| Dwayne Smith. 17th September, 2009 - 8:10 pm
 The complete dismantling of the Houston Texans by the New York Jets was a confirmation of promises made in the off-season. The Jets promised an aggressive and fearless defensive attack, smart quarterback play and a continuation of a strong running game. These are some of the five things that can be taken away from the Jets 24-7 victory in week one as the team prepares for the New England Patriots.
1. The defense is already in sync.
While it could be believed that a solid Jets defense would eventually become a punishing, ball hawking squad; how could you possibly expect that they would gel in their first game? There were no obvious defensive breakdowns, the pass rush was unforgiving and the Texan running game led by Steve Slaton was nullified. The impressive thing about this was the fact that the Texans brought in the third ranked offense from 2008 and they rarely lose a game in Houston with Quarterback Matt Schaub starting. This was not a pushover team.
2. The ground game was effective, with the help of the defense.
At the end of the first half, Thomas Jones had one yard on the ground. By the end of the game he had 107 of New York’s 190 rushing yards. New York ran the ball 42 times in this game, contributing to having the ball for a 39/21 time of possession advantage. As impressive as this is, the Jets completely dominated the second half in controlling the ball for 23 minutes to seven for Houston.
3. QB Mark Sanchez was everything as advertised; smart, effective and a rookie.
With a pregame pep talk from Joe Namath, Sanchez took the reigns of the offense and looked like he’s been in the system for far longer than a preseason. With protection that rivals the Secret Service, the five linemen gave Sanchez all the time he needed for most of the day as he picked the Texans apart. It was clear the Texans were playing the run, daring Sanchez to beat them and he did, leading New York to a 10-0 halftime lead. Another major point here was that his coach and coordinator clearly did not treat him like a rookie, allowing him to take his shots. Ryan would say about Sanchez, “Mark is an NFL quarterback and all he has to do is just play.”
4. This defense will almost certainly get even better.
The big news here after the impressive start by the new Rex Ryan defense, is that two of the defensive stars on this team weren’t even playing. DE Shaun Ellis and OLB Calvin Pace will miss the beginning of the season serving suspensions. Pace was a free agent revelation last year as one of the rare pass rushers on the Jets defense and Ellis is a strong defensive lineman, perfectly suited for a 3-4 defense, in that he demands frequent double teams and will exploit most offensive linemen one on one. With these two players unavailable against the Texans, the Jets had the opportunity to bring new players into the action. Big plays by Jamal Westerman, Mike DeVito and Donald Strickland, illustrate the incredible depth this unit will have upon the return of the suspended stars.
5. For the first time most can remember, the New York Jets have a swagger.
From dancing over the battered body of Texans QB Matt Schaub, Sanchez smiling after connecting on his passes to aggressive play calling with a lead by the Jets offense, this is a different team. How many times during the regimes of both Herman Edwards and Eric Mangini, did the Jets sit on leads? Choosing to run on 3rd and long and putting the defense on the line to close the game. Against the Texans, the Jets continued to attack even when Houston closed to 10 points in the fourth quarter. Ryan and offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer displayed this on a 3rd and 3, following the bad interception by Sanchez. Whereas the Jets would typically run the ball in order to keep the clock moving, the Jets took a shot. Forty yards later Tight End Dustin Keller kept the chains moving and forced the Texans to respect the pass. This set up the closing 38 yard scoring run by Thomas Jones.
While all these positives make Jets fans look ahead to matching the one crowning achievement in the team’s history, the New England Patriots perhaps make the perfect opponent. With an 8 game winning streak in front of Jets fans in the Meadowlands, New England is the immovable force in the way of any success this team can achieve. Could there be a better way for the New York Jets to begin their final season in Giants Stadium than to end this streak? |
