Jets head coach Rex Ryan isn't afraid to speak his mind. Sometimes it gets him in trouble, but it appeals to his players, and they usually respond. Ultimately, that's all that matters. He's taken New York to the AFC Championship game in each of the last two seasons, and he's done it while proving to be a thorn in the side of the Patriots and Bill Belichick.
New England has gotten the best of Ryan and the Jets in 2011, sweeping the series. As is stands with four weeks left in the regular season, the Patriots are AFC's top team at 9-3, and the Jets are the ninth seed behind the Titans and Raiders (who are all chasing the Bengals for the sixth and final playoff spot).
In an effort to motivate the troops, or perhaps because he really believe it, Ryan wants a rematch with New England.
"I feel we’re gonna play them again,” Ryan told Mike Lupica of the New York Daily News, “and I’m excited about that. Even when we got our doors blown off, 45-3, last season, I wanted to play ’em again. I meant it then, I mean it now. We WANT to play them. No question we want to play them.”
For that to happen, New York would need to make the playoffs, which likely means winning three of four games against Kansas City (Sunday's opponent), Philadelphia, New York Giants and Miami.
It's certainly possible, and the Jets have a history of playing well late in the year. Plus, they're one of the few teams to match up well with the Patriots (although it didn't happen in '11). Last season, New York beat New England in Week 2 only to get blown out, 45-3 in Week 13. But then the teams met in the AFC Divisional game in Foxboro and the Jets confused and frustrated Tom Brady. When it was over, New York had eked out the 28-21 victory and was headed back to the championship game.
The 2011 version of the Jets isn't as consistent as last year's team. Mark Sanchez has yet to show that he's a franchise quarterback, and he struggles to put the team on his shoulders when they fall behind or when the running game isn't working. The defense also isn't the same unit that was among the best in the league a year ago. Those things together gives you a team that has yet to find its identity, even though we're 13 weeks into the season. The 7-5 record bears that out.
But as we mentioned above: New York seems to relish the pressure this time of year and it's conceivable to think they'll go on a run and back-door their way into the postseason.
If that happens, and if the Patriots remain the No. 1 seed in the AFC, the teams would meet again in the divisional round, assuming the Jets won their wild-card game.
But first things first: New York needs to take care of the remaining four teams on their schedule. The Patriots have a little more room for error. They could lose again -- maybe twice -- and still have a first-round bye.
We're guessing Belichick isn't thinking about such scenarios; his focus is on one thing: the Pats' opponent Sunday: the 4-8 Redskins.
