National Football League

Jets' season lies in the hands of QB

Published Nov. 27, 2011 12:00 a.m. ET

foxsports

I think everyone knows by now that I’m not a big Rex Ryan fan. But that was a nice and also necessary comeback by his Jets on Sunday. They rallied to beat Buffalo and Mark Sanchez passed for four touchdowns. It was a career high for Sanchez, but it wasn’t a convincing win for the Jets, that’s for sure.

The Bills have been stumbling and are pretty short on personnel. But they gave the Jets everything they had. Ryan Fitzpatrick was back in the groove with three touchdown passes and no interceptions.

I didn’t get Stevie Johnson’s touchdown celebration when he pretended to shoot himself in the leg. He was mocking Jets receiver Plaxico Burress, who spent two years in prison for doing exactly that – in the process, ruining his Giants’ career. I guess Johnson apologized for that stunt. But, boy, what’s wrong with these guys? And this silly celebration drew a penalty and it basically ended up leading to a Jets’ touchdown.

Going forward, Sanchez will be the key as to whether Jets make it to the playoffs. He’s going to have to make good decisions down the stretch and be productive. The Jets don’t have a good enough running game to scare the better teams right now. New York’s defense doesn’t look to be as dominant as it used to be, either. The Jets definitely aren’t intimidating anybody.

The thing about the Jets is they have lost twice to the Patriots. And did you see Tom Brady and those guys smoke Philadelphia Sunday? Nobody is catching the Patriots in the East. Yes, the playoffs are another season. The Patriots haven’t won a playoff game in a while and I guess that’s the hope of the Jets. They beat the Patriots last season. And Baltimore has gone there and beaten Brady, too.

All of that makes sense to me. The Patriots aren’t a dominant team. I say that because their defense still struggles defending the pass. They are still last in the NFL. That means in the playoffs, in a one-game season, they could have a bad day on offense and anything can happen.

This is what AFC teams are hoping for right now.: a second chance at New England. Baltimore and Pittsburgh will be in the playoffs and I do like what Andy Dalton is doing in Cincinnati. He’s winning and keeping the Bengals in the race. Out west, the Raiders look too good.

In the NFC playoff race, I want to say that the Cowboys are back. They are in first place. And they can decide their own fate in December with two big games against the Giants. The Giants really have to win Monday night in New Orleans, but I’m not sure they can.

The Cowboys scared me a bit on Thanksgiving. I didn’t like seeing Tony Romo throwing two interceptions against the Dolphins. He had been playing turnover-free ball. If he goes back to his old gambling ways … well, that’s not a good thing.

The important fact about Dallas is pretty soon they will be getting cornerback Mike Jenkins and receiver Miles Austin back. Those are two very good players for the stretch run. The Cowboys can run the ball and Romo does have a lot of weapons.

But after going to Detroit and watching Green Bay win 27-15, the Packers are pretty special. Aaron Rodgers makes the game look so easy. His arm is special and he never seems to panic. He’s totally under control at all times.

Now, Jordy Nelson had a so-so game in Detroit, but it didn’t matter because James Jones came to play, hauling in a 65-yard touchdown. And Rodgers can always count on Greg Jennings, who is as good as any anybody.

The Packers don’t have the same shutdown defense they had last season – and I don’t know why that is -- but Clay Matthews can bring it. He overpowered some huge offensive tackles for Detroit. He lifted Jeff Backus right off the ground. And Charles Woodson stole a pass from a Lion for an interception. The guy can still play after all these years.

I know that commissioner Roger Goodell and his men in New York met Sunday to decide on Ndamukong Suh’s fate, whether the suspension is going to be one or two games. I’m curious what that decision is going to be. The Lions need Suh in their lineup, but they don’t need him like that.

As a player, I loved knowing Mean Joe Greene was my teammate. You need tough guys as teammates, guys who aren’t going to take any crap from the opposition. That’s why I would want Suh on my team. He’s nasty and he’s also a very good defensive tackle. He just has to mature and learn that he must deal with his emotions. He can’t just do whatever he wants out there, tearing off helmets and stomping on arms, or whatever he did on Thursday.

Suh needs to start listening to his older teammates and his coaches about how to conduct himself. And if he gets suspended for two more games that will really hurt the Lions’ playoff chances.

The Lions do have a great future, though. Matthew Stafford has a great arm and you have to remember with all the injuries in his first two seasons, he’s barely played a full season worth of games. He still has a lot to learn, but he can sure fire the football.

And Calvin Johnson, just standing on the sidelines next to him and watching him, it’s difficult to explain how big he is. I’d be throwing him the ball as many times as I could. The Lions needs another receiver, I think, to help open up the passing game.