New York Jets: While You Were Away

After an impressive win over the Arizona Cardinals in week four, the New York Jets headed into the bye week with a 2-2 record and a new found confidence. The offense looked to hit its stride, at least aparently, as they put up historic numbers and the defense took advantage of every Kurt Warner miscue.

The team enjoyed a four-day break from practice as the majority of them headed to their offseason homes to spend time with their families.

While they were away, things in the AFC East got a little more interesting as week five's theme was upset.

The Miami Dolphins and the San Diego Chargers, two teams the Jets have already played, faced each other.

While the Chargers were favored against the lowly Fins, it would be Miami who would have the last laugh. Thanks to good clock management and a lackluster Philip Rivers, the fish managed to pull off their second successive win and double their win total from last year.

This would mark their second upset of the season, having defeated the New England Patriots a week before their bye. They now share the same record as the Jets, but have a tad harder schedule in the coming weeks.

Elsewhere, the Buffalo Bills suffered their first loss of the season after being thrashed by the Cardinals 41-17.

They also lost QB Trent Edwards to a concussion after a hit by Adrian Wilson in just the third play of the game. J.P. Losman, Edwards' replacement, had a fair day, passing for 220 yards and connecting on a touchdown. However, he was no match for the hungry Cards, who seeked to restore their image after an embarrassing loss last week at the hands of the Jets.

Despite losing, the Bills still sit in first, with a 4-1 record heading into their bye week. However, the future of Edwards remains uncertain as of Monday.

Rounding off the division, the Patriots got back in the win column with a "W" over the San Francisco 49'ers by the count of 30-21.

Two touchdowns by Kevin Faulk and a deep catch from Randy Moss helped bring calm to a team whose unbeaten record was stopped by the least likely of teams just two weeks prior. Now 3-1, the Pats look to gain ground on the Bills as they meet the up and down Chargers in San Diego next Sunday.

When the Jets return to action on Sunday it will be against the Cincinnati Bengals, a team that has yet to win a game this season. Their 0-5 start can be credited to a tough schedule that has included Dallas, New York (Giants), and Tennessee. 

The "Ocho Cinco" curse is due to be broken with a team that boasts strong receivers (in Chad John and T.J. Houshmandzadeh) and a very sound QB (in Carson Palmer). None of their losses have been blowouts and they almost won at the Meadowlands in week three, something the Jets must consider.

Fortunately for them, they have had strong responses after their bye weeks in the past. Plus, with iron man Brett Favre in the mix and a schedule handed down by god himself, the rest of the 2008 campaign could be very good to the Jets.