Narrowly Scoped Week 15 Recap

Quote(s) of the Week: The "Hoody" Edition

• "Awesome" - What Bill Belichick said to Eric Mangini after he said "Good game" when they met at mid-field for their post game handshake. Sense a tinge of sarcasm in that quote?
  
  
• "Good to win in the division. Good to sweep the Jets" - It's not the actual quote per se by Coach Belichick that amused me - It's the way he said it, momentarily stepping outside of his infamous monotone to relish in a victory over a now 3-11 team. Extra emphasis placed on his quote's second sentence.

Jets @ Patriots

If we know one thing about the Patriots after their victory over the Jets, its that they're hanging on every word Al Gore has warned us about regarding the environment. Tom Brady has probably studied An Inconvenient Truth as much as he has broken down opposing game film. Coach Belichick is urging every player to buy themselves and family members a Hummer, and has mandated that all forms of car pooling are now in direct violation of team policy. Owner Bob Craft has decided it may be in their best interest to leave the lights on in Gillette Stadium 24/7.

In other words: If the Patriots want to continue their dominance, or more importantly sustain their winning streak throughout the latter stages of January, then they better do everything in their power to speed up Global Warming. The New England offense was at its best benign against the Jets, and that's not because the Jets suddenly morphed into the '85 Bears on defense. I mean David Harris is good, but he's still a far cry from Mike Singletary. Actually, the Patriots didn't even try to be dynamic offensively in the face of adverse weather conditions on Sunday; which is not to say that if they were faced with extremely inclimate conditions in the playoffs they wouldn't be successful on offense. What it does say is that certain weather conditions can greatly limit their playbook, thus potentially transforming them into strictly a run-first team. And though the Patriots proved they could successfully run the ball on Sunday against the Jets, they were far from being impressive enough to convince me they could win a game in which they were forced to run the ball 25+ times against the Jaguars, Colts or Steelers. That's why New England's road to the Super Bowl - all games played in the frozen tundra that often is Gillette Stadium - will be much tougher than the actual Super Bowl played in the friendly confines of a warm weather arena. Then again, if Al Gore is vindicated and the New England weather remains relatively calm on the two Sundays in January when the Patriots play football THEN you can start engraving their 4th Lombardi Trophy.

Another way of looking at Sunday's Jets @ Patriots game is that New York didn't lose to the 2007 Patriots. They actually lost to the 2001 Patriots.

The New England victory was relatively unimpressive compared to their usual 17+ point routes.The 2007 Patriots dominance is predicated on fast-paced offensive dominance which results in the opposing team becoming fatally one-dimensional as they attempt to keep pace with Brady and company. On the other hand, the pre-2007 Patriots would by modest point differentials - with confusing defensive schemes, opportune special teams plays, an effective run attack, and just the right dosage of quarterback game management and 4th quarter quarterback heroics to eke out a 3 point win - regardless of the opponent. And that's how they won Sunday. SOoO, in reponse to my newly acquired question marks about New England's ability to win in harsh January weather conditions, I think a New England fan with strong written and/or verbal skills could successfully persuade me 1) Sunday's new offensive low-point against the Jets was merely a blip on the radar AND more importantly 2) That the 2007 Patriots are really not a facsimile of the pre-Super Bowl Colts AND still have the moxy, saavy, grit, and coaching advantage to beat any opponent in a grind-out game, though it may only be by a field goal. BUT until I meet that Patriot fan who also happens to be captain of his college debate team and can thus convince me the 2007 Patriots are built for January, or just until the Patriots prove to me otherwise, I'll still choose the Patriots to win the Super Bowl, but not without a significant amount of of newly acquired skepticism.

Enough about the Patriots. Let's talk some Jets...

As much as I want to, I will not disillusion myself into believing the Jets defense is a force... yet. I'll chalk up a good portion of their success defensively against the New England offense to inclimate weather and Mangini knowing the enemy. Still, the Jets defense has improved leaps and bounds in recent weeks AND they did successfully stymie the Patriots record setting offense better than any other defense did in 13 previous weeks! The defensive nucleus is in place:

Kerry Rhodes: ELITE Safety and biggest Pro Bowl snub of 2007. Again, E L I T E .

David Harris: Quietly turning into the bargain version of Brian Urlacher. Harris is all-ova-da-place!

Darelle Revis: He'll make one coverage error each week, but this rookie is holding his own at corner against the likes of Terrell Owens, Braylon Edwards, and Randy Moss.

Factor in: The other improving pieces on defense, a top-4 Pick in a 2008 NFL Draft loaded with defensive talent, a potential abundance of draft picks in the same defense-loaded draft from possible Jonathan Vilma and Chad Pennington trades.

I'll take my chances with this defense in 2008 and beyond, though I understand the larger issue(s) at hand for the Jetropolitans:

The reason why Kellen Clemens missing the remainder of the Patriots game after only 2 plays from scrimmage is alarming is not because he was seriously injured OR because we should begin to question his toughness. His rib is fine and from what I've seen of Clemens I can tell he's a tough kid. The bigger issue is that Clemens probably could have returned against the Patriots but Coach Mangini decided to hold him out in favor of Chad Pennington. And the move made sense - Pennington's intelligence and experience gave the Jets the best chance of winning against a Belichick-led defense, and Chad did a fine job - he actually had better statistics than Tom Brady on Sunday. BUT now the question that is begged is whether or not Clemens has what it takes to be a franchise quarterback; a quarterback that you can build around. I've heard more than one NY sports radio personality express doubts about Clemens future since this past Sunday and just the expression of those doubts scares the life out of me as a Jets fan, for the simple fact that an NFL team is going nowhere without a dependable quarterback that can make all the plays. Just ask the Giants.

BUT despite the whispers of Clemens doubters and his recent hardships at the helm, I'll remain with my original prognostication of his future. He can make every throw. I like his pocket awareness. I like the way he exudes confidence. I like that he can make plays with his legs when need-be. Once he goes through an entire training camp as a starter, gains complete command over the playbook, and matures in his decision making and his progression of defensive reads, he'll be just fine.

What I didn't like about the Jets Sunday

1. Justin McCareins dropping another TD pass in a HUGE spot
   
   
2. Justin McCareins dropping a punt in coverage that would have pinned the Patriots inside their own 2 yard line.
   
   
3. The fact that Justin McCareins is still donning the Green and White.
   
   
4. I understand Mangini wanted to use the 'every trick in the book' approach against a far superior Patriots team, BUT this is the NFL and I can only see Brad Smith run an unsuccessful option so many times without throwing up in my mouth.
   
   
5. The Jets poor offensive line play. They allowed 5 sacks against New England and mind you that Pennington isn't taking too making 7 step drops. The fact of the matter is that blue chip OT prospect D'Brickishaw Ferguson has actually taken a step backwards in his sophomore season, like backwards as in an opposing Defensive End blowing him backwards off the snap of the ball for a sack. That and the Jets badly miss Pete Kendall at guard.

I did love the palpable hate for Belichick that Mangini displayed in the subtext of his of his post game press conference - the first time I've seen those feelings surface publicly. When that reporter asked Mangini what Belichick said to him after the game, you can sense that it took every bit of his strength NOT to say "Who gives a s*** what that cheating bastard said."

Redskins @ Giants

You know things aren't going well for your team, when while on the sidelines your coach seems to be mimicking my exact mannerisms and behavior of when I was a young boy watching Hulk Hogan lose both his WWF title and perception of immortality against the Undertaker and his devastating Tombstone Pile Driver.

But hey, this is the new Tom Coughlin. He's more laid back, more even-keeled. Anyway...

I'm not going to write the same commentary I do every week about the Giants. I mean, how many different ways can I evaluate Eli Manning's incompetence, allude to a collapse, call-out the defense to make a stand when it matters, or harp on the vulnerabilities of the secondary? Probably several hundred ways, but that's beside the point, I'll save the spiel for another day. The facts are simply:

1) Manning played poorly again, but gets a small break because...

2) His receivers played the worst game of any receiving corps I've seen in recent memory. Every time Manning would begin showing signs of life a Giants receiver would drop a ball that hit him the numbers.

3) The defense was solid but it still gave up 22 points to a 3rd string QB in freezing conditions and on its home field. You can compare this performance to a pitcher getting a loss after giving up 4 earned runs and losing the game 4-2. Sometimes only allowing 4 runs is enough to win BUT sometimes another pitcher pitches better than you and your team loses. Though the Giants defense put forth a decent effort the fact remains that they were "out-pitched" by the 'Skins. The Washington defense was better Sunday than the Giants defense.

4) The Giants did not run the ball nearly enough on Sunday.

Now the Giants need to think about seeking the counsel of Mike Vick, Pernell Peace and other Bad Newz Kennels collaborators because its going to dog fight the next 2 weeks. A loss to Bills this upcoming Sunday, which is not inconceivable considering the potential result of an already inaccurate Eli Manning throwing for his team's playoff livelihood in subzero temperatures up North, and the Giants will head into Week 17 in what could be a MUST-WIN game against the Patriots. Bill Belichick game-planning for the right to go 16-0 and against Eli Manning sans Jeremy Shockey is not a winning combination, any way you slice it.

OR.. The Giants can beat Buffalo and relax.
OR.. Lose to Buffalo, Lose to New England, and pray for mathematical help.

Remember, this is the NFC - don't be surprised if the latter happens. It's would be the fitting end of another promising season in the Tom Coughlin Era. It wasn't too long ago we were talking about 12 wins for the Giants.

I'm an Idiot because...

1. I'm on record, on this very website, admitting the Vikings were a bad team when I was an early believer. I even have a Vikings hat as a keepsake from a 2005 trip to the Land of 10,000 lakes.

I'm a Genius because...

1. I'm also on record, on this very website, predicting a Miami win OVER the Ravens. Congratulations Cleo Lemon.

I'm Angry Because...

1. Zero Jets were selected to the AFC Pro Bowl roster. Kerry Rhodes should have been a lock at safety, especially with Troy Polamalu having a sub par year (by his standards) AND Leon Washington needed to be part of the AFC Special Teams in some capacity. And can somebody throw Center Nick Mangold a bone.

What to look for @ ZN.com this week:

• Week 16 NFL Pick
  
• A Special Holiday Coffee Edition, with contributions from a multitude of diverse writers. Email last minute contributions to znapolitano@gmail.com.