking Bears-Saints and Chargers-Colts for the Championship games. That would be good for the ol' Super Bowl matchups chart. We'll see how these turn out.

POST SCRIPT: I forgot to mention one more thing about the classy coach of the New England Patriots, Bill Belichick. In the post-game press conference he almost referred to Eric Mangini as "The Guy", instead of referring to him by name. They asked about the photographer incident, and he said, "I was just trying to get to the guy....Eric...", cutting himself off halfway through the word 'guy'.

I think it's funny to imagine Bill Belichick's PR guy as Toby from 'The Office'.
Bill: I hugged Mangini, did you see that? You happy now? Everyone saw it on TV.
Toby: But...Bill....you pushed a cameraman.
Bill: He was in my way.
Toby: Yeah, but....you really shouldn't have done that.

Hours of fun right there.

A BETTER MAN THAN YOU OR I

I have some strong feelings about Bill Belichick, the former HC of the NYJ, today, one day after the Jets lost to the Patriots in the Wild Card round of the NFL Playoffs. I realize in advance that some of this sounds like sour grapes...well, it sort of is. But it doesn't just stem from Sunday's game - it's been building up inside me since the man to the left's one-day stint as Jets head coach. Here are my rants:

The Man Doth Celebrate A Bit Too Much

Did the Patriots win the Super Bowl on Sunday, or win another Patriots-business-as-usual-first-round-playoff-game? I think it's the latter, but watching Bill Belichick at the end of the game made it seem as though the former took place. Belichick is usually a bit more reserved at the end of games than he displayed Sunday, unless the Patriots have just won the Super Bowl. Now, it's no secret that this game meant a lot to him, because he was upstaged in November by his former protege, Eric Mangini. But Belichick was showing up the Jets by whooping it up on the sidelines after Asante Samuel's interception return for a touchdown and after his team sealed the victory. He won the playoff game, but trust me - the Jets noticed Belichick's reactions and will not forget them. Speaking of celebratory moods...

He's Really Happy For You

Belichick also redefined class at the end of the game. First there was this:

Bill putting all the controversy to rest with a good ol' heartfelt hug for Mangini after a win. I'm sure he would have done the same if his team had lost. As a matter of fact, I'm sure Bill put this whole issue to bed and will never have to address it ever again, because, hey - he hugged Eric Mangini.

I did hear, however, that after the game, since he was done playing for the season, another former Jets coach, Bill Parcells, called up Belichick and was quoted as saying, "Billy, you call that a hug?":

That's just passion right there, folks.

Then, there's this, seen to the right. Because he's such a classy fellow, Belichick sought out Jets quarterback Chad Pennington to give him a handshake and congratulate him on a job well done. I give Belichick the benefit of the doubt - I bet had the Patriots lost, he would have sought out Pennington to congratulate him, too, and wouldn't have left the field in 3 seconds. He probably didn't even know cameras were trained on him when he sought out Pennington, that's how much he blindly let his heart lead him...Oh! Speaking of cameras:

Kenny Rogers and Bill Belichick Have More In Common Than Just Being My Arch-Enemies

I couldn't get a still picture, but you all saw it, and can watch it again here. This is where I am going to lose the sarcasm piece - I'm so glad, if Belichick fooled everyone at those other times, that his true colors shone through at this moment. It's HIS fault that there are a zillion cameramen waiting to see how he greets Mangini - he has no right to push this guy out of the way.

Finally, I just want to put in my two cents on the whole Belichick-Mangini thing. People have said Belichick is mad because Mangini left to take a job within the division...which other people counter by saying Belichick did the exact same thing. On Saturday night on NBC, Peter King said the thing that makes Belichick so upset is that Mangini broke an unwritten code among members of the Bill Parcells coaching tree - don't mess with my players. They say he did this by talking to members of the coaching staff, taking guys like Matt Chatham to New York, and by tampering with Deion Branch. Now, if the Branch allegations are legitimate, that's a fine reason to gripe...but I think it's the only one. I'm obviously not a football coach, but I think an unwritten rule like that is crap - you want to go out and get the best players and win - you have to be ruthless, in my opinion. If, indeed, Parcells followed that rule and waited on Vinatieri (too long, it turned out) because he wanted to give the Patriots a shot to re-sign him, he probably cost his team an NFC East title and a home playoff game. That's not smart coaching to me, that's stupid team management. I find it hard to believe these guys play by those rules - but that's what Peter King says.

And if that's how Belichick feels, he should look in the mirror. First of all, no two ways about it, he screwed the Jets in 2000. Just screwed them. And the reason he left the Jets was to get out of Bill Parcells' shadow. But then he proceeded to rebuild the Patriots with Parcells-type players. Sure, he added his own, but the veteran types were Parcells guys.

Anyway, if that's what's got Belichick so mad, so be it. It just gives the Jets extra incentive when they play the Patriots. And he didn't help his case in future matchups with his actions on Sunday.

One last thing - I can't really blame Belichick for wanting out of Parcells' shadow. Parcells treated him awfully bad. I have a friend at NFL Films these days - I recommend to him a piece on their relationship - because NFL Films has some good stuff from the late 80's, early 90's Giants, and Parcells was flat-out mean to Belichick. I saw some of it on that NFL Network special I mentioned that I saw on the '90 Giants. I'm sure there's tons more. So Belichick has a case there.

FINAL PLAYOFF PREVIEW

There's nothing left to do now but play the game. I'm going to get my last words in on what I think will happen this weekend, then sit back, try to concentrate on something other than football for part of Saturday, so I can write some report cards, then let my brain melt Saturday night and Sunday. First, an in-depth look at Jets-Patriots, then I'll give you all my picks for the Wild Card Round.

In the playoffs, there's plenty of motivation to win. Any extra motivation is icing on the cake, but can be used to your advantage. The Jets know that Bill Belichick has slighted his former assistant/mentee this season. They are using that as some sort of extra motivation this week, whether or not they're saying it. And Belichick knows that too - how else do you explain him suddenly becoming Mr. Nice Guy this week in the media when talking about the Jets and Eric Mangini? Mangini has played the game well, not making a big deal of Belichick making himself look like a jerk back in November, and not making a big deal out of it this week, as a matter of fact, he heaped plenty of praise upon the Patriots. I start with that not because I think it's the biggest factor this weekend, but I do think it will be A factor - and definitely a plus for the Jets.

Yesterday, I wrote about the younger players getting some playoff experience this year, at the very least. Truth is, the Jets are full of playoff veterans. There are key members of the Jets (mostly on defense, but including quarterback Chad Pennington) who made the run in the playoffs with the Jets 2 years ago. There are plenty of former Patriots, who enjoyed the same success the Jets' opponents will be pointing to on Sunday (including the Jets' current head coach). My only concern is this is a new experience for kicker Mike Nugent - but he does have big-game experience from college at Ohio State. The Jets sorely need themselves a clutch kicker - remember two years ago. But now that I think about it, the FieldTurf at Gillette Stadium must benefit the kicking game. That's good for the Jets.

Things to look for this Sunday - as I mentioned yesterday, I fully expect the Jets to spring some sort of gadget play on the Patriots. I'm thinking some sort of fake kick. Sticking with special teams, I think Justin Miller will have a huge return at some point in this game. Not sure he'll score, but he'll set the Jets up nice. I also think this will be a tight game, my heart will be racing, and I will curse the football gods for putting the Jets up against the Patriots in round one. But I'll be thanking them when it's over. JETS 22, PATRIOTS 14

THE PLAYOFF PICKS:
I'm participating in a playoff pool I join annually, which gives you 250 shares to start with, and you can bet a maximum of 75 per bet. You can bet over/unders and spreads. So I will use those spreads for these picks (I'm not sure how far off they are from the real ones):

Saturday
Kansas City at Indianapolis (-6.5): I know that people expect Larry Johnson to run all over the Colts, but I just think the Colts are the better team. I expect the Chiefs to jump out to an early lead, maybe 7-or-10- to 0, but the Colts to cruise from there. I say Colts 27, Chiefs 13. The over/under is 50.5. I'm putting $25 on the under.

Dallas at Seattle (-2.5): I originally said on this game Seahawks 24, Cowboys 10. I know very little about gambling, but I know that the bookmakers really know what they are doing. And home teams usually start out with at least 3 points in their favor. This seems like a game where the bookies are begging people to take Seattle. Therefore, I'm going with Dallas, taking the points. And I've adjusted my score. Seahawks 21, Cowboys 20. Seattle is still a tough place to win. I've got $20 on the Cowboys getting the points. The over/under here is 46.5 - I'm not touching that.

Sunday
New York Jets at New England (-8.5): I had to take the Jets with those points - even if they lose, I don't see this game being more than an 8-point spread either way. This is my big bet of the day, $75 on the Jets. The over/under is 37.5, I would think under, but I'm not touching it.

New York Giants at Philadelphia (-6.5): I think this is the surest bet of the day, that the Eagles will win. I'm not as sure about the point spread, so I'm not going there, but I am pretty sure this will be a high scorer. Eagles 34, Giants 24. Over/under is 46.5 - I like the over for $25.

So to recap, I have $145 on the line this week. Some people will blow all $250 this week - I just hope I can move into the top 3 or so, then maybe next week I'll step up the bet amounts.

One last thing regarding picks - I really like what Mike & Mike in the Morning on ESPN Radio do come playoff time - they do "Confidence Picks", where they rank the players they are most confident in on a given playoff weekend (they'll do quarterbacks, running backs, coaches, and defenses, I think), with the most confidence being given a 1, least given an 8, then adding up their total scores, and figuring out what teams will win that way. The problem is, I never hear the end of their show, so I never know how the system works. If I have time tomorrow during the Chiefs/Colts game, I may try it out, see if it's an accurate representation of picks.

Enjoy the games - I will have a recap on Sunday - hopefully it will be about a win...and if they lose, hopefully I'm not too upset to write. I'll try my darndest.

PLAYOFF PREVIEW #2

Why the Jets would not be here with Herman Edwards

Eric Mangini has done a great job with the Jets this year. You can't overstate that fact. Without Eric Mangini, the Jets would not be a playoff team. But it's not just because of Eric Mangini that the Jets are where they are right now.

The Jets have built themselves a fresh coaching staff - a mix of veteran coaches as well as new entries to the coaching ranks. These coaches aren't afraid to take chances, and spice up the playbook. Last year's coaching staff was.

The biggest reason for the Jets' success this year, in my opinion, isn't Eric Mangini. It's Eric Mangini AND Brian Schottenheimer. I really think Schottenheimer deserves a lot of the credit for not only catering the offense to Chad Pennington's arm, but using the other weapons at his disposal to the best of their ability. Brad Smith is one of the more exciting players the Jets have had in a long time - and Schottenheimer has been creative in using him - it's great to watch.

Herman Edwards and his guys were stale. Doug Brien cost the Jets the chance at the AFC Championship Game two years ago, but Herman Edwards helped set him up to fail. The Jets wouldn't even be in shouting distance of the playoffs if those guys were still here. Here's why - they would have tried too hard to protect Chad Pennington - they weren't risk-takers. Curtis Martin might have been allowed to play, because of a soft spot in Herman Edwards' heart. And that would have hurt Martin and the team. And the Jets would probably have finished below .500.

This fresh bunch of coaches (some of whom, incidentally, actually played for Herman Edwards - Richie Anderson, for example) has pressed all the right buttons. Martin can't play - we'll start 4 different running backs - and each one has been successful on different days. Credit the defensive staff, too - continuing to develop the Jets' young talent into a formidable presence. Kerry Rhodes should have been a Pro Bowler this year - watch out for him in years to come. Jonathan Vilma is already a force in the AFC.

If things don't go well this weekend, I will come back to this write-up to remember how promising the future is for the Jets. I've said it before - although I fully expect the Jets to be dangerous this post-season, I look at this playoff run as a bonus for the young players. They have a chance to get some playoff experience under their belts, and make more playoff runs in the future. The same goes for the young coaching staff.

PREDICTION: Tomorrow I'll get into my playoff picks, but for today I'll give you this one tease - I believe the Jets will pull off one crazy gadget play during this game to try to catch the Patriots off guard. I'm sure we'll see some kind of reverse or end around, but I'm really thinking about a fake field goal or punt...more likely the latter.

STATS: Yesterday I mentioned Tom Brady's record on turf - 22-1. I would be remiss if I didn't mention his playoff record - 10-1. Gotta respect that. He talked yesterday about how he loves this time of year...how even though the body starts to wear down, you sort of get a second wind because it's the playoffs. He would know.

COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR: It's Chad Pennington. Well-deserved - no one came back from a worse situation (well, unless you count the whole team of the New Orleans Saints - but that's not the way the award works) to do as well. He set a career high for yards this year, with 3,352. (Think that would have happened under Mike Heimerdinger?) Also, give Laveraues Coles and Jerricho Cotchery some credit here, too. Those guys got Pennington a lot of yards after the catch, and pulled down some clutch catches in some tough situations for him.

AND NOW, A RANT: I've been sitting on this one for a while, but I'm not unleashing it. Last year I went off on broadcasters who overuse the word "unbelievable". I don't know if it bothers me less, or if they listened to me, but the word seems to be used less. (I still hear it, mind you, because every so often I talk to the TV and ask the person if what they just observed was really unbelievable...but it seems to be less.) So now I ask for another phrase to come to an end.

The phrase is what it is. Actually, that's what it is. "It is what it is". I hate it. It is the most overused cliche right now. I've been thinking about this for years - I remember in April, 2004, having an argument with one of my cousins about this phrase - it's NONSENSE. The words have become popular in recent years, I'm sure, because they are overused by none other than Bill Belichick, and ever since the Patriots got good, it's all over the place.

Media Member: Bill, how big is this weekend's game?
Belichick: You know, they're all big. It is what it is.

Media Member: How bad does this week's loss sit with the team?
Belichick: All losses are tough. It is what it is.

Drives me nuts. To me, it seems to have originated as coachspeak, then turned into a lockerroom cliche, and then it became sports radio language. It means NOTHING! You might as well say nothing. Everything is what it is. It bothers me...a lot. I want it to go away. And don't get me started with "Threw him under the bus".

PLAYOFF PREVIEW

Reportedly overheard in Jacksonville from a Patriots coach after the Patriots clinched the division by beating the Jaguars.

"Take that, Eric Mangini - We're division champs!"

I saw that a couple of weeks ago in the Boston Globe. That's not the way the World Champion New England Patriots behave. That sounds like a team I'd like the Jets to be facing in the playoffs....a little too concerned about what's going on elsewhere.

Those were my initial thoughts when I read that quote in the Globe. Now, of course, the Patriots get Eric Mangini and his New York Jets at Gillette Stadium in Round 1 of the playoffs. Take that, Eric Mangini.

I actually feel the Jets match up well against the Patriots (you didn't think differently, did you?). The Jets beat the Patriots in Foxboro already this season. The negatives, of course, are that you're giving Bill Belichick and his staff a third game against you - if he doesn't have you figured out by game 2 (which it's hard to say he didn't - he had the Jets figured out the first time they met this season), he'll have you figured out by game 3. And the Jets beat the Pats in the muck and mud at Gillette the first time around - now there's the Field Turf, and Tom Brady is something like 22-1 all-time on turf (and the Pats haven't lost at home since the field has been installed).

That said, I can say the reverse - Eric Mangini sure seemed to have the Pats figured out the last time these two teams met. The Jets did exactly what they needed to do - put pressure on Brady, and rough him up, and force him to make mistakes or throw bad passes. They need to do that again this week.

It's going to be some kind of game. The Patriots are about a 9-point favorite right now. I'm not going to publish my pick until the end of the week, but I will say that I think that's ridiculous. The Patriots will not beat the Jets by 9 points. As a matter of fact, I don't think they'll beat them at all. Take that, Patriots fans.

SABAN: I am proud to say that I didn't believe for a second that Nick Saban would stay with the Miami Dolphins and pass on the Alabama job. Do you know why? Because coaches are liars. I don't care that he couldn't pass up that money. I don't care that he was pestered for two weeks about it. I care that he flat-out said he had no interest in coaching Alabama, and was going to stay with the Dolphins. But I learned my lesson from Herman Edwards last year - just because Nick Saban (or any coach) says they won't leave doesn't mean they won't leave. I shouldn't care. I really shouldn't. (I actually prefer to see the Dolphins in turmoil, so I should enjoy this, and part of me does.) But he lied. He flat-out lied. I would rather he said something like, no comment, and I won't comment on that until the season is over. But instead, he lied something awful, saying he had no interest, and wouldn't be leaving. I think that makes you sound like a worse person than you are, because you're going back on your word.

NFL NETWORK: Thanks to DirecTV, I have the NFL Network. I've been meaning to post about the Thursday/Saturday night games for a while. Bryant Gumbel is awful as a play-by-play guy. Awful. And Chris Collinsworth is fantastic as a color guy. I can't believe I used to not like Collinsworth. I have no idea why...he's very good. Here's an example of his great color work though - last Saturday, early in the Giants game against Washington, Tiki Barber is just starting to slice through the Redskins' defense, and Collinsworth says, "If the Redskins don't put 8 men up on the line of scrimmage, Tiki's going to run for 200 yards." On the next play, Barber rips off a 55-yard touchdown run. Collinsworth says, "Maybe 300." It was great - Barber finished with 234 yards rushing. Good work, Chris.

The other thing about the NFL Network, though, is they are playing these recaps of the greatest Super Bowl champs of all time. I have no opinions on the order in which they play these, but I've seen 2-and-a-half of the shows, and they are fantastic. I watched a little of the 1970 Chiefs, the entire 1996 Packers, and the 1990 Giants. The deal is, they have three figures from the team tell the story of the team. It's just great. I want to try to watch them all, but I don't know if I have the time. If you do, make sure you do it.

HEADED FOR THE PLAYOFFS?

Jets 13, Dolphins 10 (NYJ: 9-6, MIA: 6-9)

That wasn't pretty. It wasn't as dominant as it should have been. But it was exciting, and it was a 'W', so the Jets are one win away from the postseason.

I can't really believe I'm writing this, considering the way this season should have gone. It should have been a rebuilding type of year. I thought the Jets may have pulled out a .500 record, based on Chad Pennington coming back, healthy for the first time in two years, but I didn't think they'd sniff the playoffs. Here's what I wrote in August/early September:

Chad Pennington is back to his old self, I guess. He's throwing the ball well, and has all but won the starting quarterback job back, which is very exciting. That alone gives Jets fans hope that the Jets might not be as bad as everyone thinks - Pennington knows how to win. I'll leave it at that.

The Jets are definitely going to be an improved football team this year, and I think they'll be better than a lot of people are picking them to be (I've heard 4-12 again, or 5-11). I think there's a chance the Jets could squeeze out 8 wins, maybe even 9. The problem is their schedule is tough. And I think once the Jets figure out what they have in Cedric Houston, their running problems will be solved.

Not sure what I was thinking about there with the "tough schedule" part - maybe because of their division. But now the Jets face a "win and in" scenario next week - beat the Raiders, and they're in the playoffs.

As I wrote here, I thought the Jets would beat the Dolphins on Monday night. But watching the game Monday, it was the type of game that you felt would end in heartbreak for the Jets. Scoreless through the first half. Then a 3-0 lead quickly turned into a 7-3 deficit. But Chad Pennington showed why the Jets have to be considered a threat if they get into the playoffs - because he led the team right back down the field to a 10-7 lead, then again to the game-winning field goal. Leon Washington was huge, too, showing incredible bursts and moves to gain some big yardage. Parts of that game, though, especially when the Dolphins brought in the backup quarterback, had "Typical Jets loss" written all over it.

Now there are other worries. The Jets should beat Oakland, at home, next week. It is certainly an easier task than when they had to beat the Raiders, in Oakland, in 2001, in order to make the playoffs. (They did, then lost the playoff game back in Oakland the following week.) This Raiders team is nowhere near as good as the rest of the NFL - this shouldn't even be a contest. (The good news is that the NFL's flex schedule did not make this game the Sunday nighter on New Year's Eve, so I will be going to the 1 o'clock game to cheer the Jets into the postseason.) The problem is, the Jets have a history of losing games they should win...especially when something huge is on the line.

One positive - that hasn't happened in a while. In 2002, the Jets needed to beat Green Bay at home to win the AFC East - they did, and they blew them out. The Jets haven't choked away a playoff spot since 2000, so that's good news. I'm sure Eric Mangini will have the team properly motivated, considering his playoff experience recently with New England.

And then it's playoff time (hopefully). If the Jets make it, they'll likely draw New England or Indianapolis. The way Indy has played recently, the Jets could win that game, and they've already showed they can beat the Patriots in New England. This could be an exciting playoff run. (There's an outside chance it will be Baltimore, but they'd probably have to lose and a couple of other things would need to happen. That might actually be the toughest matchup for the Jets.) I can hardly wait.

THE PICK

The Patriots are reeling. Sure, they're 1-0, and the season is barely two weeks old, but they're finally starting to feel the effects of all of their departures. At least, if you believe the hype. Which I'm not sure I do. They've recovered from all the other adversity they've faced in the past few seasons, why should the departure of Deion Branch hurt so much?

I have one reason, and it's what I'm going to hang my hat on this week when the Jets host the Patriots at 4 o'clock on Sunday. Never before has Tom Brady lost someone so close to him. He was pals with Lawyer Milloy, and Ty Law, and Willie McGinest, and Adam Vinatieri, and most of the other guys who left the team before. Damien Woody helped protect him. David Givens was a decent receiver with the Pats, and an important part of their post-season success. But no one was as close to Brady during games, on offense, than Deion Branch. Brady and Branch had an uncanny chemistry - one they claimed allowed them to communicate and change a pattern without even speaking to each other, with barely even a glance. Branch isn't the most special receiver in the league (though he is one of the speediest, and I think he will make an impact with Seattle), but he was the most special receiver to Tom Brady, and that's going to have a long-term effect on the Patriots.

Will it have a short-term effect, though? I like to think it will, at least this week. The Jets defense played pretty well against Tennesse last week, and on paper, the Titans have more impressive receivers than the Patriots do (though no one to get them the ball). The first touchdown the Jets gave up last week could be pinned on the defense, but the second came after a Jets fumble inside their own five, so you can't fault the defense. So I think the Jets' D will hold their own against the Patriots' offense, especially since Eric Mangini has an idea about Tom Brady's tendencies. (The Jets' defense did come up with 3 interceptions last week - and maybe Tom Brady tries to force a few into the wrong places this week.)

The Jets' offense is a question mark. Early in his career, Chad Pennington played VERY well against the Patriots. Then he hit a wall, and has had some of the worst games of his career against New England (including a 5-interception performance around Christmastime a few years ago in the most embarrassing game for the Jets organization ever - a prime time game featuring a certain sideline interview of Joe Namath by Suzy Kolber). I wonder if Bill Belichick is the genius who figured out how to play Pennington, or if it was Mangini. And if it was Belichick, does Mangini know what to tell Pennington to prevent the scheme from working?

I think Mangini is a key to this game. And with everything going on with the Patriots, and with the home crowd going nuts for the Jets' home opener, I think the Jets can pull this one out. I'm going to go with a 17-13 win for the Jets, in a real nail-biter, and the totally unexpected will happen this weekend - the Jets will be alone in first place in the AFC East - a situation that could affect the way the rest of this season unfolds. Dare people start believing in the Jets?

I'm 1-0 with the Jets, picking a 17-10 win last week, which ended up being a 23-16 win. I'm off by 6 points. Overall, here's the way the Yahoo! league is shaping up:

1. The Wife (in first, of course): 10-6
2. Cousin Eddie: 9-7
3. Johnnyjets, Southern Bureau: 6-10
5. Justin in NYC: 5-11
6. Dave in Brighton: 2-14

Dave says he's hoping to double his win total each week, so he's looking for a big 4 this weekend.

AN UPDATE

I haven't intentionally been ignoring the Jets blog. It's just that there's so much going on with the Mets, and as excited as I am about football season, there are other things happening in life: i.e. the impending birth of my first child, getting new curriculum ready for the school year, and there's not much to write about out of Jets camp, thanks to Eric Mangini's secrecy.

But there are a couple of things to note. Chad Pennington is back to his old self, I guess. He's throwing the ball well, and has all but won the starting quarterback job back, which is very exciting. That alone gives Jets fans hope that the Jets might not be as bad as everyone thinks - Pennington knows how to win. I'll leave it at that.

He also has some help in the backfield. Though Curtis Martin looks more and more like he'll be sitting out the year (if not forever), the Jets have a bunch of options in the backfield. I love Cedric Houston, and would have loved to see him take the starting job, but the Jets gave lots of looks to Leon Washington and Derrick Blaylock. Then they went out and traded for Kevan Barlow, who they feel confident has turned around the problems (mostly with conforming) he's had in the past. Eric Mangini said they looked into his background enough to feel like they're getting a character guy, which is important for the Jets. Mangini even went so far to compare Barlow to Bryan Cox, with the Jets in the late '90's, when Mangini was a coffee boy for the coaching staff.

How has this turned out? Well, Barlow has already compared his former coach in San Francisco to Hitler. So, not too well. And he says Mike Nolan, as a first year guy, tried to be too much of a dictator. Think that concerns Mangini at all? It concerns me.

So we'll see how Barlow turns out. If the Jets were to deal for a running back, I would have rather seen them deal Justin McCareins for T.J. Duckett, said to be in the works over the weekend. I like Duckett, and McCareins is in Mangini's doghouse for some reason, so I don't know how effective he'll be for the team (unless a Bill Parcells-esque motivation technique being used by Mangini). The Falcons, Broncos, and Redskins worked out a 3-way deal on Tuesday sending Duckett to Washington and Ashley Lelie to the Falcons. FANTASY ALERT: I wonder how the Redskins getting Duckett affects the season of Clinton Portis...maybe he's more injured than we thought.

So that's where my thoughts on the Jets are at. Maybe I'll write more during the pre-season, maybe I won't write until the regular season. I'll try to keep you posted on the Mets blog.

I was expecting to have more e-mails to answer, but I just have this one, from good ol' Dave in Brighton:

"Dear JohnnyJets,

What's the latest on the Curtis Martin situation? Do you think the Jets should have drafted a RB higher in April? (I heard that Martin actually suggested they do so, because he has concerns over his own health.)

Do you like Leon Washington? Is he good enough to be an NFL starter? If not, what's the trade market like?

If you were going to do a fantasy football draft, would you draft Martin as a late-round sleeper?

Signed,
Dave in Brighton"

I pretty much addressed all of those questions above, except the last one, to which the answer is an emphatic "NO!".

There's this one from Dave, too, which has been in the inbox for a while, I guess:

"Dear JohnnyJets,

Good to see you didn't hold out of camp this season.

You wrote on Sunday that each of the Jets QBs is getting equal reps in practice. Do you think this irks Pennington? He doesn't seem like the kind of guy who would complain (I could hear him saying something like "I have a lot to prove this year, and I'm ready to go out and prove it."), but he can't be happy about it.

And kind of as a follow up, what's your read on Kellen Clemens. Were his parents big fans of Roger? Is that why they gave him a weird name that starts with K?

--Dave in Brighton"

I think the equal reps thing irked Pennington a little, but you're right, he's not the type of guy to complain. I bet he used it as extra motivation, and Jets fans will reap the benefits this year. Maybe Kellen Clemens is an illegitimate child of Roger. Maybe all "K" Clemens are. It might be like a secret society.

I'd like to do a spread-pick-'em pool this year on the site with all 5 of my readers....but I don't think, with the baby and all, I'll have time to make comments on each of the games. So maybe I'll set up a yahoo! or espn free league, where we pick the games vs. the spread, and the winner gets a yet-to-be-created t-shirt (I haven't made a johnnyjets one yet). E-mail me with thoughts and level of interest, please.

I'm still not sure I understand this "Jets Nation" show's schedule. Apparently, it's just an off-season show, so Saturday was its last episode. Although, it will still be on during the regular season, with the same name, so I'm not sure how that works. And even though the show aired for the first time on Saturday, the day after the first day of training camp, it contained absolutely no information about the first day of training camp.

I do know this about "Jets Nation" on SNY, though - the show still sucks. It's just awful. Host Brian Custer is OK, but Greg Buttle is awful - he's just a blowhard. Ray Lucas is a less-loud version of a blowhard. Both guys talk in circles, so they don't really make a point, and it's just hard to follow what they're saying. So that's the first 10 minutes of the show - then, mercifully, they go away.

Then Adam Schein comes on. I didn't think I'd like Adam Schein. Once in a while, when I was working overnights, he'd be doing the overnight show on WFAN, and I'd catch his show, and I didn't think it was great, but it was far better than sports talk around here. But on this show on Saturday, Schein was awesome. Good opinions, backed up solidly, and he was a refreshing breath of fresh air coming after Buttle and Lucas. So Schein's presence on SNY shows some promise. But still no training camp info from the show.

So I have to resort, I guess, to the newspapers for my Jets info. Apparently, Chad Pennington, Patrick Ramsey, Brooks Bollinger, and draft pick Kellen Clemens are getting even amounts of time practicing with the first team. So everyone, at this point, is getting a fair shot at the number one quarterback job. Some are saying this is Eric Mangini's way of protecting Pennington's shoulder. I get the impression that this is Mangini's way of letting Pennington play himself out of a job. I don't get the impression Mangini likes Pennington - because he's not "his" guy. I think Mangini wants to groom Clemens for the job for next year, and wants Ramsey to win the job this year, as a transition guy. But I'm rooting hard for Pennington to prove everyone wrong.

Other news out of training camp is that Curtis Martin's situation seems to be pretty bleak. He's apparently really suffering from this injury and the rehabbing.

Justin McCareins is back practicing - he had failed a conditioning test, but passed it the next opportunity he got.

I think I heard that SNY is going to have a training camp Jets show during the week - they need to step up their coverage. There's lots going on at Jets camp, and lots of fans want to know about it...so it's SNY's responsibility to do a better job covering it. If they claim to be the station that covers the Jets year 'round, they'd better start showing it.

NEW ERA

Day One of Training Camp has come and gone, and the Jets' new era is underway. It's going to be tough for fans and media, because Eric Mangini is from the Bill Parcells/Bill Belichick school of "don't say anything" - it will be tough for us to get complete answers regarding injuries, or pretty much anything else, for that matter.

You know what's really tough - I haven't been able to find anything anywhere about Day One of camp, and specifically how Chad Pennington looked.

Here's where SNY is going to show if it's worth watching. I'm TiVo-ing "Jets Nation" on Saturday. This show was a joke during the off-season - just three guys sitting around and arguing. But the day after the first practice of training camp - it better be comprehensive. If it's not, I don't know if I'll bother watching the rest of the year. So hopefully I'll have more info Saturday.

ROOKIES: D'Brickashaw Ferguson and Nick Mangold, the Jets' first-round draft choices, as well as 2nd round pick Kellen Clemens, are all under contract, which is good. The Jets don't need holdouts hanging over their heads in addition to all their other question marks.

INJURIES: Curtis Martin, Justin McCareins, and Trey Teague were all placed on the Physically Unable to Perform List (the PUP) on Thursday, before the first day of practices. This is more of a formality at this point, meaning that they just can't practice. Once the season begins, the PUP is a bigger deal, because that means the players are inactive for a longer period - like until Week 6. The problem here, though, is that Curtis Martin's knee is still not fully healed from his surgery at the end of last season. Apparently, he was expected back by now. I guess the good news is that he's not going to be rushed back before he's ready...but the bad news is that his career could be coming to an end fast.

I'll be updating periodically throughout training camp - thanks for coming back to the site!

One more day until the first day of training camp...and the Eric Mangini Era.