KIDWCKED
01-10-2010, 04:16 PM
c\p from nfl.com
Associated Press
CINCINNATI -- One playoff game into his career, Mark Sanchez is giving a pretty good off-Broadway performance.
So are the rest of the New York Jets, who are no longer an overlooked team after dismantling the AFC North champions twice within a week.
» NFL Network schedule Any more doubters?
With their rookie quarterback playing mistake-free, the Jets turned their surprising playoff appearance into a long-running production Saturday. Sanchez threw a touchdown pass, and the NFL's top running game took it from there, setting up a 24-14 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals.
"It's pretty special," Sanchez said. "It's got nothing to do with me."
Actually, the Jets' first playoff win since 2004 had everything to do with him.
Playing in single-digit wind chills against a defense that tried its best to put the game in his hands, Sanchez went 12 of 15 for 182 yards and a stratospheric passer rating of 139.4.
Considered the Jets' weakest link heading into the playoffs, he became their focal point, getting his first playoff win ahead of Carson Palmer, his boyhood idol.
"He had the eye of the tiger today and he was ready to get out there and throw it around," coach Rex Ryan said. "I see him getting better and better each day on the practice field. What a job he's done. I think he's tired of hearing he's the weak link on this football team."
He wasn't the only rookie making plays under pressure for New York (10-7). Third-round pick Shonn Greene ran for 135 yards, including a 39-yard touchdown, leading a running game that churned out 171 yards for a rare back-to-back sweep of the Bengals (10-7).
Cedric Benson ran for a Bengals-record 169 yards in a playoff game, but Cincinnati managed little else. Its streak without a playoff win reached 19 years and counting.
The Jets?
Associated Press
CINCINNATI -- One playoff game into his career, Mark Sanchez is giving a pretty good off-Broadway performance.
So are the rest of the New York Jets, who are no longer an overlooked team after dismantling the AFC North champions twice within a week.
» NFL Network schedule Any more doubters?
With their rookie quarterback playing mistake-free, the Jets turned their surprising playoff appearance into a long-running production Saturday. Sanchez threw a touchdown pass, and the NFL's top running game took it from there, setting up a 24-14 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals.
"It's pretty special," Sanchez said. "It's got nothing to do with me."
Actually, the Jets' first playoff win since 2004 had everything to do with him.
Playing in single-digit wind chills against a defense that tried its best to put the game in his hands, Sanchez went 12 of 15 for 182 yards and a stratospheric passer rating of 139.4.
Considered the Jets' weakest link heading into the playoffs, he became their focal point, getting his first playoff win ahead of Carson Palmer, his boyhood idol.
"He had the eye of the tiger today and he was ready to get out there and throw it around," coach Rex Ryan said. "I see him getting better and better each day on the practice field. What a job he's done. I think he's tired of hearing he's the weak link on this football team."
He wasn't the only rookie making plays under pressure for New York (10-7). Third-round pick Shonn Greene ran for 135 yards, including a 39-yard touchdown, leading a running game that churned out 171 yards for a rare back-to-back sweep of the Bengals (10-7).
Cedric Benson ran for a Bengals-record 169 yards in a playoff game, but Cincinnati managed little else. Its streak without a playoff win reached 19 years and counting.
The Jets?