2011 NFL Playoffs: Patriots Play Footloose With Jets and Get Burned

Okay, let me be the first to state the obvious: I was wrong. I had the Patriots winning this weekend's match up in the divisional round of the playoffs but as it turns out, the Patriots were outplayed, out-coached, and ran out of time. This game was won in the first half when New England fell behind five points before halftime. 

In what had become a familiar refrain for New England fans all over, we all expected the Patriots' opponents to go toe-to-toe with them until they make some questionable decision in the fourth quarter or left just enough time on the clock for Tom Brady to lead a game winning drive capped by a last second field goal. It turns out that the Jets too had learned from their mistakes against the Pats and were ready to take a bold step forward. 

The New York Jets were bold, rushing for a combined 129 yards on 29 carries that allowed second-year quarterback, Mark Sanchez to dictate the pace of the game with timely passes and catches by his receivers. Sanchez was a Brady-like 16 of 25 for 194 yards and three touchdowns and a 127.3 passer rating after starting the game off a little shaky but quickly found his rhythm with precise passes to his receivers Braylon Edwards, Santonio Holmes, and veteran running back Ladanian Tomlinson who finally makes a return to the AFC Championship game. 

It wasn't that the Patriots weren't competitive, but it was evident early in the game that the magic of the regular season was gone. Brady looked human and the Jets' defense held their prolific offense to three field goals in the first half. As expected, the Patriots came storming back in the second half but the combination of a bend but don't break Jets defense and an offense that kept putting up points and milking the clock was insurmountable for the Patriots.

In the week long saga of Who Said What?, the Jets managed to back-up all their bluster while dragging the typically yeoman-like Patriots into a war of words in the media—something the Patriot players are ill-equipped for and would eventually end up costing wide receiver, Wes Welker a start in the game—a nod, I presume on the part of Bill Belichick to Rex Ryan's wife and family and team rules. While Belichick may play fast and loose with rules in competition, something tells me he's the kind of guy that likes to keep business and family separate and allowing Ryan and his wife to become the (public) butt of jokes at Patriots new conferences would mean endorsing criticism of coaches private lives by players and we all know even "The Hoody" has his faults off the field. 

This win proved two things: the 42-pint loss in Week 13 was an aberration, and that the Jets are the NFL's version of teenagers—predicting their behavior or response is impossible.