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Chargers/Jets Preview: Old school versus New school

Boltmaster Written by Boltmaster, Friday January 15 2010
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As a Chargers fan, here are my thoughts on the New York Jets being in the playoffs:

 

Initial thought at the end of the season:

 

Wow, those lucky bastards. Their last two games of the season were against teams with nothing to play for. Well maybe they are in the tournament but it looks like they are going to be the sacrificial lamb of the AFC.

 

Wild Card weekend game:

 

For a team that coasted in they are playing pretty good. Damn, they are playing really good, maybe they do deserve to be here.

 

After divisional round matchups were set:

 

Crap, this could be a tough game for the Chargers.

 

I’ll admit it, in the last two weeks I have become a believer. The Jets are playing good football. They seem to be a testament to the old adage that it really doesn’t matter how you make the playoffs, what matters is what you do once you are in. Actually I’m not sure if that is an old adage but it seems appropriate nonetheless. They beat the snot out of the Bengals and have rightfully earned a spot in the divisional round against the Chargers. This Sunday will therefore feature a matchup between the hottest team in the East against the hottest team in the West. The only thing in common between the two clubs is the fact that they finished their respective seasons on winning notes. The Jets are a run-oriented, defensive-minded team that does everything to try and minimize the role their quarterback has to play. The Chargers are a pass-first ask questions later team that is more than content to let Phillip Rivers shoulder the heaviest load. The differences between these two teams couldn’t be better exemplified by the contrasting styles of their head coaches. With the Jets you have Rex Ryan, a walking sound bite whose huge ego and outlandish, gregarious nature are only matched by his equally large waistline. He talks big but his team backs up the rhetoric and he’s in the playoffs in his first year in New York. With the Chargers you have Norv Turner, an unemotional coach who lacks media savvy and comes across as awkward even at the best of his press conferences. Although personality might not be his strong suit, Norv more than makes up for it with the results he’s achieved in San Diego over the last four seasons. So how do these seemingly polar opposite teams stack up against each other and who will go on to the AFC Championship game? My take is that it will come down to these three factors:

 

Can the Jets’ secondary shut down the Chargers’ passing attack?

 

Darrelle Revis is a fantastic cornerback with the ability to shut down receivers. Last week he took Ohcocinco completely out of the game and more importantly shut Chad’s big mouth up for the rest of the season. For that we can all be thankful. This week he gets to cover Vincent Jackson, which could be considerably more difficult. Make no mistake about it, the Chargers will test Revis on long, downfield passes early and often. Maybe he can take Jackson out of the game, I’m a bit skeptical. But even if he does neutralize Jackson the Jets will still have to account for Malcolm Floyd and Antonio Gates, two very formidable offensive weapons in their own right. Gates will probably be the biggest mismatch of the game and he could very well be the key to a Chargers victory on Sunday. I don’t see anyone on the Jets being able to stop him in man coverage.

 

Can the Chargers stop the Jets’ running game?

 

Unfortunately from my perspective the answer is no. The Chargers’ Achilles heel this season has been stopping the run. Ever since Jamal Williams went down with a torn triceps the Bolts have been vulnerable to the run game. However the Chargers don’t necescarily have to shut down the Jets’ running attack, they just need to slow it down. I would point to the Chargers’ recent game against the Tennesse Titans as an example. In that meeting Chris Johnson ran for 142 yards and the Titans still lost by 25 points. Thomas Jones is a good running back but he’s no Chris Johnson. He’ll probably get at least 100 yards in this game but that by no means will guarantee a victory.

 

Can the Jets score enough points to match the Chargers?

 

The Chargers would love to turn this game into a shootout because that will favor their style of play. It’s no secret that they can put a lot of point in a short amount of time. The Jets on the other hand will want to slow things down and turn the game into a grinding battle where they control the clock – similar to what the Steelers did to the Chargers last year in the playoffs. If the Jets get into a hole early on they could be in a lot of trouble. I don’t see Mark Sanchez beating Phillip Rivers in a duel of gunslingers. And even if Sanchez is throwing the ball well he might not have a receiving corps that can make the catches. Braylon Edwards has had a lot of dropped balls this year and if that trend continues it could be a long afternoon for New York.

 

 

So there you go. I think the Chargers will win with their passing game and will be able to play enough defense to stifle the Jets’ running attack or at least minimize its impact. The Jets have had a great season and will no doubt be the team to beat in the AFC East next year. It normally takes a few trips to the playoffs before you can reach the ultimate goal and I think they still have some work to do. If Mark Sanchez continues to improve they have a good shot in the coming years of winning a Super bowl. The Chargers had to go through those growing pains in recent years and I think they finally have the right combination of talent and experience to get over the hump.


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1 comment


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coltsfan0214coltsfan0214, over 2 years ago said:

I think the jets D is good enough to slow them down a little bit they wont be able to score enough.