The Jets turned loose the offense last night and they need it to hold off the pesky Dolphins.  Mark Sanchez looked pretty darn good passing the ball again last night as he completed 15 of 28 passes for 256 yards with 3 TD passes and 0 INTs.  LaDainian Tomlinson continues to lead the way on the ground for the Jets.  He carried the ball 15 times for 70 yards (4.7 ypc) with 1 TD run and he also caught 3 passes for 18 yards (6.0 avg).  Brad Smith made some huge plays for the Jets last night with 41 yards rushing on 3 carries (13.7 ypc) and he also caught 1 pass for 11 yards.  Shonn Greene pitched in with 36 yards rushing on 10 carries (3.6 ypc) last night.  Dustin Keller is quickly becoming Mark Sanchez’ go-to man as he caught 6 passes for 98 yards (16.3 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Braylon Edwards sat out the first quarter last night (for his drunk driving arrest earlier in the week) but he still caught 2 passes for 87 yards (43.5 avg) with a TD grab.  The Jets finished up wit 146 yards rushing on 29 carries (5.0 ypc) and they completed 15 of 28 passes for 256 yards in Miami last night.

LB David Harris (7 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss) and CB Kyle Wilson (7 tackles) led a very sub-par effort by the Jets’ D last night.  The Dolphins finished up with 84 yards rushing on 23 carries (3.7 ypc) and they also completed 26 of 45 passes for 352 yards.  The Jets are now 2-1 on the year.

This game is going to provide a big test for the New York Jets who were swept by the Dolphins last season by a combined score of 61-52!  The Dolphins found ways to move the ball on the Jets’ D and Darrelle Revis won’t be playing this weekend.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Jets have the ball:  The Jets are going to run the ball first to set up the pass.  LaDainian Tomlinson and Shonn Greene will be pounding away at a Dolphins’ D that is allowing 103.0 yards rushing and 4.1 ypc.  If the Jets get the running game going then Mark Sanchez will throw the ball down the field, if he has time, to try to put points on the board and take the Dolphins out of their preferred offensive gameplan.  With Braylon Edwards not likely to play much in this game (because he’s stupid) look for TE Dustin Keller and Jerricho Cotchery to do the heavy lifting in the passing game.

When the Dolphins have the ball:  The Dolphins are a ball control offense who likes to tighten up the chinstraps and run the ball.  Look for Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams to get a lot of carries against the Jets despite the fact that the Jets are only allowing 50.5 yards rushing per game and 1.8 yards per carry.  QB Chad Henne is not intimidated at all by the Jets’ D based on his outstanding play against them last season.  Henne completed 32 of 47 passes (68.1%) for 353 yards with 3 TD passes and 0 INTs against the Jets last year.  With Darrelle Revis out for this weekend, Antonio Cromartie and Kyle Wilson will have to step up against Brandon Marshall, Davone Bess and Brian Hartline.

PREDICTION:  DOLPHINS 16, JETS 14

LaDainian Tomlinson is showing that he has a lot left in the gas tank so far this year for the Jets.  He has carried the ball 22 times for 138 yards (6.2 ypc) and he also has caught 6 passes for 42 yards (7.0 avg) in his first two games of the year for the Jets.  Tomlinson had all of that production against teams with stout defenses (Patriots & Ravens) which really shows something.  He was supposed to be the #2 guy behind Shonn Greene but he has really outplayed him so far.  Greene has carried the ball 20 times for 70 yards (3.5 ypc) and he also has caught 2 passes for 17 yards (8.5 avg) so far this year.  Tomlinson will likely keep his current workload as long as he keeps playing well.

Starting WR Braylon Edwards of the New York Jets was pulled over by the police because his tinted windows were too dark.  The officers smelled alcohol when talking to him.  They administered a Breathalyzer test to him and he registered a .16 which is twice the legal limit.  He has been arrested and charged with a DWI.  It will be interesting to see how the league and the Jets reprimand Edwards.  Edwards has played in both of the Jets games this year and he has caught 6 passes for 54 yards (9.0 avg) with a TD grab.  The Jets can’t afford to be without Edwards despite his stupid actions of this morning because he is a very talented wideout.

The Jets were down 14-10 in this game at the half but they exploded in the second half outscoring the Patriots 18-0 to prevail.  Mark Sanchez was sharp in this game as he completed 21 of 30 passes for 220 yards with 3 TD passes and 0 INTs.  LaDainian Tomlinson had another solid game on the ground with 76 yards rushing on 11 carries (6.9 ypc).  He also caught 4 passes for 26 yards (6.5 avg) in this game.  Shonn Greene pitched in with 52 yards rushing on 15 carries (3.5 ypc) in this game.  TE Dustin Keller (7 rec, 115 yards), WR Braylon Edwards (5 rec, 45 yards) and Jerricho Cotchery (4 rec, 26 yards) each caught 1 TD pass apiece in this game.  The Jets finished up with 136 yards rushing on 32 carries (4.3 ypc) and they also completed 21 of 30 passes for 200 yards yesterday.

NT Sione Pouha (6 tackles) and LB David Harris (6 tackles, 1 fumble recovery) led the way for the Jets’ D yesterday.  CB Antonio Cromartie and safety Brodney Pool pitched in with 1 interception apiece in this game.  The Patriots finished up with 52 yards rushing on 20 carries (2.6 ypc) and they also completed 20 of 36 passes for 239 yards in this game.  The Jets are now 1-1 on the year.

The Jets have released 25-year old RB/WR Danny Woodhead who was quickly signed by the Patriots who the Jets play tomorrow.  Woodhead played in last week’s game against the Ravens but he didn’t get any touches.  Woodhead played in 11 games (0 starts) for the Jets in his two years with them and he carried the ball 15 times for 64 yards (4.3 ypc).  He also caught 8 passes for 87 yards (10.9 avg) for the Jets.  Woodhead will no doubt give up some secrets to the Patriots’ coaches for tomorrow’s game.

The Jets meet up with a familiar foe in the Patriots who split the series last year with each team winning on their home field.  The Jets have to be bruised and battered because of the brutal game they had last Monday Night against the Ravens.  Here is a loot at the match-ups:

When the Jets have the ball:  I know a lot of “experts” expect  the Jets to open up the offense this week but I just don’t see it.  LaDainian Tomlinson and Shonn Greene are likely going to have 30 carries between them when this game is said and done.  Whether they can gain a lot of yards remains to be seen as the Patriots’ D handled a very similar runner in Cedric Benson with ease last week.  The Patriots might have a young secondary but the schemes not the players are what has given Mark Sanchez fits against them.  In the two match-ups with the Patriots last year, Sanchez completed 22 of 43 passes (51.1%) for 299 yards with 1 TD pass and 4 interceptions.

When the Patriots have the ball:  The Patriots are going to air it out in the passing game with Tom Brady attacking the Jets’ D.  Sure, putting Darrelle Revis on Randy Moss might take him out of the game but Brady throws to a lot of other guys too.  Wes Welker caught 15 passes for 192 yards (12.8 avg) in the second meeting of the 2009 season (a win by the Patriots).  Look for Brady to be looking underneath to Welker, Kevin Faulk out of the backfield and his TEs.  Don’t be shocked to see him throw deep to Brandon Tate it he sees Kyle Wilson on him.  Fred Taylor will be the main ballcarrier against the Jets but don’t look for him to have a heavy workload.

PREDICTION:  PATRIOTS 23, JETS 16

The New York Jets have signed 31-year old NT Howard Green.  Green played in 12 games for the Jets last season in which he had 23 tackles.  He has now played in 48 games in his NFL career and he has 78 tackles, 1 pass defensed, 1 sack and 2 forced fumbles.  Green is a mountain of a man at 6’2″, 365 pounds and he should provide depth on the interior of the D-Line for the Jets.

The Jets have lost starting nose tackle Kris Jenkins for the rest of the 2010 season due to a torn left ACL he suffered last night against the Ravens.  He is a tough guy though as he walked off the field on his own power after making 1 tackle in the game.  The Jets will shuffle up the D-Line due to Jenkins’ injury.  Sione Pouha will move from DE to NT to replace Jenkins in the starting lineup.  He had a big game last night against the Ravens with 7 tackles and 2 fumble recoveries.  Mike DeVito will replace Pouha as the starting DE.  He had 7 tackles last night for the Jets.  The Jets will miss Jenkins but at least they have enough depth to cover for him the rest of the year.

The Jets offense was awful in this game as a outstanding defensive effort was wasted tonight.  Mark Sanchez was horrible in this game as he completed only 10 of 21 passes for a lousy 74 yards.  LaDainian Tomlinson came to play tonight as he led the way on the ground for the Jets in this game with 62 yards rushing on 11 carries (5.6 ypc).  He also caught 2 passes for 16 yards in this game.  Brad Smith pitched in with 2 carries for 27 yards (13.5 ypc) out of the Wildcat Formation.  Shonn Greene only carried the ball 5 times for 18 yards (3.6 ypc) and he caught 1 pass for 9 yards.  He lost a fumble though and it appeared to get him in the Dog House.  The Jets finished up with 116 yards rushing on 21 carries (5.5 ypc) and they also completed 10 of 21 passes for 60 yards as they only had possession of the ball for 21:28.

Safety Eric Smith led the way for the Jets D in this game with 10 tackles.  OLB Bryan Thomas (9 tackles, 1.5 sacks, 2 tackles for a loss, 1 pass defensed and 1 QB hit) and ILB Bart Scott (9 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss and 2 QB hits) also were very active for the Jets in this game.  DT Sione Pouha pitched in with 7 tackles and 2 big fumble recoveries in this game for the Jets.  The Ravens finished up with only 49 yards rushing on 35 carries (1.4 ypc) and they also completed 20 of 38 passes for 233 yards.  This was a tough home loss for the Jets to open the season.