Mark Sanchez and the Jets could barely mount a first down last week against Baltimore, an embarrassing total of six, in a disturbing 10-9 loss.
New York fans, meanwhile, suffered a crisis of conscience. They were all but ready to run second-year QB Sanchez out of town, after one of the most inept passing performances in franchise history, a net of 60 yards through the air.
This week the young Sanchez and the Jets found the common cure for what ails many a struggling offense in modern football: a big, motherly hug from the welcoming arms of a Bill Belichick Defense.
The result was an impressive 28-14 Jets win over the Patriots in the New Meadowlands. New York dominated after early struggles, *****-slapping New England 21-0 over the game's final 31 minutes.
It was New York's largest margin over New England since a 34-17 victory way back in 2000; the last year that the Patriots failed to at least share the division's best record.
…
There once was a time when quarterbacks and fans feared the awe-inspiring specter of a Belichick Defense, mostly back in the 1980s, when Belichick was coordinator with the Giants. He sure seemed a lot more genius-y back then, when his defense included Hall of Fame linebackers Harry Carson and Lawrence Taylor, one of the great game-breaking defenders in NFL history.
The "Belichick the Genius" story enjoyed a brief rennaisance in the early 2000s, thanks to an incredible win over the "Greatest Show on Turf" Rams and a single season as the league's top unit in 2003.
But that was a long time ago.
In what’s become a fairly common storyline since 2005, by a lot of quarterbacks around the league, Sanchez had a career day against a defense that, for a brief period seven years ago, struck fear into the hearts of opponents.
Not anymore. The Belichick Defense is no longer great. But it's worse than that: the Belichick Defense doesn't even show up half the time, and allows even average quarterbacks to have their way with it. Sanchez, for example, set career highs Sunday in:
- touchdown passes (three)
- completions (21)
- completion percentage with a min. 20 attempts (70%)
- passer rating (124.3)
Sanchez had his career day not against a mighty Belichick Defense of Yore. Instead, he did it against a nameless, faceless unit that’s been virtually incapable of making a big play, or even a small play, since its three picks against Donovan McNabb in Super Bowl XXXIX … six seasons ago.
…
More importantly, the Jets made a huge statement: a Belichick Defense is no longer something to fear. But maybe a Rex Ryan defense is: Tom Brady, one of the least intercepted QBs in history, suffered three second-half turnovers (two INT, one fumble). Randy Moss, meanwhile, is one of the most prolific receivers in history. He fell off the face of the earth in the second half, after his lone (but impressive) touchdown. And Darrelle Revis, New York's star defender, wasn't even on the field.
Sounds the AFC East has a new defensive "genius.”
Click to expand...