Who would have thought that with 5 minutes and 54 seconds left in last night’s game that the Jets would be sitting at 5-5 after the game was over. The Jets, still in the hunt in the AFC, but with shattered hopes and a few broken hearts, owe it all to Mr. Tebow, who, in this writer’s opinion, single-handedly won the game for the Broncos last night. He did get some aid from a few key Jet mishaps along the way, but with a total QBR of 98.6 in the 4th quarter of last night’s game (according to ESPN), it’s safe to say that he led the way.
For starters, there were many key plays early in the game that helped shape the dramatic ending in which Tim Tebow led the Broncos to the promised land to win the game. Possibly the biggest blow suffered by the Jets last night besides the loss was actually another loss; Shonn Greene injuring his ribs early in the first half. X-rays came back negative, but those X-rays couldn’t keep him in the game last night, when the Jets needed him most. Joe McKnight proved himself inconsistent at best, showing off a few large runs towards the end of the game, but was held to minimal gains for a majority of the game. Bilal Powell proved himself a practice squad player, but that’s another story.
T.J. Conley was forced to punt after the Jet’s first drive. Nothing wrong with that statement, right? Conley’s had a great year for the most part, seemingly pinning opposing offenses inside their own 20 at will. Conley had by far the worst punt of the year and undoubtedly his career yesterday when he let off a 13 yard boot that gave the Broncos tremendous starting field possession for their second drive of the game. It didn’t seem like much at the time, but the result of that drive was three points for Denver. Had that punt even been an average one by professional football standards, say maybe 30 yards more, Denver would have been in no position to score, and would’ve needed a Tebow-esque drive like the one that won them the game to score a few points. This punt has gone unmentioned in most of the reviews I’ve read, probably because no one cares about punters, but it was a huge mistake that the Jets could have avoided early in the game.
After a few more failed drives, the Jets were eventually able to punch it in. One of the most unsuspecting players, though, ended up scoring on the play for New York, and that was left guard Matt Slauson. The Jets went up 10-3 at that point, with 11:06 left in the 3rd quarter. It is noteworthy there that on that drive, Sanchez connected with Plaxico Burress a total of three times for 52 yards, and with Plax’s recent performances, it seems Mark has a new favorite target. (Who wouldn’t enjoy throwing it to a 6’5, former Super Bowl MVP?) The downfall for the Jets, however, all started later in the 3rd when Sanchez forced a pass to Plaxico and was intercepted by Andre Goodman and returned for a 26 yard touchdown. To make matters worse, on the ensuing kickoff, Joe McKnight fumbled on the return after a 39 yard gain. Fortunately for the Jets, they still had their defense. They forced Denver to punt on a three and out.
With the score 10-10, the Jets were able to get a field goal by Nick Folk, who went 2-4 in the game, one miss being from 61 yards out right before halftime, and the other being from 52. With the score now being 13-10, we skip ahead to the 5:54 mark in the 4th quarter. Conley redeemed himself with a nice punt pinning Tebow and the Broncos inside their own 5 yard line. The first play of this drive should have ended the game. Tebow took a two step drop and threw it behind the line of scrimmage to Eddie Royal. Jim Leonhard, who played a terrific all around game, read the play perfectly and was about to tackle Royal in the endzone when Royal juked to his left and evaded the pursuing Leonhard. Had Jim been able to make that tackle, the result would have been a safety, a Jet lead of 15-10 and possession of the football with less than 5 and a half to go in the game, and, most importantly, a victory for Gang Green. Mr. Royal would have none of this and after evading Leonhard ran for an 8 yard gain. At that point, I knew the Broncos still had some fight in them.
Tebow eventually led the Broncos 87 more yards after that catch; Denver had just 129 yards of total offense before that game winning drive. Who would’ve thought that after such a terrible offensive performance for the first 55 minutes of the game that the Broncos, led by the one and only Tim Tebow, would have won the game on that drive. Unbelievable.
Tebow earned my respect after such a performance and is a force to be reckoned with all on his own. There is no doubt in my mind that he is the toughest quarterback in the league. When the Jets hit him, they hit him hard, and he just kept getting back up. My hat goes off to you, Mr. Tebow.
All in all, the offense played perhaps its worst game of the season, special teams played by far its worst game of the season, and the defense played the worst 5 minutes and 54 seconds of football they have played all season. Not exactly a winning formula, but I’m sure they’ll be back to work soon and will attempt to shake off this game. I still haven’t, but that all comes with being a Jets fan; you’re in it for the ride, baby!
Shoutout to Rich Cimini. If you actually read this, thanks in advance.