Jets Head Coach Todd Bowles had a pretty emphatic demeanor following his team’s gritty win over the Cleveland Browns last Sunday. Although his team won their third game in a row, you would not be able to tell that by Bowles’ approach. “We haven’t done anything yet,” the words of Gang Green’s head coach as the Jets find themselves in a 2-way tie for first place in the AFC East. When I wrote my introduction football article a few weeks back, I’ll be quite honest, if someone would have told me that the New York Jets would be one win away of sole possession of first place, despite all the key departures that had left during the off-season, I would find that very unlikely to happen. Here we are.
Since the calendar hit October, the Jets simply have been hotter than a Phoenix cactus with victories against the Dolphins and Jaguars to add on to their three-game winning streak. With the current and unexpected position the team is currently in, is it enough for Coach Bowles to keep his job? The jury is still out on that outcome; however, believe it or not, this year could be Bowles’ best or worst job as the team’s head coach. For now, let’s give him his due. This is not a football team that is winning with talent on their roster. In fact, the Jets are ranked 26th in total offense and 25th in total defense. The craziest stat is with their first-place record, they have been outscored 47-14 in the fourth quarter. For now, the team is gelling with a group of young players who are sticking like glue to go along with a journeyman quarterback in Josh McCown who had been doing just enough with his play to answer the critics that this Jets team will not be the laughingstock of the league.
In comes a showdown with the Patriots this Sunday with first place on the line. Although Bowles has seemed to be getting a good vibe from his young and inexperienced ball club, he hopes it can continue through the second half of the season. The Jets late-season schedule is brutal. There’s really no other way or word to put it. The team has games against the Panthers, Chiefs, Broncos, Saints and another battle with the Patriots on New Year’s Eve, the team’s season finale. Can the Jets withstand their upcoming schedule? Or are we looking at this year’s “Cinderella team” in the NFL. Stay tuned!
Sports Notes: (High School Football) Scores of last week’s high school games. Boys & Girls 6, South Shore 22; Midwood 56, Grand Street 6; Lincoln 42, Kennedy 8; Fort Hamilton 6, Tottenville 35; Canarsie 16, Campus Magnet 8; Erasmus Hall 39, Dewitt Clinton 0; Jefferson 12, Lehman 30.