I don't care if the Jets win or lose, as long as the game is fair, as long as each team has a chance.

So the New England Patriots were caught cheating.  A team that thought they were the best had to resort to cheating to beat the lowly Jets.

It says a lot about both teams, doesn't it?

About the Pats it says that the coach simply doesn't have enough faith in his team to win fairly.  That is a heck of a message to send to your players, your organization and your fans.  It puts a question mark after every victory-no matter how big, no matter how small.

For the Jets, it means that what we saw on Sunday was just about as telling as a pre-season game.  It doesn't mean we are a bad team, it means the opposite, that we are better than we think.  The Superbowl favored Patriots didn't have the courage to play us fairly.

I have some sense of sympathy for the players on the Patriots who must feel betrayed by their coach.  The prepared to play a fair game, and in their minds it was a fair game, only their coach cheated, and that must be a big letdown.  If I was a player I would ask my coach, "Why didn't you believe in us?  Why didn't you think we could win fairly?"

If I was on the Jets I would be relieved to know that the Patriots felt this was something that they clearly had to do to win the game, talent was not enough.

In order to restore integrity, the NFL has to come down hard on the Patriots.  Every team in the NFL was warned about using cameras during the game and the Patriots chose not to listen, so it should cost them.

At the very least it should cost them the game-make them forfeit, that is a start.  That must be the first step, you simply can not give a team that cheated a win.  Not to mention out quaterback was injured in this game.

Does the NFL have the guts to punish the Patriots enough to make it hurt?  Does the NFL feel our pain?

We may find out as early as Friday.

 

 

Jets-Pats Preview (Round One)

Prediction: Jets 24, Patriots 17

 

There is no doubt that the Jets are a better team this year, but have they done enough to catch the Patriots, who have won four straight division titles?

Here is a look at some of the key players on the Jets to keep an eye on this Sunday.

Thomas Jones-he was a great off-season pickup from Chicago who can help the running game and take pressure off of Chad Pennington by opening up the play action game.

Derrelle Revis-the Jets traded up to get him in the first round, and he has what appears to be all of the skills to be a shutdown corner.  He could spend much of his day covering Randy Moss.

David Harris-our second round pick looks like a natural playing in the 3-4 scheme-who will he be on the field with?  Will he take time from Vilma?

Jacob Bender-replacing Pete Kendal is no small task, and Bender has plenty of room for improving his pass blocking, but he is a very talented run blocker who can open holes for Jones and help improve our running game.

Questions for the Jets:

Can they stop the run?  Run defense has been a focal point of the Jets weaknesses for years now, and with an improved secondary, opposing teams will try more often to run the ball.

Will the defense play like they did in the last 7 games of 2006?  The second half of the season showed much improvement over the first half as the team learned how to play Mangini's defense-now we will see how much was retained.

Can they put pressure on Brady?  Let's hope so-planting Tom Brady on the ground is a great way to diminish his effectiveness.  It is how the Jets beat the Patriots last season and it will work if Ellis, Robertson and Thomas have good games.

Will the fans show up?  With over 5,000 parking spaces eliminated, permit parking initiated and shuttle busses implemented, we will see how it all plays out.

Finally, the Jets have their own cheerleaders so you will never again see opposing teams cheerleaders on my blog.

Say hello to our new "flight crew".

 

Note:  This blog goes out to everyone who ever went to a Jets or Giants home game in East Rutherford, N.J. and had a pre-game experience in parking lot 4-H.  Most notably on the list, it goes out with warm remembrances to Skip, Howard, Parker, Rich, Matt (only on the occasion he knew he was there) Lenny, Rob, Bruce, Rachel, John, Derrick, Rodger, Steve and Balls.  I know I left out quite a large number of my group, but I decided that I would stop at Balls.

It is my sad news to inform you that 4H no longer exists in the parking lot of Giants Stadium-and it may never be back.  Not only is 4H gone, but so are thousands of parking spaces-maybe tens of thousands-all gone.

This is where they are building the new stadium-and they are working on a very large construction site that includes a new 80,000 seat football stadium for the Jets and Giants, a NJ Transit rail line, and a new training facility for the Giants.  All of this is being built right now, so tens of thousands of parking spaces have been eliminated for the stadium and the arena where the Nets and Devils play.

And yet all that looks pretty small when you look beyond it to see Xanadu appearing out of the meadowlands like a giant mountain complete with an indoor skiing facility-something out of a James Bond Movie.

So if you want to park at the Stadium this season you better have a parking permit.  Season ticket holders with as many as 10 tickets can only purchase two permits per game, so they are going to be more rare than my dad's steak.

Options are available besides mass transit as the teams (Jets, Giants) are planning to provide satellite parking on game days somewhere within two miles from the stadium and provide busses to transport attendees to the games.

The upside is that we are getting a new rail line for game day that will connect to Penn Station, LIRR, NJTransit and so on, something that has been missing in the area for too long.  This will bring thousands of fans arriving at the game by train, right to the doorstep of our new complex.  The fans from Long Island won't have to drive nightmarish traffic on Sundays to go to the game.  No more waiting in 1 hour of traffic leaving the stadium.  Gas consumption will be drastically reduced.

There will be new parking spots for the tailgating experience and more things to do around the stadium as well.  I have a sneaking suspicion that there is another announcement on the way, one that will make Atlantic City nervous, but that is for another blog.

Before we get all this, before we get our new stadium, we have to endure a huge mess, the nightmare before the dawn.

 

 

The New York Jets have gotten a lot better since my last blog.  The addition of Thomas Jones brings in a mix of great anticipation when you imagine him mixed in with Brian Schottenheimer's offense with all of its diversity, youth, and speed.

Last year, everyone was a first-year player, all rookies under a new regime, learning a new system and creating a new identity for themselves all while believing that they were on their way to better things.

They are not rookies any more, these Jets have been cleared to fly.

After they take care of some business.  They have to work out a deal with Pete Kendall.

Pete is a great player in his position, that's why.

But do not worry; for once again I have a solution.  Treat him as if he were a free agent and pay him what the market would bear.

Normally I would not ask a team to do this, but in all fairness he did take a pay cut for them, so the team should give back a little in this one, special case.

I think that it is the right thing to do, but will it make the team better?  In my opinion yes-having him there make them a better team.

Or, if you prefer you could see him with the Dolphins.

Wildcard Preview

Jets Vs. Pats

Prediction: Jets 24, Pats 21

Oooooooooooooohh, I'm sooooooooo sared of the Patriots.

Let me tell you something-the Patriots are overrated.

The Jets, the true underdogs, can and just might pull out a win.

Tell me about the match-ups-tell me about coaching.

Even-they are even.  This game will be decided by who wants it more-who has more to prove in this game?

Who really has something to prove in this game, what players will be playing with everything on the line?

What quarterback will be wanting it more the "Oh gee, is that car for me because I just won another Superbowl?" punk, or will it be the "Man, I got something to prove!" quarterback?

Will it be the coach that looks to the other with distain, or the coach who feel respect and admiration for the other?

The Patriots are done.  Yeah, I said it and I may get a nasty reply or two, but I tell it like it is from the gut, not from stats or an in depth knowledge of the players or their stats.

Statistics do not tell the whole story.

They don't tell you about the mindset of the team, or momentum, or fate.

This blog focuses on those aforementioned intangibles.

Heck, I live for that.  That is what makes life exciting!

I have been telling you for almost a year how good this Jets team is.  The problem is nobody is listening.

Nobody listened when I said they would go 8-8 back in July, nobody listened when I predicted that they would split with the Patriots this year, nobody listened when I told them how good this Jets team could be.

Heck, I have been a relationship long enough not to let being ignored bother me.

If I am wrong?  So what!  The Jets are a team built on the future, on the way up.

They are a young team who has found the right balance between smarts and strengths.

I am not afraid to say that I am afraid of the Patriots, because I am.

I am also afraid FOR the Patriots, because all the pressure is on them this weekend.

The pressure is not on Chad Pennington, Tom Brady will have to "shoulder" this load.

A note to the Jets: Enjoy it, have fun!

Our team is built on the future, not for today.

But we will beat the Patriots, this Sunday, and we will advance ant the Patriots will go home.
I GUARANTEE IT!