Broncos defeat Jets 17-13; Postgame Thoughts

Broncos 17 – Jets 13.

Tebow time.

4th quarter. 95 yard drive. 12 plays. 4:56.

That drive, ending in a Tim Tebow touchdown with 58 seconds left, will not only hurt the New York Jets; It will end their season.

With the 17-13 victory, the Denver Broncos are now tied with the New York Jets at 5-5, with the advantage in the tiebreaker.

Make no mistake.  This game will haunt the Jets for a while.   There was no excuse for the Jets losing this game.  They were the better team and just didn’t execute.   To be more specific: Put this one on Mark Sanchez.  He gave the Broncos life with a Pick 6 Interception.

Yes, they had a short week due to a Sunday night game against New England, and had no time to prepare for Tebow and the option offense.  But this game was a disaster.   No offense.  A defense that wilted in the Mile High air.  And an offensive line that almost killed Sanchez.

Great effort by the Jets defensive line, Bart Scott and David Harris until the end.  A 95 yard drive in the final 6 minutes of the game cannot happen.  Not if you want to get to the playoffs at least.

You fumble the ball; you throw an interception; you are going to lose the game.

Let’s get to our quick hits:

1. We have to start with Matt Slauson.  The Guard, in scoring the Jets only TD, joined Randy Rasmussen (1972 against Miami) as the only Jet offensive lineman to recover a fumble for a TD.

2. Joe McKnight sure made us forget Shonn Greene, didn’t he?  With 59 yards on 16 carries, McKnight deserves a game ball.  Too bad he fumbled it on a kickoff.   Greene left the game in the first quarter with a rib injury and didn’t return.

3. Fourth turnover on special teams for the Jets this season. That’s the worst in the NFL.  Two in two games for McKnight.

4. Something has to happen with the Jets offensive line.  They can’t keep letting their quarterback get abused.

5. Say what you want about Tim Tebow, but the Broncos are now 5-5.  Regardless of the fact that Tebow can’t complete a pass, he just beat the Jets.  Oh, and the Jets are now behind the Broncos in the standings.  Tebow finished 9-20 for 104 passing yards with 8 rushes for 68 yards.

6. Mark Sanchez. Third interception for a TD this season.  It has to stop.  Sanchez has looked jumpy all season and it’s partly due to the Jets weak offensive line.  For the game, Sanchez was 24-40, 252 yards with 0 Tds and an INT.   This hasn’t been a good year for Sanchez.

7. Von Miller is good.  Von Miller got away with a few late hits on Sanchez.

8. 20 Turnovers for the Jets this season in 10 games.  They had 21 all of last year.   Not sure how to explain that.

9. T.J. Conley with a 13 yard punt for the Jets?  Really, T.J. ?  13 yards?