Two Bills Drive

‘”I know what a team player Wayne is,” said Pennington. “He’s blocking and doing whatever it takes. He wants the ball and I’m going to get him the ball.” Unlikely often enough to satisfy Chrebet, as he has made selfishly obvious.’

‘The Jets are now 9-1 against Bledsoe, dating back to his days with New England and including 2-0 this season.’

‘The Jets gave the Bills a case of heartburn on both sides of the ball.’

‘Moulds and Price combined for only eight catches and 73 yards – 57 yards below their average.’

‘”I got nothing to say, so don’t waste your time,” was all Chrebet said yesterday, however, after having only one pass thrown in his direction during yesterday’s 31-13 win against Buffalo at the Meadowlands.’

‘The Jets did a fantastic job of attacking the Bills’ weaknesses on defense. Defensive coordinator Ted Cottrell did a nice job of disguising coverages, befuddling Bledsoe.’

‘The Jets turned two first-half interceptions into 14 points and got a sensational game from Martin (21 carries, season-high 120 yards, one TD), who ran harder and looked healthier than he has in at least a year. It was Martin’s third 100-yard game this season and the first time he’s hit the century mark in consecutive games since Games 14 and 15 last season.’

‘Beasley’s second interception of the season came when he timed his break perfectly on a slant pass intended for Peerless Price and grabbed a bullet from Bledsoe. “That ball just about knocked me over,” said Beasley, who returned the ball five yards to the Jets’ 42. “Your eyes get so big when the ball is coming at you like that. I just concentrated on catching the ball.”‘

‘If Martin felt any pain yesterday, he inflicted a good deal more of it by looking like the Martin of old for much of the Jets’ fourth straight win, darting up the middle on handoffs, skirting the end on pitchouts and dancing around defenders.’

‘When you need a crucial play, you go to your money player. Even if he has largely been written out of the playbook for much of this season. When it’s third down, it’s time for Wayne Chrebet.’

‘”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.’