The following blog was being updated from the Press Box at Giants Stadium during the Jets/Jaguars game on Sunday, Nov. 15.
In The Locker Room: I conducted interviews with Jack Del Rio, Maurice Jones-Drew, David Garrard, Shaun Ellis, David Harris and Jim Leonhard. Story will be posted here tomorrow, while the audio can be heard on ScottStanchak.com.
3:53 p.m.: Scobee kicked a field goal with time expiring to give the Jaguars the 24-22 victory. The Jets took the lead earlier in the quarter on a one-yard touchdown run by Shonn Greene. They failed, however, to convert the two-point conversion, which would have put them up by three. Feely also hit a 48-yard field goal in the fourth.
3:09 p.m.: I’ve seen sloppy, but there were back-to-back-to-back drives in this game that were just comical. First, Sanchez was intercepted by Quintin Groves, who had a wide-open path to the end zone, but tripped and fell four yards shy. Two plays later, Jones-Drew fumbled on the 3 yard line; the ball was recovered by the Jets. Two plays later, Sanchez hit Braylon Edwards for a 41 yard gain, but then he dropped the ball, giving it back to the Jaguars. All this back and forth resulted in exactly zero points. Still Jags 21, Jets 13.
2:21 p.m.: I think Garrard was jealous of Jones-Drew for running wild on the Jets defense so he decided to have at it himself. He took the ball in from 11 yards out with 10:52 remaining in the half for the score. It was Garrard’s second rushing touchdown of the season. Speaking of Jones-Drew, he was over 100 all-purpose yards only 16 minutes into the game. Jacksonville scored against about eight minutes later when Garrard hooked up with Sims-Walker for a 26-yard score. New York, meanwhile, put up points on the board, as well. This time Sanchez found an open Cotchery in the left corner of the end zone for their second touchdown of the season. Feely added another field goal with 30 seconds to go in the quarter. The Jaguars still lead 21-13.
Also of note: The Jags converted on 4th-and-4 two plays before the Sims-Walker touchdown.
1:40 p.m.: The Jaguars decided to defer after winning the coin toss, allowing the Jets the option to receive. On their first play from scrimmage, Sanchez rolled right and tried tossing the ball downfield to Jerricho Cotchery, but had it picked off by Rashean Mathis. Then, it was all Jones-Drew, who was handed the ball all five plays and took it in 33 yards out for the score. He looks really good right now, especially in picking up yardage quickly up the middle before being dragged down. Sanchez would find Cotchery two drives later, this time in the end zone for their second score of the day. Jay Feely added a field goal on their first offensive set following the interception. Sanchez has targeted Cotchery a lot today and must see a good advantage on that side of the ball.
Also of note: The Jags tried an onside kick, but failed. It was really close to being recovered, but the ball skipped out of bounds…Jaguars kicker Josh Scobee missed a 39-yard field goal after it hit the uprights.
Pre-Game: No big surprises on the injury report for either team. Dwight Lowery is starting on the outside for the Jets in place of Lito Sheppard. For Jacksonville, Sean Considine is starting a strong safety for Gerald Alexander. There is very little wind in the stadium today and the weather is cloudy and in the 60s.
Preview: It’s half way through the NFL season and we still aren’t quite sure what to make of the New York Jets. They’ve beaten very good teams (New England Patriots), but lost to some that are mediocre-at-best (Buffalo Bills). With a match-up against the Patriots on the horizon, today’s game against the Jacksonville Jaguars must end with a plus-one in the win column.
The Jets have proven that you can’t win without having at least a semi-reliable passing game. After Mark Sanchez’ five-pick game, head coach Rex Ryan said he wanted to simplify the playbook and take the ball out his quarterback’s hands more. He’s done that, but Sanchez has still only completed 53.3 percent of his passes and has 10 interceptions to eight touchdowns. The Jags do not have a great passing attack and this could be a confidence builder for the rookie.
Standing out on offense has been the Jets running backs. Before Leon Washington went down for the season with a broken leg, the Jets had the best one-two punch in the league. Jones has 704 yards and seven touchdowns, while Washington had 331 yards. Shonn Greene (192 yards, two touchdowns) has filled in nicely in Washington’s absense. If this portion of the Jets offense is not working, the Jets will lose.
Defensively, the Jets have the second best defense in the NFL, about one yard behind their co-tenants at Giants Stadium. Cornerback Darrelle Reevis will be paired up against Mike Sims-Walker this afternoon. Sims-Walker is having a breakout season for Jacksonville and leads the team with four touchdowns and 554 yards.
For Jacksonville, they too are 4-4. Similar to the Jets, they also rely heavily on their rushing attack. Maurice Jones-Drew is their stud back, who has a league-leading 11 touchdowns this season. He’ll be taking the ball from quarterback David Garrard, who has thrown for 1,867 yards, six touchdowns and five interceptions. I understand that he’s never gotten past the Wild Card round of the playoffs, but I still consider him one of the underrated passers in the NFL. It just so happens that he plays for the Jags.