Jets News and Notes, Monday Night Reaction

Watching this New England game is making me salivate want to kill someone. New England beat Buffalo 25-24 in a game that looked for most of the game that they were going to lose until #$%@%@#! Leodis McKelvin fumbled the kickoff, handing the Patriots victory. I had an entire post written out about how happy I was about this game and how much I was looking forward to smacking them around, and now I have to edit it all. I still can't wait for Sunday, but as a lifetime Patriot hater, this one hurts. Thank goodness there's another football game, or I'd be stewing over that all night. I still probably will...

New England didn't look bad, but the fact that they lost should have lost at home to a team that looked to be in turmoil just a week ago is would have been shocking. They dominated many of the yardage categories, but the offense wasn't totally crisp until the last little drive to win the game, and the defense sprung a few leaks.

For the Jets, that game can only give you more confidence. The Patriots look more like the 10-6 team that took the field last season than the one who took the NFL by storm in 2007. Buffalo's touchdown drive to make it a two-score game late in the fourth quarter was something that you rarely see against a Bill Bellichick defense. They looked like a good, not great team, and at home with Rex Ryan's defense, there is no reason the Jets don't have a good chance of finally beating the Patriots at Giants Stadium. The Jets have a better offensive line than Buffalo and very capable weapons, so there's no reason to think they won't have some success, too.

Brady will get better as he shakes the rust off, and he looked pretty good tonight. Clearly, his timing is off a little bit, and that will only improve with time. But the Bills defense is good, not great, and the Jets' defense looks like it will be near the top in the NFL. They survived one test against Houston. New England's offensive line will hold up better in pass protection, but that just means they won't completely disintegrate like Houston's did.

But that game is six days from now, and we have plenty of time to get ready for that. But I already have a feeling this will be a long week... It's definitely going to be a long night...

*Rex Ryan delivered an impassioned speech that drove some players to tears and helped motivate the team for week one. Kris Jenkins had the quote of the day.

“Honestly,” he said, “it’s kind of hard to put into words but we have come to the conclusion that we need to call the NFLPA and put him on the banned substances list because whatever he said was performance-enhancing, definitely. You could just tell by the excitement that a lot of the guys believe in the system. We really think this is going to be a structured year for us. We are just trying to make sure that we do everything we can to keep this coach around.”

That camaraderie can't hurt, can it?

*The Jets' defense will receive a lift this coming Sunday when DE Shaun Ellis returns. Unfortunately, his return meant a pink slip for one Jet, and the guy who was let go was CB Marquice Cole. Chances are, the guy was going to be him or Drew Coleman, two cornerbacks who were both left on the inactive list. Look for Cole to be resigned to the practice squad if he clears waivers.