Linear Thinking: Jets Offensive Line Key to New York's Super Bowl Hopes

The New York Jets have been making all the right moves this postseason and the next logical step in their march to win a Super Bowl championship could be to try to use their hulking offensive line to punish the speedy but undersized Indianapolis Colts defense.

As the Jets travel to Indianapolis to face the Colts in Sunday’s AFC Championship game, their meteoric rise has correctly been linked to the guiding power of rookie head coach Rex Ryan, the quarterback-alienating forces of cornerback Darrelle Revis and the poise of Mark Sanchez, but New York’s talented, powerful offensive line continues to propel the team to stratospheric heights.

The Jets were the best rushing team in the NFL this season at 172.2 yards a game, thanks in no small part to an unmatched offensive line.

The line has opened up big holes for rookie running back Shonn Greene and fellow Jets running back Thomas Jones. Greene has averaged 5.98 yards per carry in the postseason, an incredible stat considering most teams’ first concern is to stop the run in the postseason.  

Greene rushed for 135 yards in New York’s 24-14 win against the Cincinnati Bengals in the wild card round and 128 yards in last week’s 17-14 divisional win against the San Diego Chargers.

Greene only averaged 7.7 attempts a game in the regular season but he’s averaged 22 carries per game in the postseason and his game-breaking ability was on full display on 39-yard touchdown explosion against the Bengals and a 53-yard heartbreaker for a touchdown against the Chargers.

The offensive line that has paved the way throughout this remarkable playoff run was meticulously selected to form one of the biggest, most intimidating offensive lines in football.

Four of the five members are NFL first-round picks and the line has confronted the tough task of reducing the typical horrible effects of starting a rookie quarterback and helped the Jets overcome Sanchez’s rocky start to his NFL career.

The Jets started 3-0 before losing six of their next seven games for a 4-6 mark. Instead of mailing the season in, the Jets won five of their last six games and haven’t squandered their fortunate playoff opportunity. Sanchez threw 12 touchdowns and 20 interceptions this season, including a five-interception game against the Buffalo Bills in Week Six and a four-interception game against the New England Patriots in Week 11.

But Jets general manager Mike Tannenbaum must have known that Sanchez would be surrounded by one of the best offensive lines in football when he drafted the USC product with the fifth overall selection in the last year’s NFL draft.

When Tannenbaum was promoted to Jets general manager in 2006, he used the team’s first two first-round selections on what would become future Pro Bowl linemen and the foundation of a team that has a great mix of experience and youthful talent.

Center Nick Mangold, the No. 29 overall pick in the 2006 NFL Draft, has started every game since arriving in the Big Apple and his hunger has launched him to consecutive Pro Bowl selections and a spot on this season’s NFL All-Pro squad.

The fourth overall pick in the 2006 draft, left tackle D’Brickashaw Ferguson took time to develop at the toughest position on the line, but has blossomed into a Pro Bowl player in his fourth NFL season.

One lineman in particular has made his mark on the NFL and should be a future Pro Football Hall of Famer.

Left guard Alan Faneca is the cream of the crop, an All-Pro and Pro Bowler the last nine seasons and a key member of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 2005 Super Bowl championship team who brings veteran leadership along with the swagger and confidence it takes to punish defensive linemen.

Right tackle Damien Woody is a former Pro Bowler with two championship rings he earned with the New England Patriots’ 2001 and 2003 Super Bowl-winning teams.

The Jets will try to counteract the superb pass-rushing ability of Colts’ defensive ends Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis with an intense commitment to the running game.

The formula has worked well thus far as the Jets dispatched the Cincinnati Bengals in a 24-14 win to open the playoffs and a 17-14 victory over the San Diego Chargers in the divisional round.

Yet, in the now infamous Week 16 matchup between the Colts and Jets, Indianapolis Colts head coach Jim Caldwell pulled his starters in the third quarter when the team was up 15-10. The Colts would squander the lead and lose the game and their quest for an undefeated season.

However, Freeney, who starred at Syracuse in upstate New York, may have been one of the few Colts looking to prove something in a game that was apparently meaningless to the Colts who had already clinched home-field advantage in the playoffs.

Freeney notched two sacks and the Colts’ speedy defensive starters held the Jets offense in check.

The game meant a lot more to the Jets and New York’s running game was back on track against the Colts substitutes as the Jets pulled away to win the game 29-15.

While the Jets offensive starters couldn’t score on the Colts starting defensive unit, but New York has been solid in offensively in its last three games, including two playoff wins on the road.

The ultimate test of speed vs. strength will take place as the 6’1”, 268-pound Freeney tries to get past 6’6” 310-pound Ferguson.

The Jets will need to use the running game to keep Peyton Manning off the field, giving their defense a rest allowing their offense to do what it does best: attack the defense at the line of scrimmage and keep pounding away, eventually breaking the will of a defense designed to prevent the big play.

New York offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer has ball control offense in his DNA; his father Marty is one of the most conservative play-callers in NFL playoff history, and with the Jets’ No. 1 scoring defense and No. 1 rushing offense, Sanchez shouldn’t have the game in his hands.

Ryan’s flamboyance, Revis’ shutdown ability, and the heroic exploits of rookie sensation Sanchez, yield plenty of great stories and interesting angles, but the Jets have been built around a great offensive line.