The Ride to a Championship

I'm sitting here the night before the game watching a replay of the Week 15 matchup between the New York Jets and Pittsburgh Steelers being replayed on the NFL network. The wild ride of the last month makes the most recent Jets-Steelers game feel like it was played years ago. It truly is fitting that a trip to the Super Bowl depends on a return visit to Pittsburgh, if only because Pittsburgh was where the Jets became serious contenders.

The victory over Pittsburgh on December 19 put an end to the only losing streak the Jets had all season, and, without the win over the Steelers, the Jets would have lost 4 straight games when you include the loss to Chicago in the post-Christmas game at Soldier Field. The Jets had never won in Pennsylvania before, and there isn't a long history of winning tough matchups against physical teams in December littering this franchise's history.

In fact, perhaps the most beautiful aspect of this second consecutive run to an AFC title game is watching all of the hardened Jets fans like myself come face-to-face with a team so confident that it boosts the morale of all of us collectively. If I had any remnants of a pessimistic Jets fan rattling around my subconscious, it appears that Rex Ryan has scared him away for good.

I won't rehash the last 34 years for you, except to say that I've always wanted my team to earn a spot in a Super Bowl. We have been close several times, but I feel like tomorrow's game at Heinz Field is the best chance we've had in about 28 years. Pittsburgh is a great team that is looking for a third ring in the last six years, but they are quite beatable. It will take a complete game on both sides of the ball. The Jets must be opportunistic and be ready for Pittsburgh to rally, whether it's early or late. The most impressive part of last week's magnificence in Foxborough was the response to the Crumpler TD that cut the lead to 14-11. Sanchez hit a big play to Cotchery, then threw a frozen rope to Holmes that was caught brilliantly, and the Jets never looked back.

Several things to look for tomorrow in Pittsburgh...the most important player on defense tomorrow for the Steelers is not Troy Polamalu, it's James Harrison. Harrison will mostly be locked up with D'Brickashaw Ferguson, and Ferguson must keep Harrison from changing the game with turnovers and sacks. Pittsburgh is a much better team with Polamalu, but he didn't look right last week against the Ravens, and he didn't spend as much time on the line of scrimmage.

There is a Steeler who missed the previous game against the Jets that can have an even bigger impact. Heath Miller is Roethlisberger's security blanket on broken plays and a nightmare potentially for the Jets. I didn't feel like we played that well defensively the last time we played Pittsburgh, we just made the plays we had to when it counted. I expect the run defense to be better, and if the Jets can generate the same type of pressure they got last week on Tom Brady, the Jets will be just fine.

Offensively, I feel like the Jets can throw on the Steelers, as long as Mother Nature will allow it. Sanchez was outstanding last week once he settled down, and there will be just as many opportunities this week if he's able to stand in and deliver. Pittsburgh takes so much pride on stuffing the run, and the 106 yards they gave up last time on the ground was about everything you could hope for against their front seven. I think at this point in the season, running the football is as much attitude and will as anything else. The Jets will attempt to use the run to remain on schedule with down and distance. If they are able to do that, then they will be able to throw, and they should be able to win.

If the Jets learned anything last season in Indianapolis, it should have been that these types of opportunities don't happen every day. It's difficult to make it to a conference championship, much less consecutive conference championships, especially when no one outside your locker room thought you could do it either time. Such has been the glory of the Rex Ryan era in New York.

Once again, our opponent is a solid favorite, with conventional wisdom stating that our ride ends tomorrow. I don't know why I feel like tomorrow is going to be different, I just do. I feel like it's time for the team I've followed my entire life to deliver a trip to the Super Bowl to all of us.

I feel like our time is now.

Kickoff is 6:30 pm tomorrow at Heinz Field

Collapsapalooza

I was going to spend this column going off like a dental drill, but I decided against it in the end. The problem for me, and a lot of other long-time fans of the team, is that we've seen this movie many times before. Being a New York Jets fan often means being seduced and abandoned in December.

You won't find a lot of sympathy around the NFL. In the market where I reside the local fans are subjected to Carolina Panthers football, which makes the Jets look like the 70s Steelers. I had the great joy of witnessing last weeks abomination courtesy of some tickets from my friend Bob, and Atlanta made the Panthers look like a high-school team. Carolina can't win any matchups in their front seven, and their receivers are unable to separate and get open. It's hard to believe that they won a game this year.

Much like an NFL version of Scared Straight, watching the Panthers made me appreciate the Jets. At least there seems to be a foundation at key positions on the field that will allow the franchise to compete into the future provided that they have better drafts than they had in 2009. Young players like Nick Mangold, Darrelle Revis, D'Brickashaw Ferguson, and David Harris form the cornerstones of the foundation. You may notice that I've left Mark Sanchez out of this equation, simply because I still have no idea what the end product is going to look like with this kid.

To say I've been disappointed with the way that Mark Sanchez has reacted to the situations he's been placed in the last 2 weeks would be a vast understatement. Sanchez has been wildly inaccurate, which is usually followed by the same hang-dog look you would see on a 9-year old who strikes out with men on base in a Little League game. He has not delivered, but even worse, he looks defeated. Rex Ryan admitted during the week that he considered pulling Sanchez in the second half against Miami, and it's hard to blame him. In the Jets 4 losses, they've scored a total of 18 points. If you can't score, you can't win.

I'm not going to go into the gory details of the last few weeks. If you've been watching, I'm sure you're as frustrated by all of it as I am. Most NFL players are able to move on to the next week, even if the fans are looking for a larger meaning in every poor performance. The facts are that the Jets are 9-4, regardless of how they've gotten there. They are still in the position that if they win this week in Pittsburgh and get some help, they can qualify for the postseason by the end of the day.

Here's a stat you may see today...the Jets have never won a game in Pennsylvania. I believe we're 0-6 lifetime in Pittsburgh. The Steelers will be without Troy Polamalu, his injured ankle, and his luxurious hair. Ben Roethlisberger has been battling multiple injuries and his offensive line is patchwork at best. But, they still have a devastating defense that is able to force mistakes and limit scoring opportunities. This isn't exactly the defense that you get well against.

For the Jets to have a chance to win, they will have to run the football against a team that only allows about 60 yards a game on the ground. They will have to avoid mistakes and recognize that punting the ball and playing the field position game while trying to force mistakes may be their best opportunity to win.

Young fans of the Jets deride the Same Old Jets fans, the people who have witnessed the horrors of seasons past and seem to be waiting for the other shoe to drop, hedging their emotional bets to protect against the psychological damage of another unhappy ending. I don't consider myself a SOJ fan, but I feel their pain. It's hard to get up week after week when you know your team may not have what it takes to win it all, much less this Sunday's game. All it takes is one solid performance to have the whole fan base and the New York media singing a different tune on Monday morning.

Kickoff is 4:15 today at Heinz Field.

One down, three to go

The Jets took the first step towards handling their most serious contract issues yesterday by signing D'Brickashaw Ferguson to a six-year, $60 million extension. The new deal features $34.8 million in guarantees, which is a record total for an offensive lineman.

Ferguson is one of the four Jets who are most mentioned for new deals this offseason. I am a firm believer that one of the most important aspects of successful offense in the NFL is offensive line continuity. Every assignment that an O-line has is a group assignment, and the familiarity of having the same five guys up front year after year is a comfort few teams can afford in the modern era. While the left tackle position isn't as important as it was in the days of mostly seven-step drops while the defense was always lining up their best pass rusher at right end (the QBs blind side if he's right handed), it's still the most important position on the offensive line, and Ferguson has established himself as one of the top 5 (or so) tackles in the league.

As to why Ferguson was first, instead of Mangold or Harris (or even Revis), I would imagine it has something to do with how well the market is established for left tackles. If the Jets had their way, Revis would have been first, especially since he's been the squeaky wheel this offseason. But, given the uncertainty of the collective bargaining agreement and Revis' willingness to wait until he's bowled over with a huge offer, Revis may wind up playing the waiting game for the dollars he feels he deserves.

If I were a betting man, I would think that Mangold would be next. Mangold may already be the league's best center, and he's shown a willingness to discuss his contract situation openly. From a PR perspective, signing Mangold quickly would further demonstrate the front office's willingness to spend to ensure future success.

I don't want to wish the summer away (especially considering some of the waves I've caught the last few days), but I wish we were kicking the season off tomorrow. This is easily the most anxious I've been to see a new Jets team since 1999. We need not revisit how that turned out.