Debbie’s Dynamic 2011 Top 5 Jets Moments: Number 2

When looking back on the 2011 season and trying to think about my number two moment, it was a little hard, but when I looked to the later part of the season, I realized that the answer was staring me in the face.

Now in case you missed it, here’s a look back at Moment 3, Moment 4 and Moment 5

So to set up the scene, the Jets were coming into the game with a 6-5 record and they were struggling, big time. They really needed an offensive spark and they were getting it but the ground game was a bit of a joke.

The Jets came out of the tunnel in Washington needing a victory to stay in the AFC playoff picture because they had a lot of heat on them at the time so here we go, my number 2 moment of the 2011 season:

Number 23 finds the end zone, mulitple times

To say that running back Shonn Greene was not having a great season finding the end zone is just a little bit of an understatement. Going into week 13, Greene hadn’t seen the end zone in at least 96 rushing attempts, going back to the to first loss to (in my opinion) the Evil Empire back in Week 5.

So the fact that Greene was the catalyst for the Jets in their opening possession against the Skins was a good thing and that he found the end zone with 1:19 left in the first quarter was a good thing since Quarterback Mark Sanchez helped engineer a 17 play, 74 yard drive that took 9:06 off the clock helped the Jets tremendously.

But as we all remember the game, the Jets couldn’t put the Skins away; they traded field goals the whole game. SO, yes, we all remember that it was a 30-yard deep ball from Sanchez to Santonio Holmes which gave the Jets the lead but with the way the game was going, a 20-16 lead for Gang Green didn’t sit very well.

The Jets needed more points so after Aaron “Mayhem” Maybin got another fourth quarter sack on Skins quarterback Rex Grossman, Calvin Pace made the recovery on the 9-yard line.

And that set up the Jets offense so that they tried twice to get Greene in the end zone and it was successful on the second try from the direct snap to score and five the Jets a 27-16 lead. It was his first multiple touchdown game of the season and his first multiple touchdown game in the regular season, since 2009.

The Skins get a  field goal right before the two-minute warning to cut the lead 27-19. So then after the ensuing on-side kick, Greene marches the ball into the end zone to give himself a career high of three rushing touchdowns.

So, what did this moment do for the Jets? For starters, it put a bit of a jolt into Greene’s season; and it helped keep the Jets in the playoff picture. Should the game have been as close as it was? Absolutely not, but hey, it happened so now, look forward to next week when you get my number one moment; begin speculating.