The Big Choke

[piebaldpython***]

I just want to scream.........the IGGLES have a GOLDEN opportunity to make the playoffs. They are masters of their own destiny. Saturday nite, the Cowboys lose. Early Sunday afternoon, the Bucs loose. The door has gone from being ajar to WIDE open.
So, what do our IGGLES do?????????...........they come out FLAT and look about as uninspired as a team can be; tripped on the rug, bonked their heads on the door knob and LOST.......how the hell can that be????

[just strum]

I just want to scream.........the IGGLES have a GOLDEN opportunity to make the playoffs. They are masters of their own destiny. Saturday nite, the Cowboys lose. Early Sunday afternoon, the Bucs loose. The door has gone from being ajar to WIDE open.
So, what do our IGGLES do?????????...........they come out FLAT and look about as uninspired as a team can be; tripped on the rug, bonked their heads on the door knob and LOST.......how the hell can that be????

It could be worse - think Cleveland Browns.

Around here we use to say - "well, maybe next year". However, these days we say "GO CAVS"

[R_of_G]

As a Jets fan and a Bucs fan I'm having a difficult time empathizing with anyone else's team choking. Both of those teams had their destinies in their own hands weeks ago and decided to tank it.

Still, as a Jets fan, I can't be too disappointed. They have 9 wins which is 5 more than last season. If you do the math, it's over 100% improvement and that's hard to be too upset about. Nonetheless, this is a team that won in New England and in Tennessee so losing to Oakland, Seattle and San Francisco is simply unacceptable. I heard this morning that if they fail to make the playoffs that Eric Mangini may be fired as the coach and I would love to see that happen. He is so overrated as a coach. His whole staff is terrible. They refuse to call offensive plays that make sense for the offensive talent they have. They refuse to play a defense that makes sense at all. It's hard to blame the players too much when most of the time they are executing the plays that are called, they're just the wrong plays.

Like I said when we signed Favre, I don't expect miracles from the guy, not at age 39. I simply hope he has the same effect on the young QB's (Clemens and Ratliff) that he did on Aaron Rogers. Green Bay had a lousy season, but Rogers looked like he learned quite a bit from Favre, stuff you can't learn from just anyone.

[Andy]

the Jets sure spanked my Titans, they were on fire that day for sure.
Favre's leadership skills on the field ,in action, really make a difference.

[Bloozcat]

It could be worse - think Cleveland Browns.

Around here we use to say - "well, maybe next year". However, these days we say "GO CAVS"

I've got just one thing to say about that: BILL COWHER - 2009

[R_of_G]

the Jets sure spanked my Titans, they were on fire that day for sure.

Which is why I think the problem lies on the sidelines and not between the lines on the field. This team has plenty of talent. Thomas Jones is leading the AFC in rushing. Leading a conference that has LaDanian Tomlinson in it is pretty impressive. BTW, I think the Titans' Johnson is 2nd in the AFC so that's pretty damn impressive as well. The offensive line is much improved with the addition of Faneca and Woody. The addition of Dustin Keller gives us a TE with great hands and real intelligence. The defense added Kris Jenkins (having the best year of his career) and Calvin Pace, and Darrelle Revis is proving in his 2nd year that he is every bit the star CB in the making. The talent is there on both sides of the ball. They've shown they can beat teams like Tennessee and New England on the road. The problem is the coaching. Living in Florida, I've only gotten to see three games on tv so far. In all three of these games, the play calling has been horrible. I never liked Mangini and this season shows why. If they keep him on, they are just insuring another mediocre (at best) season.

Favre's leadership skills really make a difference.

And that's why I think regardless of the results on the field this season, it was a good move on the Jets part to get Brett. His performance on the field since the Titans game has been abysmal, but I still think he is having a positive impact on Clemens and Ratliff on the sidelines. Not many young QB's get to learn from someone with his resume. One (or both) of them is going to learn something that will help them down the line.

[just strum]

I've got just one thing to say about that: BILL COWHER - 2009

Yep, that's the buzz around town. A proven winner, ex-Browns player, ex-Browns assistant coach.

And he can make a mean guitar face.

[marnold***]

I'm a Lions fan. Don't even begin to consider thinking about mentioning "choking." They've got it down to a fine art. And the owner said that the current managing team will return next year. Apparently the only way things will change in Motown is for William Clay Ford to choke on a chicken bone.

[Bloozcat]

And that's why I think regardless of the results on the field this season, it was a good move on the Jets part to get Brett. His performance on the field since the Titans game has been abysmal, but I still think he is having a positive impact on Clemens and Ratliff on the sidelines. Not many young QB's get to learn from someone with his resume. One (or both) of them is going to learn something that will help them down the line.

It will be quite ironic if the Dolphins beat the Jets next weekend and take the AFC East in the process. After being scapegoated for years as the main poster boy for the Jets failure, Chad Pennington was unceremoniously kicked to the curb in the great rush by the Jets to sign Brett Favre, savior du jour of the franchise. So while Favre is presiding over the latest Jets late season slump, Pennington is quietly establishing himself as the leagues most efficient quarterback...and the single Dolphin player most responsible for the miraculous comeback this year.

I like Brett Favre, I always have; but for the Jets management to think that he alone was going to come in and cure the Jets pathology was very naive at best.

[piebaldpython***]

Marnold and Strum.........the IGGLES sucked for many a year, so I feel your pain. However, when your team isn't good and they play that way.....that isn't CHOKING. CHOKING refers to when you shoulda/woulda/coulda WON but DIDN'T........and LOST when the other team was less than stellar too.....that is a CHOKE. Sometimes, your team should WIN but they don't because the opponent played WAY OVER their heads. That didn't happen yesterday. We stunk up the joint big time.

[R_of_G]

It will be quite ironic if the Dolphins beat the Jets next weekend and take the AFC East in the process. After being scapegoated for years as the main poster boy for the Jets failure, Chad Pennington was unceremoniously kicked to the curb in the great rush by the Jets to sign Brett Favre, savior du jour of the franchise. So while Favre is presiding over the latest Jets late season slump, Pennington is quietly establishing himself as the leagues most efficient quarterback...and the single Dolphin player most responsible for the miraculous comeback this year.

I like Brett Favre, I always have; but for the Jets management to think that he alone was going to come in and cure the Jets pathology was very naive at best.

I'm not sure anybody in the organization thought the team was a QB away from a SuperBowl, and any fan that did was deluding themselves.

The additions of many other key players in the off-season were just as important as Brett (Faneca, Woody, Pace, Jenkins). With those additions plus Brett, plus another year of development for Revis and Mangold and Leon Washington, it seemed possible for the Jets to compete. The sad thing is, they DID compete, beating New England and Tennessee. Unfortunately, they use the exact same game plan week in and week out and after those two wins, other teams were able to see how to beat the Jets.

I still believe the signing of Favre was designed to generate interest in the team and sell permanent seat licenses for the new stadium, not to save the franchise and deliver a Lombardi Trophy.

As for Pennington, I am glad he is having a good year. He always seemed like a class act. Nonetheless, with or without Favre, I was glad to see him leave the Jets. He was just not the right QB for that team. Had we not gotten Favre, I'd have rather seen Kellen Clemens get the ball this season. Chad was simply not the answer. Was Chad the only problem? No, not in the least, but he was a major problem. He is efficient, sure, but with the Jets he could not throw an accurate pass longer than 15 yards. The Jets could not stretch the field and defenses knew exactly how to play against them. With Favre, or Clemens or another QB, the long pass is an option. Like I said, I'm glad to see Chad get another chance in another city because he deserved one, but he had plenty of chances with the Jets and could not deliver.

As for next week, call me the eternal optimist, but I don't see the Jets losing at home to their most hated rivals led by their former QB on the last week of the season. East Rutherford, NJ is some place where home field advantage is a very real and tangible thing. I've been part of that crowd more than enough times to see that first hand. We'll see what actually happens, but I expect a win from Gang Green.

[Bloozcat]

Well, one thing the Jets can't automatically count on next weekend R of G...that the Dolphins can't play in cold weather. Certainly not after last weeks win in KC where the temperature at game time started at 10 degrees F and at games end was 3 degrees F.

It should be an interesting game and a good test of just how far the Dolphins have come. Could this be the year that the Dolphins end the Jets dominance? Or will the Jets finally end their usual season ending slump and rise to the occasion with everything on the line?

It'll be a good one to watch...

[R_of_G]

The all-time Jets/Dolphins series is currently 45-39-1 in favor of the Jets. Much as I despise the Dolphins, I'd hesitate to call it dominance on the part of the Jets. It's only 6 more wins than losses. That said, the Jets have won more of the recent matchups with the Dolphins.

I also don't know that I'd say the Jets have typical season-ending slumps. The recent seasons in which they have been successful have typically come with better second halves of the season than first. The years they are bad, they are bad all year (like last year). This season is a collapse and a shame.

I agree about the weather not being a major factor. If anything, it may mean both teams will have to rely on their running games, but both teams have excellent running games this season so they're pretty evenly matched on that front.

Let's also not discount the fact that the Dolphins' win in KC, regardless of weather, came against the Chiefs. They're not exactly the gold-standard for gauging wins.

It will be a game worth watching this weekend. Most Jets/Dolphins games are.

[piebaldpython***]

Or will the Jets finally end their usual season ending slump and rise to the occasion with everything on the line? ...

JETS is a typo, right? Don't you mean baseball's NY METS?? Sorry, a cheap shot I know but let's face it......the METS went belly-up a couple of seasons in a row. Talk about snatching Defeat out of the jaws of Victory!!

[sunvalleylaw]

I am a Tacoma native and a Seattle area sports fan. Not much to cheer about this year, especially with the Sonics being now gone. (Don't even get me started. It's criminal in my mind. I understand free market, but major sports are not true free market animals.). But the one thing I have heard of lately me that made me smile was the Seahawks/Jets game last night. YeeHah, finally something to cheer about. And my good buddy is a huge Jets fan too. LOL!!!

EDIT: I see this is really an Eagles thread, but I saw the Jets mentioned and had to chime in.

[Bloozcat]

Let's also not discount the fact that the Dolphins' win in KC, regardless of weather, came against the Chiefs. They're not exactly the gold-standard for gauging wins.

Neither are the Seattle Seahawks at 4-11, and the Jets just lost to them....
(Don't ya just hate it when that happens... )

For the "new" Dolphins, it's play to the level of the competition each week no matter what that might be. Just play well enough to win each matchup. Of course it's also true that the Dolphins only won two of the four games this year against teams with winning records. But, that's the upside of having finished with a 1-15 record the year before - you get a creampuff schedule the next year.

I've always followed the Dolphins as the local team, but they've never been my favorite team. The Browns have that honor...talk about long suffering fans...we're all over that

[just strum]

I've always followed the Dolphins as the local team, but they've never been my favorite team. The Browns have that honor...talk about long suffering fans...we're all over that

The Browns have one accomplishment this year by reminding us of "On any given Sunday" except it was Monday, Oct 13th and they beat the Giants. Probably the only highlight of the season.

We now have players fighting each other

http://www.cleveland.com/browns/inde...hquinn_sp.html

[R_of_G]

Neither are the Seattle Seahawks at 4-11, and the Jets just lost to them....
(Don't ya just hate it when that happens... )

Yes, I do hate it. That's my biggest complaint about the Jets and in particular, their coaching staff. This team plays to the level of its competition, and since they were 4-12 last year, the competition is often not very good. That the same team that beat New England in New England and Tennessee in Tennessee can also lose to not only the Seahawks, but the Raiders and 49'ers is astonishing to me. These are teams the Jets should have blown right off the field, but they didn't. It's incredibly frustrating.

[ted s]

He looks like the Predator