Results tagged “mikenugent”

Name the worst teams in the NFL, and chances are the squads picked will appear on the Jets' schedule. Bengals? Check. Chiefs? Later on. Same with the Rams. This week's foe: the mighty Raiders, who are 1-4 and on their second coach this season. The only thing the Raiders are good at is running the ball -- they're fourth in the league. They're toward the bottom in everything else, including 24th in defense. With Brett Favre leading the charge, the Jets could be in for a fruitful passing day.

A timeout and a holding penalty on the Jets couldn't prevent Mike Nugent from hurting the Jets' draft position helping the Jets end a disappointing season with a 13-10 win over Kansas City on Sunday evening at the Meadowlands. A 33-yard make, which set off some premature celebrations, turned into a 43-yard try after Wade Smith got nailed for holding. Nugent made that too, a fitting sendoff for special teams coach Mike Westoff, who told his team he wouldn't be back next season. He's been suffering from a malignant tumor in his femur and has walked around on crutches while leading the most successful of the Jets units. Given how inconsistent the offense and defense have been, that shouldn't be too hard, but the Jets' Leon Washington was one of their biggest threats -- as a returnman.

Eight of the Jets' 12 losses have come by seven points or fewer. Too many of them have followed the script of Sunday's 10-6 defeat at the hands of the Tennessee Titans in Nashville. Jets fans have to be sick of a banged-up team not expressing confidence in its quarterback -- Chad Pennington wasn't named the starter but played over Kellen Clemens and his sore ribs -- and then going out there and laying an offensive egg. Without his most dynamic playmaker (Laveranues Coles is on injured reserve), Pennington still found a way to complete 81 percent of his passes and throw for 264 yards.

With the Jets 3-10, the best thing that can be said about them is that they're still playing hard. They seemed insulted that people thought the Dolphins could beat them last week, and, despite playing in front of empty seats in a heavy rain Sunday, the Jets fought back before losing to the Browns, 24-18. Kellen Clemens scored the Jets' only touchdown with his quarterback sneak in the fourth quarter, but his inconsistent play and...

Bye weeks can do wonders for football teams. Time off certainly helped the Jets. They held their own against the Pittsburgh Steelers and then secured a 19-16 win in overtime after trailing by three with two minutes, 23 seconds to go in regulation. For the second straight game, Kellen Clemens engineered a game-tying drive capped by a Mike Nugent field goal -- although this drive probably should won the game. The Jets finished the job...

Mike Nugent's field goal with 10 seconds remaining helped the Jets squeak by Miami, 13-10, during a rainy Christmas night in South Florida. The messy game looked like many others this season; it was defensive and sluggish. Who cares about style? With a win against Oakland on Sunday, the Jets will make the playoffs. Not too shabby for a team most thought would be dreadful.

For too long this season Chad Pennington has been hung out to dry by his offensive teammates or made foolish mistakes himself. In plenty of games, he hasn't had reliable protection from his offensive line, a running attack to keep opponents honest or a receiver to make plays. This in turn has forced him into situations where mistakes are likely.

The Jets' 24-17 loss to the Patriots at home included a comeback that fell short. The question that should be asked is which half should carry more weight? The first half, when the Patriots pushed the Jets around, and looked well on the way to an easy victory? Or the second half, when the Jets took advantage of sloppy Patriots defense and showed the capability to make a big play?

After the Jets' surprising Week 1 win over the Titans, they return home to face the rival Patriots. Only a lack of mutual success has kept this rivalry from blossoming more over the years. Each franchise has poached a coach from the other (Bill Parcells taken by the Jets; Bill Belichick taken by the Patriots), the teams are from New York and Boston, the current Jets coach, Eric Mangini, was a longtime Patriots assistant, and, most recently, the Patriots accused the Jets of tampering.

Question marks swirled around the Jets and their quarterback, but Chad Pennington must have removed some doubters with his performance during the Jets' 23-16 win over Tennessee on Sunday. Pennington threw for 319 yards and two touchdowns, but more importantly, he didn't look like his arm was the weakest of any NFL starting quarterback. That was the best sign from the Jets' win, which was not exclusively impressive.

The short answer is: not much. With a new coaching staff and an oft-injured quarterback, the Jets will keep the pain in growing pains. Their offense includes more holes than the defense, so if improvement comes under first-year head coach Eric Mangini, it will come on that side of the ball. But in a division including two playoff-caliber teams in New England and Miami, the Jets may find it hard to show progress this season.

When Mike Nugent's potentially game-winning 53 yard field goal sailed about 12 inches short, and the host Jets soon fell to 2-9 with a 21-19 loss to New Orleans, you knew it wasn't long before the "there's always next year" hopes and columns would arise. But it's just not that simple yet.

There were seven fumbles, three turnovers, six dropped passes, eight penalties and a blocked field-goal attempt in which rookie kicker Mike Nugent slipped on an imaginary banana peel.

The Giants did not have the same quantity of picks that the Jets did, but they managed to fill several needs. With Michael Strahan’s injury last year, the Giants’ lack of depth on their defensive line was exposed; adding Jason Tuck and Eric Moore should help to address that. Third down with one yard to go has been a situation that makes Giants’ fans queasy and hopefully running back, Brandon Jacobs will solve that. At 6-3, 256 pounds, he certainly has the size to. With their top selection, the Giants chose cornerback, Corey Webster. Webster will instantly become the cornerback in the nickel defense and protects the Giants from the potential loss of starter, Will Allen, after the 2005 season.