Random Thoughts (November 13, 2008)

New York Jets. Eric Mangini. Ty Law. AFC East supremacy. If the Patriots are forced to play on a Thursday night, I'm glad that it is against the imposters from New Jersey. No team likes playing on three days rest in the NFL but when you are going against a team that has tried to play copy-cat since stealing Bill Parcells in 1997, it will not be hard to get ready to play. With first place in the division on the line as well, the Pats will be ready to roll. The Jets are jealous of the Patriots and have tried to replicate the great success in New England but have failed. When Parcells took the Pats to Super Bowl XXXI, the Jets opened up their checkbook and brought the Tuna to the Meadowlands but they advanced only as far as the AFC Championship Game. When Parcells named Bill Belichick as his successor after the 1999 season, the Hooded One knew that the Jets were a franchise filled with losers and he went straight up 95 North to Foxboro. After the Pats won three Super Bowls in four years, the Jets hired Mangini, Belichick's one time protege, as their head coach. One playoff game in two years (a loss to the Pats in Foxboro) is all the Jets have gotten out of Man-boob-i. Law, a potential Hall of Famer for what he did in New England, must obviously value money more than championships. He could have returned to Foxboro to possibly win a fourth championship. Instead he will don the green-and-white for the second time in his career, a fitting color for Law. Then again, he did sign with the Jets for the pro-rated minimum (about $340,000 for the next few weeks) so maybe he thought the color of the uniform was a bonus. The Jets are playing some pretty good football. Thomas Jones and Leon Washington are two formidable running backs and Brett Favre has Laveranues Coles and Jerricho Cotchery on the outside to throw his deep bombs. The New York defense is one of the best units in the NFL of late, playing stout against the run with nose tackle Kris Jenkins and tough against the pass with cornerback Darrelle Revis. They are coming off a 47-3 rout of the lowly St. Louis Rams and have the opportunity to take over sole possession of first place in the AFC East with a win tonight. It won't be enough. The Pats are a veteran team that knows that the division title and a trip to the playoffs become a lot easier to attain with a win tonight. There is real animosity between these two franchises and the Pats will savor the chance to stick it to their would-be challengers in front of a national audience. Take the Pats (-3)... The Bruins are morphing into a team that you don't want to miss. They won again last night ina shootout over the Blackhawks in Chicago and are tied for first place with the Sabres for first place in the Northeast Division with 21 points... When the Paul Pierce career highlight DVD (or whatever DVD's will be called in the future) is released sometime around 2020, I will jump straight ahead to last night's game against the Hawks to watch his game winner. What an amazing shot... Youkilis or Pedroia. The A.L. MVP voters can't go wrong either way... Enjoy Matt Cassel tonight...