AFC Divisional Round: Why the New England Patriots Send the New York Jets Packin

On Sunday, January 16th at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts, the New York Jets play the New England Patriots in a rubber match. They've been given the opportunity to redeem themselves after a crushing 45-3 defeat on Monday Night Football to their division rival.

However, somehow I don't think it will be that easy. You see, the Patriots are on a roll and the Jets are their first foe on the way to Super Bowl XLV in Dallas, Texas on February 6th, 2011.

Since day one of training camp, Rex Ryan has been shooting his mouth off with his bold proclamations and anointing his team Super Bowl Champions. I think it's great that a coach would claim to have that much confidence in his team before the season has even started, but he also didn't know he was going to have to come through Foxboro to get there.

In the ensuing slides, you will see five reasons why the Patriots will send the overrated Jets home packing for the offseason!

Rex Ryan

From day one of the NFL season Ryan continually put his foot in his mouth. Before an impressive last second field goal road win in Indy, to advance to the AFC Divisional playoff game with the Patriots, Ryan was quoted this past week as stating: "Nobody studies like Peyton Manning. I know Tom Brady thinks he does and all that stuff," Ryan said. "I think there's probably a little more help from Bill Belichick with Brady than there is with Peyton Manning."

Now, either Ryan doesn't care about what he says, which may be obvious, or he's just plain stupid, which may also be obvious.

Brady and the Patriots are the last team on the planet that need bulletin board material and Ryan just continues to give them a selection of quotes to post for the world to see.

Before the season formally started, Brady told Boston radio station WEEI that he hated the Jets. 

Mark Sanchez

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EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - SEPTEMBER 19: Mark Sanchez #6 of the New York Jets fumbles the ball after being sacked by Gerard Warren #92 of the New England Patriots during their game on September 19, 2010 at the New Meadowlands Stadium in East Rutherford, Ne

People, I hate to tell you this but he's just not that good! Did he improve from a year ago? Yes he did. But he's not good enough to lead his team to a Super Bowl, especially having to beat the Patriots in a key playoff game to get there. 

In postseason play, Sanchez is 3-1 with four touchdowns to three interceptions, a 59.6% completion rate and an 83.2 passer rating.

Belichick's defense will confuse Sanchez, he's likely to throw one or two picks and give the game away. At this point in his career he's just not good enough, smart enough or experienced enough to beat Belichick and the Patriots.

If the Jets were to win, it wouldn't be due to the likes of Sanchez. 

New England Patriots Have the No. 1 Offense in the NFL

Rick Stewart/Getty Images

ORCHARD PARK, NY - DECEMBER 26: Danny Woodhead #39, Benjarvus Green-Ellis #42, and Fred Taylor #21 of the Patriots celebrate a touchdown in the first quarter against the Buffalo Bills at Ralph Wilson Stadium on December 26, 2010 in Orchard Park, New York

It's not old news, the Patriots have the No. 1 ranked offense in the NFL averaging 32.4 points per game. 

Whether it's Deion Branch, Wes Welker, Danny Woodhead, the two rookie tight-ends of Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez or the law firm of BenJarvus Green-Ellis, it really doesn't matter; there's always someone there to fill the gap.

Since the Patriots last loss in Cleveland, they've been steamrolling playoff teams such as the Pittsburgh Steelers, Indianapolis Colts, Chicago Bears, Green Bay Packers and, yes, the J-E-T-S by averaging 37.4 points per game (this includes defensive scoring).   

Bill Belichick

Elsa/Getty Images

FOXBORO, MA - NOVEMBER 08: Head coach Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots looks on from the sideline in the first half against the Miami Dolphins on November 8, 2009 at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

There's no question that when Belichick retires he will arguably go down as one of the greatest coaches in the history of the NFL.

He is the only head coach in NFL history to win three Super Bowl championships in a four-year span. In his nine seasons as Patriots head coach, Belichick has won 116 games—which is already more than any other head coach in NFL history through his first 10 seasons with a team. His postseason record is 15-4 with a .789 winning percentage.

He rarely loses to a team he sees more than once in the same season. Belichick deserves serious consideration for The Coach of the Year for reason stated in my last article. See link below:

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/559066-nfls-coach-of-the-year-is-there-anyone-more-deserving-than-bill-belichick

He is without a doubt, ONE of the biggest reasons the Patriots defeat the Jets in the AFC Divisional playoff game, do I need say more?

Tom Brady

Jim Rogash/Getty Images

FOXBORO, MA - DECEMBER 19: Quarterback Tom Brady #12 of the New England Patriots looks on during warm-ups before playing against the Green Bay Packers at Gillette Stadium on December 19, 2010 in Foxboro, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images)

My god where do I begin? Well, Brady is on his way to winning his second MVP award and has played nearly perfect football this year throwing for 36 touchdowns to only four interceptions and a passer rating of 111.

Brady enters this year's playoffs as the second winningest quarterback in NFL playoff history among signal callers who have made at least 10 starts. In 18 playoff games Brady has thrown 28 touchdowns to 14 different receivers. 

Bottom line, Brady is one the greatest postseason quarterbacks ever, plain and simple, he just knows how to win.