Archives for November 25, 2002

‘”We knew who we were targeting,” special-teams coach Mike Westhoff said yesterday after the Jets’ 31-13 victory over the Bills. “It wasn’t anybody in particular. We weren’t crazy about what Polk had to say, so we kind of did get after him a little bit. We didn’t need a whole lot of motivation. I’m not a big believer in that, but he certainly provided it.”‘

‘Linebacker Sam Cowart delivered a message on the first possession of the game, sniffing out a screen pass from Drew Bledsoe to Henry and bringing down Henry with a facemask-to-facemask collision. Henry blacked out momentarily but missed only two plays.’

‘So Bledsoe dinked and Bledsoe dunked. He completed 21 of his 32 passes, but none of them went for more than 19 yards. Running back Travis Henry was the team’s leading receiver with seven catches, all on short dumpoffs.’

‘Refusing to sigh with relief after evening their record last week in Detroit, they dominated a solid Bills squad (5-6), one that entered the game with the NFL’s second-ranked passing game and sixth-ranked offense.’

‘He ran for a season-high 120 yards on 21 carries yesterday — 5.7 yards an attempt. It was his second consecutive game with more than 100 yards, and, most importantly, the Jets beat the Bills, 31-13, for their fourth victory in a row. It is no small coincidence the Jets’ rise in the standings has mirrored Martin’s return to health.’

‘This is as close as Testaverde, nothing but class all season, has come to saying he can accept the backup role and is leaning toward working out a deal to stay with the Jets next season. It will mean renegotiating a cut in salary for cap reasons, but Testaverde seems to understand that the Jets have found their quarterback of the present as well as future.’

‘Henry, who entered the game ranked sixth in the NFL in rushing with 874 yards rushing and nine touchdowns, was held to 83 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries in the Jets’ 31-13 victory at Giants Stadium. Henry broke off a 20-yard run in the third quarter, but the Jets held him in check for most of the game.’

‘”Anytime you hold the Bills to 13 points, that’s a good day, but even at that we felt we could’ve done better,” Cowart said of that crucial juncture. “We huddled up on the sideline and said, ‘Listen, man, do we want to be a great defense? We’ve got to go out and slam the door.'” Mission accomplished as Bledsoe was sacked by Mo Lewis and Sam Garnes, blitzing out of their “Mohawk” dime front, which features three down linemen. Bledsoe fumbled, with Josh Evans recovering at the Bills’ 48. One final three-and-out closed the deal.’

‘Had Pennington not gotten into the end zone, the deficit would have remained at 11 and the Bills, while taking over at their own 1, would have had the extra boost from a goal-line stand in their tanks. So it was an important decision by coach Herman Edwards, and an important play call by Hackett.’

‘The Jets were almost machine like, both offensively and defensively, in the way they subdued and dismantled Buffalo 31-13 before a sellout crowd at Giants Stadium yesterday.’

‘”Give New York credit — they played well, they executed well,” the coach said. “We obviously believe that we made too many mistakes. We had some opportunities, though, and we’ve got to capitalize on those when we’re down in there. We’ve got to do a better job at not turning the ball over and New York, they played well.”‘

‘After amassing a season-high 189 yards on the ground against the Detroit Lions last week, the Jets torched the Buffalo Bills’ 26th-ranked run defense for 155 yards in yesterday’s 31-13 triumph.’

‘The same team that had blown a 21-3 lead and lost to the Browns a month ago was now trifling with the Buffalo Bills, who can score points in a hurry.’

‘TURNING POINT: With the scored tied early in the second quarter, Bills cornerback Chris Watson flattened Jets kicker John Hall on a successful field-goal kick. The Jets, with new life and a first down, scored on their second try from the 1.’

‘”I think it’s just a reflection upon our team, the type of mentality we have right now,” Pennington said. “Whatever it takes to get the job done. Pretty, ugly, it doesn’t matter.”‘