Archives for November 2008

‘It wasn’t the biggest play of the game, but it was the best heads-up play by either team. The Jets’ Leon Washington knew the rules on a kickoff return with 3:32 left in the quarter. Rian Lindell’s kick was near the sideline. Washington kept one foot in-bounds and one foot out of bounds when he fielded the ball at the Jets’ 8. The Jets got the ball at the 40 to set up a touchdown drive.’

‘The Bills entered the game ranked fourth in the NFL on third down. They weren’t good enough on the pivotal drive of the game. The Jets converted three third-and-short situations on their 14-play drive to a field goal. It put them ahead, 26-17, and iced the victory.’

‘"I honestly just think we were doing what we’re paid to do," Jenkins said. "We don’t get paid just to look pretty now. There is some dirty work that comes with the game, and that’s part of it. That was a tough situation. I’m going to be honest with you. I’m a pretty big guy. It’s kind of hard when you’re out there for a long time."’

‘The Jets (5-3) looked like a playoff contender in winning for the fourth time in five tries. The Bills (5-3), meanwhile, hit the midway point of the season with three losses in their last four games. With New England at 5-3 and Miami at 4-4, it’s obvious nothing is going to come easy in the AFC East this season.’

‘”I’ve played almost 300 games, or maybe 300 games, and they’re all different,” said Favre, who played in his 265th regular-season game Sunday. “But when you win, they all feel great. I could care less if I had thrown seven touchdowns or zero; it doesn’t matter to me. What felt great was being able to kneel down at the end of the game.”‘

‘Jenkins was the most dominant player on the field during the Jets’ 26-17 victory, registering five tackles (two for losses), two sacks and three quarterback hurries.’

‘The bandwagon has gone careening off the rails, wouldn’t you say?’

‘”They just doubled me all day,” Evans said. “They played a corner hard press underneath and played a safety over the top. We [saw] that they were doing that so some of the other guys knew they had to step up and make some plays. We just didn’t execute very well and we turned the ball over too much.”‘

‘Seemed a step behind Jets coaches. Edwards seemed confused at times by Jets schemes. Fewell needs to find a way to generate a pass rush.’

‘But these two defeats have served as a cold slap in the face and the Bills realize that unless they right the ship, they could be headed for a colossal disappointment this year because playoff berths are going to be hard to come by in the parity-strewn AFC.’

‘”There could be a lot of fingers pointed after these past two games and the only finger I’m pointing right now is at myself,” Edwards said, after being a major contributor to a second-consecutive loss that will make earning a playoff bid all the more difficult.”‘

‘”I don’t want to say nervous, but things are not always what they seem,” Favre said. “I’m no different than anyone. You’re watching a game and saying, ‘Man, he’s got it all under control, look at him.’ That’s one of the things they brought me in here for, to keep things in check, in control, compete your butt off and I felt like I did that.”‘

‘The biggest line in the NFL, in both average height and average weight, can’t block for the run and has now allowed 23 sacks in eight games. Not since gaining 14 yards on the ground in a 35-7 loss to New England on Dec. 11, 2005, have the Bills had a worse rushing performance than Sunday’s.’

‘Jets DT Kris Jenkins: Everyone knew he was a beast, and he proved everyone right. He was dominant in the middle as the Bills rushed for only 30 yards and Jenkins had five tackles, two for losses, two sacks and three QB hits. Duke Preston is still icing his body from the beating.’

‘Coordinators Turk Schonert and Perry Fewell had their moments (the direct snap to Jackson was a neat wrinkle and some blitz calls worked out) but ultimately they were out-smarted and out-maneuvered as Buffalo suffered a very damaging defeat.’