New York Jets (11-7) @ Indianapolis Colts (13-2) (Sunday, January 24, 2010, 3pm ET, CBS): Who had the Jets playing the Colts in the AFC championship game? It certainly wasn’t me. Only the die-hard Jet fans, Rex Ryan and his players expected their team to reach this point in the playoffs. In my opinion, the Jets have no business being in this game because if Chargers kicker Nate Kaeding makes two out of the three field goals he missed, the Chargers would be playing the Colts on Sunday. Mister B will give the J-E-T-S, Jets, Jets, Jets their due respect. If you’re an old school lover of playing conservative and playing great defense, you will love the Jets. They are like Rocky Balboa, a true underdog that you must take very seriously because they will compete hard for sixty minutes. The Jets feel extremely confident having knocked off the Bengals and Chargers in the previous two rounds. This game features two teams with contrasting styles. The Jets want to pound the rock and let their physical offensive line create lanes for their running backs, minimize their quarterback’s throws, and play great defense. The Colts want to score points through the air with Peyton Manning and their plethora of playmakers.
The Jets’ keys to victory:
- They must win the turnover battle.
- Mark Sanchez must throw the ball away if he doesn’t find open receivers.
- Get pressure on Peyton Manning.
- Pound the rock with Greene and Jones against Indy’s 24th ranked run defense.
- Play a field position game.
- Excellent special teams.
- Keep Mark Sanchez under 25 throws in this game.
- Will need to score at least 24 points to win this game.
- Stay in manageable 3rd downs.
The Colts’ keys to victory:
- Don’t throw the ball toward Darrelle Revis.
- Stay out of 3rd and longs.
- Keep Manning upright.
- Manning must get the ball to his 2nd, 3rd and 4th options on offense.
This year’s Jets’ team reminds me a lot of the 1996 Jacksonville Jaguars that barely gotten into the playoffs and beat a veteran Bills team, a talented Broncos team before losing to the eventual AFC champion New England Patriots.
Even though the Jets have the number one defense, they are quite similar to the Baltimore Ravens, which the Colts beat 20-3 last week. For a rookie quarterback, Mark Sanchez plays the game with the poise of a 10 year veteran. In the end, Mark Sanchez will need to make some plays to give his team a fighting chance to win this game and get his team into their 2nd Super Bowl of all time. The Jets defense will need to keep the Colts offense out of the end zone and keep this game as low scoring as possible. The Jets victory 29-15 back in week 16 will not have any barring on this game, however the Colts must not overlook this Jets’ team or they could lose this game in which they will be favored.
The winner: I think the Jets will keep it close for awhile, but their lack of firepower will be their downfall. The Jets’ cinderella season ends at the hands of the Colts 23-13.
