Jets football blog

Jets safety Eric Smith fined, banned for hit on Cards' Anquan Boldin

Eric Smith said he was knocked unconscious and doesn't remember anything from his frightening, helmet-to-helmet hit Sunday on Cardinals wide receiver Anquan Boldin. But he'll probably never forget the penalty handed down by the NFL.

The Jets' starting safety was suspended one game and fined $50,000 for a "flagrant violation of player safety rules," the league announced Monday. The suspension came 12 days after commissioner Roger Goodell sent a league-wide memo to players, warning them he was cracking down on illegal and dangerous hits. Continue

Favre hasn't lost the magic touch

In the locker room now, before the postgame shower, after Brett Favre had thrown a career-high six touchdowns and became the first Jets quarterback to throw six touchdown passes since Joe Namath did 36 years ago in Baltimore, Jerricho Cotchery had a question for him. "Did you tie a career-high?" Cotchery wanted to know. "I've never thrown six," Favre told him.

"That," Cotchery was saying now, "was the end of the conversation, 'cause I'm scratching my head like, 'Really? He's never thrown six touchdowns before!' But, he played great today. He was just dialing it up, telling everyone, 'Get ready, the ball is coming.' " Continue

Jets' offense roars in 56-35 win over Cards

Kerry Rhodes paused before heading into the tunnel at halftime, exhorting the Meadowlands crowd to roar one more time. It complied, and how could it not? The Jets had just put up 34 points in the second quarter and a victory sending the team into their bye week flying high with confidence seemed inevitable.

But despite a 34-0 halftime lead - those points a historic single-quarter high for the Jets - there were a few tense moments in the second half. Still, in the end the Jets posted a wild 56-35 victory over the Cardinals to even their record at 2-2. It was the second most points scored in franchise history, trailing only the 62 points the Jets scored against Tampa Bay Nov. 17, 1985. Continue

Gang Green looks to rattle Warner

It's not often that, on Sept. 28 in the NFL season, the word must is associated with a game. But the Jets must win today's game against the Cardinals at Giants Stadium if they're going to develop into the team they think they're going to be. The last thing the Jets want to do is lose a third consecutive game (second consecutive at home) and stagger into their bye next week at 1-3.

So there's pressure on the 1-2 Jets, who are coming off a sloppy 48-29 point loss to the Chargers Monday night, and need to assert themselves at home against the 2-1 Cardinals, who are playing their second consecutive East Coast game today after a loss in Washington last week. Continue

Ex-Cardinal pass rusher Calvin Pace faces old mates

From the moment the Cardinals selected Calvin Pace with the 18th pick of the 2003 draft, the pass rusher began feeling the pressure to produce and prove his worth. Arizona fans had wanted Arizona State product Terrell Suggs but got Pace instead.

"That was a tough situation," Pace said this week. "Suggs was the hometown guy, so (the fan reaction) was understandable. I was like, 'I didn't draft me. I didn't tell them to draft me.' I didn't lobby the Cardinals. I took it personally. I had to get past that and move on." Continue

Jets must stop Cardinals' Fitzgerald, Boldin

It's not getting any easier for the Jets' secondary. Two weeks ago, it was preparing for the Patriots' potent duo of Randy Moss and Wes Welker, followed by last week's game against the Chargers' Antonio Gates and Vincent Jackson.

This week brings the Cardinals (2-1) to the Meadowlands, and a pair of receivers with great numbers. On one side it's Larry Fitzgerald, who has 16 receptions for an 18.3-yard average and two touchdowns. On the other side is Anquan Boldin, with 17 catches, a 14.5 average and two TDs, including a 79-yarder against Seattle. Continue

Hobbled Favre keepin' the faith

Brett Favre's hobbled by a bad left ankle and has seen his new team get off to a 1-2 start, but he said he's not frustrated by the less-than-stellar beginning to his tenure with the Jets. Now, as he prepares to play against the Cardinals despite his injury, Favre just has to make his teammates feel the same way.

"I think what's entered my mind, which I think right or wrong, . . . is that maybe the fans or the people associated with this team or have some interest may have lost [faith]: 'Well, they're 1-2, here we go again,' " Favre said. "My hope is that's not the case." Continue

Jets' Kris Jenkins expected back against Cardinals

Jets nose tackle Kris Jenkins didn't practice Wednesday because of a back injury, but he's expected to play Sunday against the Cardinals, according to Eric Mangini. That's good news for the Jets' defense, which sagged against the run once Jenkins left Monday night's loss in San Diego.

Sidelined in the first quarter, Jenkins said he was "real close" to returning. "If I would've had to, or if I felt like I absolutely needed to get back out there, I would've had to sacrifice myself a little bit and deal with the pain," he said. "It was a call on the sideline and I had to roll with it." Jenkins refused to discuss the specifics, but he said he's dealt with a back problem in the past, adding, "I know how to get through it." Continue

Brett Favre's ankle and outlook appear healthy

Brett Favre's ironman streak will continue on Sunday even if his ankle is a bit tender. Barring an unforeseen setback in practice this week, Favre will make his 279th consecutive start (including postseason games) against Arizona on Sunday despite injuring his ankle late in the Monday Night debacle against San Diego.

Even the ultra-secretive Eric Mangini confirmed as much Tuesday. While Mangini wouldn't say if Favre underwent an MRI on the ankle while getting it treated twice Tuesday, the coach said that it was safe to assume Favre will start because of the quarterback's legendary toughness and the coach's knowledge of the severity of the injury. Continue

Punter gets his kick back

Ben Graham's outlook on the NFL changed dramatically in the last week. His life, too, took an interesting twist. Graham, the Jets' punter since 2005, was released last week after an inconsistent start to the season, but was re-signed for Monday night's game when his replacement, Reggie Hodges, injured his plant leg in practice. Continue