Queens Gazette

Jets Defeat Giants, 27-25




Jets Defeat Giants, 27-25
 

 

 

Jets starting quarterback rookie Mark Sanchez had a good game, leading the Jets to victory over the Giants before a paid attendance of 74,255.

Photos Dan Miller/DMD Images

By Dan Miller
The New York Jets faced New York Giants at Giants Stadium for the 41st meeting of the two New York NFL franchises. A paid attendance of 74,255 at Giants Stadium saw Jets rookie Mark Sanchez in his first start after being named Jets starting quarterback by Coach Rex Ryan earlier this week.

The rookie from USC ended the evening with a solid performance. Sanchez led all quarterbacks in completions with 13/20 for 149 yards and 1 touchdown. Sanchez’ performance was complemented by backup quarterback Eric Ainge, who went 1-1 including a 70-yard bomb to receiver Audrae Allison (88), which earned Ainge a quarterback rating of 158.3.

On the other side of the field, Giants starting quarterback, Eli Manning went 9/21 for 91 yards and one TD for a quarterback rating of 51.9. Brandon Jacobs caught Manning‘s TD pass to him with 10:41 to go in the first quarter. “Eli got some pressure on him but got the ball off,” Jacobs said. “I was able to make an adjustment and got the ball into the end zone. I am always the last option on that play. He read me as the safety valve. I was wide open and he made a great throw under pressure.” Jacobs was all alone on his knees in the right side of the end zone, waiting for the ball and caught it from Manning for the TD. It was the first score of the game, giving the Giants the first lead.

Jets Coach Rex Ryan was pleased with his team’s win over the rival New York Giants, 27-25.

His replacement fared even better. David Carr completed 12 passes in 17 attempts for 181 yards tops for the game, including two TDs. His performance earned him a 144.5 rating for the game.

The Giants came into the game leading the Jets in rushing yardage and maintained that advantage in the game as well. The Giants rushed for 134 yards on 27 carries with Ahmad Bradshaw leading Giant rushers with 47 yards on eight carries, a 5.9 average.

Manning said, “Yeah, we definitely made progress from our last [preseason] game. We started off the first drive going in there and marching it down, making effective plays, going no-huddle, and causing the defense to jump offside a few times.” The Giants were called for four penalties for 27 yards while the Jets actually racked up 12 penalties for 107 yards.

The Jets rushed for 99 yards on 29 carries, a 3.4 average. Leon Washington led all rushers with 62 yards on nine carries for a 6.9 average. When asked about his performance Washington said, “I was happy with the situation.” He indicated that he liked the idea that Ryan calls his number and gives him a lot of touches.

Ryan was pleased with the Jets’ defense. “All right, first thing, we got us a win,” he said, and added: “I was going to give myself a game ball, but after we blew about two or three coverage in that fourth quarter I decided not to give myself a game ball.”

Coming into the game, the Giants led the Jets in most defensive categories; e.g., in total yards per game, the Giants ranked fifth (292 yards) while Jets ranked 16 (329.4 yards). In passing net yards per game, the Giants ranked fifth (196.2 yards) versus the Jets, who ranked eighth (234.5 yards) and in points per game, the Giants ranked fifth (18.4 per game), while the Jets ranked 18th, giving up 22.3 points per game.

In the end, the Jets defeated the Giants, 27-25 in a very close game. The Jets’ victory gave them a 1-2 record. The Giants also have a 1-2 record, with each team going into their last pre-season game next week.

The Jets lead the series 21-18-0 since this rivalry began in 1969, when the defending Super Bowl Champs led by Joe Namath traveled to the Yale Bowl to take on the Giants. The Jets won that game, 37-14. The game actually began on Aug. 17, 1969 at the same time as the start of the Woodstock Music and Art Fair about 100 miles away in Bethel, New York.

On Thursday night September 3, the Jets host the Philadelphia Eagles and Michael Vick at Giants Stadium, while the Giants travel to Foxboro to face the New England Patriots with a healthy Tom Brady leading the Pats.

Both teams begin the 2009 NFL season on Sunday September 13. The Jets open the season on the road, traveling to Houston to take on the Texans at noon while the Giants host the Washington Redskins at Giants Stadium for a 4:15 p.m. start.
For more information, visit www.nfl.com.


 

 

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