LAST week as the 3-0 Jets were immersed in preparation for yesterday’s game against the Bills, Herman Edwards handed out cards to some players in the locker room that had “4-0” written in block letters.
The message on the cards told the players that if they were afraid to go 4-0 they could call the police, and there was a 1-800 number to call.
“They all looked at me like I was crazy,” Edwards said.
None of the players made the call.
“That’s the kind of team we have become,” Edwards said.
The Jets, 4-0 after yesterday’s schizophrenic 16-14 victory over the Bills, have become a team with no fear.
It’s important, too, for the Jets to realize that although they are an undefeated team, they are not without flaws.
For all the resilience and belief in each other the Jets showed in victory, they also screwed up nearly enough plays to throw the game away. They were a gust of wind pushing Doug Brien’s game-winning field goal wide right away from being 3-1 – and livid at themselves today.
It’s valuable for the Jets to bask in the marvelous aroma of victory and allow their confidence to burgeon as they get ready to beat the 49ers next Sunday, which would put them at 5-0 for the first time in franchise history. It is equally important for them to remember the bad plays that nearly cost them yesterday’s win.
Don’t forget the Chris Baker fumble in the red zone. Remember the INT Pennington threw when he should have just taken the sack. Brood over the inability to get the ball into the end zone on that opening drive. Look back on the things that allowed Buffalo to rally to a 14-13 lead in the fourth quarter in your house.
Remember that the combined record of the teams you’ve played is 4-14 and the toughest part of the schedule has yet to arrive, that you still haven’t faced a playoff – much less a Super Bowl – contender. That, of course, will change on Oct. 24 when the Jets play the Patriots in Foxboro.
Remembering those things – and correcting them – will take the Jets as far as the confidence gained from their first four wins.
“I think the most important thing is that we don’t take 4-0 for granted,” Curtis Martin said. “After all the hard work, the kicking and screaming and scratching we had to go through to get here, we have to keep kicking and screaming and scratching. We’re not good enough yet to take anything for granted. We have to stay focused and do more.”
Wayne Chrebet called yesterday “a character game for us.” He called Edwards’ motivational card game “his way of motivating us, telling us, ‘Don’t be afraid to be successful. Don’t be afraid to be 4-0.’
Say the Jets hadn’t come back on that final, game-winning drive and has lost, 14-13. Losses like that send teams on 0-3 skids. Who knows where the Jets’ season goes from here, had they failed to prevail yesterday.
“I think and I hope that the drive we had at the end of the game is indicative of how we’ve come together,” Chad Pennington said. “Last year we were losing those games. There is such a fine line between winning and losing. Sometimes fans, media and even players overlook that.”
If the Jets keep their confidence and perspective – not to mention their no-fear mentality – the possibilities for this team are endless.
