JET NOTES
One of the unsung Jets heroes yesterday was special teams ace Chris Hayes, who had a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and a special-teams tackle. He was a catalyst for a special teams unit that entered the game much maligned.
“Chris Hayes made several big plays,” CB Ray Mickens said. “Without his plays, we’d probably still be out there on the field playing.”
Hayes, who called his plays “just hustle plays,” credited everyone else around him.
“Kevin Williams’ return started everything,” Hayes said. “He lit it and everyone else threw gasoline on it.”
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Jets C Kevin Mawae played well against his nemesis, Bills 350-pound NT Ted Washington, along with 320-pounder Pat Williams and afterward conceded, “I don’t look forward to playing them again, but I know I’ve got to.
“I know I’m not going to block them every time,” Mawae went on. “I can’t. I’m 290 and they’re 340. It’s like trying to hold a bus back with a rope going downhill. You might give up some ground, but give it up grudgingly.”
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The Giants Stadium natural-turf field looked like a shoddy, torn-up municipal golf course yesterday and it affected play.
“It was like playing on Jones Beach,” Mawae said. “In preseason it was in great shape and now it’s like a sand pit out there.”
Bills K Steve Christie, who had a 43-yard FG attempt blocked, blamed the field, saying, “My foot slipped about a half a foot and left a big pile on the ground. I could have put an umbrella in it and set up a picnic.
“The field was awful. I mean, why bother? Just keep Astroturf in there. They put sand down before the game and painted it green.”
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Jets K John Hall was 2-of-3 on FGs, kicking a 51-yarder, missing a 33 yarder in the fourth quarter and then making a 27-yarder later in the fourth … Tom Tupa had a 70-yard punt, his longest as a Jet … When Jets DE Shane Burton blocked a 43-yard Christie FG attempt it was the fifth blocked FG of his career … The Jets were penalized only three times for 10 yards, though one of them was an interference penalty by CB Ray Mickens, his second in as many weeks.
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There were differing feelings in the Bills’ locker room after the game regarding the Jets’ victory.
“We got outplayed; it’s as simple as that,” Bills DE Phil Hansen said. “They came out ready to play and didn’t make mistakes. We died. We deserved to lose. We weren’t good enough to win.”
Bills FS Keion Carpenter, however, subscribed to the old we-gave-it-to-them, saying, “This hurts. Look at the score. Take the Hail Mary away and take away the kickoff return and look what you’ve got. We beat ourselves.”
