SB Nation New York: All Posts by Chris Celletti

New York Knicks Player Power Rankings: Hold steady edition

2012-12-19T15:14:47Z

Well, as long as the New York Knicks don't face the Houston Rockets in the NBA Finals, I think all Knicks fans will be happy right? If the Houston Rockets didn't exist, the Knicks would be 18-4. (And I guess we would have won the 1994 title by default? Stop existing, Houston Rockets) Since our last rankings, the Knicks lost their first home game of the season as Jeremy Lin dropped 22 and 8 on their heads in Linsanity's return to MSG. But that game snapped a four-game win streak, which for these rankings' purposes, were highlighted by wins over the Los Angeles Lakers and Cleveland Cavaliers.With those wins, the Knicks are holdin' steady atop the Eastern Conference.

The health of the Knicks' stars is the big question surrounding the team right now. Carmelo Anthony badly sprained his ankle against LA, causing him to miss the games against the Cavs and Rockets, and he is questionable for Wednesday's third round scrap against Brooklyn. Amare Stoudemire, however, appears to be on his way back, and this could be the last ranking we do without the Knicks' potential $100 million bench player. On to the rankings we go:

1. Carmelo Anthony (Last: 1) - We'll see how long Anthony is injured for, but he still holds the top spot even though he only played a little over a half during our ranking period. And WHAT a half-plus that was, as 'Melo was knocking down all sorts of shots in a barrage against LA. In 23 minutes, Anthony had 30 points on 10-of-15 shooting. WHOA. But he had no assists everybody! SO SELFISH. In all seriousness, the MVP-like season continues for the Knicks' best player. Now let's just hope he can get, and stay, healthy.

2. Tyson Chandler (Last: 2) - Don't look now but Chandler is putting up a career year, and that's with some sub-par defensive play based on his lofty standards. Chandler is averaging career highs in points and rebounds 12.9 and 10. Last week, he put up 18 and 23 against the Lakers and Cavs respectively, and had 18 boards in the losing effort against Houston. He's become one of the deadliest pick-and-roll finishers in the league, and nobody has figured out how to stop it yet. Hopefully they never do.

3. Jason Kidd (Last: 3) - It was a battle between Kidd and Ray Felton for the third and fourth spots, and I stuck with Kidd despite the fact that he's hit a bit of a shooting slump (just 5-of-23 in his last two games). Against the Lakers, Kidd stuffed the stat sheet with 5 pts, 9 rebs and 5 assists, and oh yeah he guarded Kobe Bryant basically all night. The fact that Kobe had a pretty big night is irrelevant. 39-year-old Jason Kidd chased Kobe Bryant around and did well. Kudos.

4. Raymond Felton (Last: 4) - With Anthony out, Felton went back to his customary "I'm going to take a crapload of shots" ways, and as usual when Felton shoots a ton, there were mixed results. He's taken 64 shots in the past three games. Still, he's put up fine numbers and was instrumental in the Knicks' victory over the Cavs with 25 pts, 7 ast and 5 rebs in his most efficient game of the bunch with 9-of-20 shooting.

5. Steve Novak (Last: 6) - Novak leapfrogs J.R. Smith (a brilliant real-life visual if you let your mind go there) based on the fact that he played his role just about perfectly in the wins over the Lakers and Cavs. In those two games combined, Novak played 59 minutes, hit 8-of-12 from deep for 25 combined points. And against the Lakers, all his three seemed to be perfectly-timed daggers.Also, the Lakers somehow allowed Novak to register four assists in a single game. If and when Mike D'Antoni gets fired by LA, this will be one of the reasons that Mitch Kupchak and/or Jerry Buss allude to.

6. J.R. Smith (Last: 5) - Smith has been trying to find consistency since he started slumping after his hot start and it looks like he's just about there. With J.R. you want to see some efficiency in his shooting numbers, and he did shoot 50% or over against the Lakers and Rockets, sandwiched by a 6-of-20 night against Cleveland. Although, against the Rockets, Smith really struggled early on on the defensive end, picking up quick and silly fouls. When Anthony is out, Smith needs to be able to stay on the floor for his offense.

7. Chris Copeland (Last: 12) - Why the heck not...Merry Christmas, Cope. He put up a career high 29 points against the Rockets, and although a lot of them were in garbage time, a lot of them were also during a third quarter run where he single handedly brought the Knicks back into the game, getting them within five before James Harden started playing like it was NBA Jam. Copeland got his first NBA start last Saturday against the Cavs, and played a solid offensive 19 minutes with 11 points. At the very least while Anthony is out, Copeland has proven that he's not out of place in an NBA game.

8. Ronnie Brewer (Last: 8) - Brewer hasn't hit a three pointer since Dec. 9, which wouldn't really be a thing if he didn't start out the season doing a Reggie Miller impersonation. Regardless, Brewer's worth doesn't show up in the stat sheet. A lot of people want to slash Brewer's minutes when Iman Shumpert comes back, but I'm not so sure I would go ahead and start Shumpert right away instead of Brewer. I'm personally not sure where I sit on that debate altogether, but am interested how Mike Woodson handles it for sure.

9. Pablo Prigioni (Last: 9) - Pablo put up 14 in the loss to the Rockets, as the game got out of hand. In the previous three games, Pablo had no points, 3 rebs and 1 ast, in EACH game. Pablo is consistent.

10. Rasheed Wallace (Last: 7) - I liked Wallace's performance against the Lakers about as much as I liked his performance last week against Brooklyn, which is a lot. Against the Lakers, Sheed played 12 minutes and only took five shots, making three of them (2-of-4 from 3). He also had four fouls. It's great when Rasheed Wallace uses his fouls. It really should be one foul per two minutes played for him. He missed the past two games due to injury.

11. Kurt Thomas (Last: 10) - Thomas ranks ahead of James White because he played good "real" minutes against Cleveland. Anytime Kurt Thomas scores, I think I speak for all of Knicks Nation when I say it's the absolute best part of my entire day.

12. James White (Last: 11) - Got a nice 23-minute run in the loss to Houston. Outside of that, played four minutes against the Lakers and zip against the Cavs.

13. Marcus Camby (Last: 13) - In the basement until he gets healthy.

Greg McElroy named starting quarterback for New York Jets on Sunday vs. San Diego

2012-12-18T20:30:23Z

The New York Jets made it officia Tuesday. Greg McElroy will make his first-ever NFL start on Sunday when they host the San Diego Chargers. The team made the announcement official on it's Twitter feed less than 24 hours after their playoff chances were mathematically destroyed in Monday's 14-10 loss to the Tennessee Titans.

It's the right move for the Jets on many levels. McElroy was responsible for what probably proved to be the most exciting moment of their season, three weeks ago when he came in to relieve the struggling Mark Sanchez and lead the Jets to a 7-6, comeback victory over the Arizona Cardinals. McElroy's reward? He was inactive for the Jets' past two games, behind Tim Tebow on the depth chart.

[Report: Tebow might ask for trade]

McElroy should play every snap at quarterback in these last two games. The Jets might as well see what McElroy is and see how and if he can contribute next season. A lot of Jets fans were all sorts pumped up after the comeback against Arizona - rightfully so - but that also clouded the reality about McElroy. There is a slim chance he can be a legitimate starting NFL quarterback, but it's more likely that he's a backup What the Jets should look for in these last two games are signs that McElroy can at the very most compete for the starting job in training camp next season, whether it's with Sanchez or another veteran free agent that's brought in.

There are many that think the Jets should have started Tebow on Sunday, but he's simply not going to be on the roster next year so there's really no point. He cannot run a pro-style offense and is not a long-term solution at the position, even as a backup because of all the unneeded attention he brings.

And then there's Sanchez. I think you can count on one hand the people in America who think the Jets should start Sanchez on Sunday, or ever again for that matter. If I were the Jets, I would actually take an extreme measure and just deactivate Sanchez for the rest of the season, send him home and get him out of the building. What's the point of him being around the team in practice, on the sideline during games and what not? Just cut the cord.

It's been an incredible fall for Sanchez, the Jets' former first round pick and the guy they pinned the hopes of the franchise on for years. It's apparent that they took a swing in the 2009 Draft and whiffed, and if there is one position in American pro sports that you cannot afford to swing and miss on it's quarterback in the NFL. That usually sets you back years, and that's what has happened to the Jets.

With Sanchez's contract situation, there is still a chance he'll be back next year in some capacity. If the Jets cut him outright, they incur a $17 million cap penalty. There is a possibility that Sanchez can restructure his contract to help facilitate a move, but the chances of that are slim. Now the eyes shift for the next two weeks to McElroy. He doesn't have to show much to merit a spot in the Jets' QB conversation next year.

Ultimately, the fact that the Jets are moving to McElroy late in 2012 and may consider him seriously for their starting job in 2013 tells you all you need to know about where they are as a franchise.

Jets vs. Titans analysis: The good, the bad, the ugly

2012-12-18T15:39:18Z

It really couldn't end any other way, right? The 2012 New York Jets were a mess pretty much from the start. On Monday, they ended in a mess with their playoff chances dying a slow, painful death in Tennessee, the final nail coming on a botched snap-fumble from Mark Sanchez, with the ball being kicked around and bounding along the ground ending up in the opponents' hands. The Titans defeated the Jets, 14-10, and we may look back on Monday's disaster as a turning point in the franchise.

Twice now, coupled with Thanksgiving night's horrifying blowout to the Patriots, the Jets have been embarrassed twice on national TV late in the year. Owner Woody Johnson is a guy who craves attention and is dying to be loved, and with two high-profile embarrassments and a likely under .500 record, you can be sure that changes will be made. Whether or not the changes are going to be made with the right nuance and with the correct reasons in mind will dictate where this franchise goes from here. But make no mistake about it, last night was the point where it became abundantly clear that this team needs a new direction, new leadership and a new vision. Before we tackle that monstrosity of a task, we'll look back at last night's debacle.

The Good

The Jets' defense played well enough to win the game. They've had a nice stretch for the past three games (albeit against poor offenses), allowing just 30 points total. On Monday, the Jets gave up two big plays all day, and they directly resulted in the Titans' 14 points. Outside of those plays, the defense was great. Quinton Coples appears to be improving by the week, and there's just zero reason - with the season now dead - for him not to start and play 85% of the snaps in the final two games.

I'm not sure why the Jets abandoned the running game so quickly last night. They carried it 30 times for 146 yards. Shonn Greene, Bilal Powell and Joe McKnight all averaged far over four yards per carry. Even Tim Tebow had some success in the Wildcat, with 15 yards on three carries. With the game in reach throughout, the Jets should have continued to run the ball.

The Bad

Unfortunately, when your offense is as putrid as the Jets' offense, your defense needs to pretty much be perfect and the Jets' D wasn't on Monday. Now, as I said before they played well enough to win, however, they did allow a 94-yard touchdown run by Chris Johnson in the first half, which is the second time in a calendar year that Rex Ryan's defense had allowed a 90-plus yard TD that had a direct hand in ending their season. Most teams don't give up 90-plus yard touchdowns in a decade. On top of that, after the Jets took a surprising 10-7 lead, Jake Locker took the Titans right down the field like it was 7-on-7 drills, eventually running for a touchdown to give the Titans a 14-10 lead they wouldn't relinquish.

The Jets dressed six wideouts last night. This is one of the worst passing teams in the league, and a team that doesn't even want to throw the ball. When asked about it after the game, Ryan didn't really give any sort of answer. That's because he didn't even know why. The disorganization is startling.

-On their third series, the Jets went with Tim Tebow at quarterback. They ran five plays and punted. It was revealed after the game that this was the plan all along, going into the game. Let me repeat, or make it clearer. The Jets, whether it was Ryan, Tony Sparano, Mike Tannenbaum, Woody Johnson, or all of them, decided that Tim Tebow was going to play the third series of the game, no matter what. While I'm being radical, this is a fireable offense for whoever's decision it ultimately was. You do not, and simply cannot, win in the NFL making decisions like this.

The Ugly

-Mark Sanchez really shouldn't take another snap as a Jet quarterback. He's simply shot as a New York athlete and as the quarterback of this team. The four picks, the fumble, the listless postgame reaction all adds up. He just seems like a beaten guy and on top of that, just simply isn't good enough anymore to warrant being given another chance. The benching he received a few weeks ago was the last resort, the one thing left to do to try and wake him up and get him to play better and it didn't come close to working. If I'm the Jets, I do what a lot of MLB teams do when a guy is struggling - make up an injury and deactivate him for the rest of the year. Honestly, there is no reason for Sanchez to even be around this team for the rest of the year.

Starting him next week at home against San Diego is actually cruel to the guy. If he actually starts, he will get totally destroyed by the fanbase. They'll literally boo him for three straight hours. I would contend that it would be so bad that even if Sanchez threw or ran for a touchdown next week, he would get booed. There's no point. Tell him to go home for the year and start reevaluating what to do at the QB position right away.

-But again, while Sanchez was miserable all year and played his way out of a career, the blame for the Jets' season goes all around this organization and that includes Rex Ryan. Ryan's steadfast faith in Sanchez, his hiring of Tony Sparano, the overall defense-first approach in a league that is so clearly going the other direction are all reasons that the Jets have fallen to this point. The roster's deterioration is part his fault but mostly general manager Mike Tannenbaum's fault, and you'd have to figure his days are numbered.

The most logical thing for the Jets to do the next two weeks is start Greg McElroy at quarterback. Sanchez is done here, and Tim Tebow is a sideshow who won't be on the roster next year. You need to find out if McElroy can be your backup next year - I'm being as realistic as possible, not like the many Jets fans who have a pipe dream that McElroy will be "Our Tom Brady"...please - and the only way you do that is play him the next two games. And how about this? How about you let the guy throw the ball down the field a little bit? You're games are now meaningless, enough with the ball-control, running game, try-to-finish-as-high-as-possible-in-defensive-ranking crap. It's over.

We'll have the coming days, weeks and months to figure out what the Jets should do next year. The changes are coming, and they have to be sweeping ones.

Knicks vs. Rockets preview: Jeremy Lin returns to Madison Square Garden

2012-12-17T15:50:27Z

If Jeremy Lin brought Madison Square Garden its best basketball moments in a decade and reinvigorated a fanbase, then Carmelo Anthony and Co. haven't missed a beat his absence. On Monday, the New York Knicks host the Houston Rockets for the first time since they decided to let Linsanity leave in one of the most anticipated regular games in the entire league this season.

While Lin's rise to fame made him one of the most popular athletes in the world and probably the most universally-liked Knick among their fanbase, the Knicks felt that Lin's offseason price tag was too high. The decision to let Lin walk enraged many Knicks fans, even some going so far as to change allegiances to the Brooklyn Nets. But it's become clear that money and egos may not have been the only factor the Knicks considered when ultimately letting Lin go. Bringing in Raymond Felton to run the point with Jason Kidd and a bevy of other veterans, the Knicks appeared ready to play a certain style and find the right pieces to fit it. The result? An 18-5 record, the best in the East.

For Lin, its been a little bit bumpy in his second go around with Houston, which was to be expected on a young team. He's averaging just over 10 points a game and is handing out six assists per, numbers much lower than the ones he put up when bursting onto the scene last year. The most alarming thing about Lin's season is probably his shooting, as he's at just under 40% overall. While he's still capable of putting up big games - last week's 38-point outburst on San Antonio is proof - Lin has been in single digits in scoring probably way more times than anyone thought he would be at this point in the season.

The game is a rematch from the Rockets' 131-103 shellacking of the Knicks back on Nov. 23. In that game, Lin was mainly a bystander scoring 13 points and adding three assists and seven rebounds, rather it was Chandler Parsons and James Harden who combined for 64 points in the blowout. Interesting how we just now mention Harden, who is having a spectacular season. While Lin is the juicy story and rightfully so, for the Knicks the game will hinge on how they contain Harden, likely not Lin.

For the Knicks, they look to stay perfect at home and are likely to have the services of Carmelo Anthony back, who missed Saturday's victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers with a sprained left ankle. You can bet he won't want to miss this one.

Throughout Knicks' history there have been many moments when the game - and the individual - has lived up to the hype. think Michael Jordan's "double-nickel" in 1995, his first game back at MSG after his retirement. That's the type of spotlight that will be on Lin tonight. Will he deliver another memorable moment, like the many he brought Knicks fans in such a short time frame last year?

Jets vs. Titans, key matchups: Will return of Braylon Edwards spark Jets offense?

2012-12-14T17:56:01Z

The return of wide receiver Braylon edwards to the New York Jets perfectly illustrated the paradigm of reaction to personnel moves by the Jets' front office. Jets fans rejoice and tell you why it's a good thing and it's going to work, and the rest of the NFL public points and laughs.

Edwards' second stint with the Jets will begin on Monday night in Tennessee when the Jets' must-win tour continues against the Titans, and the reality about his arrival probably falls somewhere boringly in the middle. The Jets won't all of a sudden start slinging the ball all around the field and putting up huge numbers, but anybody who acts like Edwards isn't an upgrade for the Jets is also being unreasonable.Add to the fact that he has had success with Mark Sanchez in the past, and the move is a low-risk one that makes plenty of sense.

Pete Carroll, Edwards' former coach in Seattle, claims that Edwards isn't healthy, the Jets think otherwise. Even if Edwards is at say, 70 percent, he's the Jets second best receiver. Yes, that says more about the Jets and the archaic way they've built their roster this season, but it's the truth. And because of that, Edwards is an upgrade over what they currently have at the position. Edwards will suit up on Monday and will play a large role according to Rex Ryan. Tennessee has the 26th-ranked pass defense in the league, so if the Jets want to open things up a bit the opportunities should be there. If Edwards can give the Jets even the slightest threat of a downfield passing game, or can simply be a security blanket for Sanchez on third downs, the Jets have a good shot of winning their third straight, getting back to .500 and staying alive in the playoff race. You know they're going to run the ball a ton, but it helps to have a viable target when you do drop back to pass.

On defense, the Jets' biggest task will be slowing down Chris Johnson. It's been a strange year for Johnson; he started out really slow and pissed off all the people who took him high in their fantasy football drafts, but he's kind of flown under the radar recently and is putting together a respectable year on a bad team. He's ninth in the league in rushing with 1,037 yards albeit the slow beginning. The Jets' defense has been quite good the past two games against bad offenses and quarterbacks, and while Jake Locker is better than Ryan Lindley and Chad Henne, the Jets shouldn't be too worried about losing their way with him. The only player on the field for the Titans that can wreck the game for the Jets is Johnson, so you can bet they've spent a good portion of this week concentrating on how to shut him down.

If the Jets can get out of Tennessee with their third straight victory, you can almost call this 2012 season a success regardless of if the Jets sneak into the playoffs. With a pitiful roster, the quarterback mess and a few ghastly blowout losses, for the Jets to be playing a meaningful game in Week 16 would be an accomplishment in and of itself. But before we go on crunching all the Jets' payoff scenarios, Gang Green has to take care of business on Monday night. the performances of Braylon Edwards and Chris Johnson could go a long way to determining whether or not they do.

New York Knicks' Player Power Rankings: Big win edition

2012-12-12T15:52:01Z

Since we last did our New York Knicks Player Power Rankings, we've seen J.R. Smith hit a buzzer-beater, the Knicks go to Miami sans Carmelo Anthony and win going away, and Jason Kidd hitting a dagger to give the Knicks their first-ever victory in Brooklyn. Now at 16-5, the Knicks are off to their third-best start through 21 games in franchise history. The two teams in franchise history that had better starts that this one were the only two in team history to win an NBA Championship. So there's that.

1. Carmelo Anthony (Last: 1) - Although he missed two of the Knicks' five games during our ranking period, Anthony holds on to the top spot thanks to three great performances, most notably Tuesday night's dominant 45-point performance in the Knicks' 100-97 win over the Brooklyn Nets. Anthony was an efficient 15-of-24 from the field and made five threes. On Sunday, in his first game back after injuring his finger against the Bobcats, Anthony torched his former team - the Denver Nuggets - for 34 points. They don't give out league MVP awards in December, but if they did, you could make a really compelling case for Anthony.

2. Tyson Chandler (Last: 2) - You could go either way at No's. 2 and 3, with Chandler and Kidd. I'll keep Chandler here for now after a great four-game stretch before Tuesday's game in Brooklyn. In the four games prior to Knicks/Nets, Chandler was a rebound against Miami away from four straight double-doubles.

3. Jason Kidd (Last: 4) - Kidd hit the game-winner on Tuesday in Brooklyn, a wild, memorable three-pointer that turned the Barclays Center into Madison Square Garden East. The past two games he's really dialed it back, filling up the stat sheet like the Kidd of old by averaging 17.5 points, 6.5 assists and 5 rebounds. He's logged a lot of minutes recently, so the Knicks would be wise to go back to blowing a few teams out and giving Kidd and some of their other vets some much needed rest.

[Related: Kidd amazes even his own teammates]

4. Raymond Felton (Last: 3) - Felton was the best player on the floor last Thursday when the undermanned Knicks went into Miami and took the Heat to the cleaners. Miami had no answer for Felton, who was consistently hitting jumpers over closing-out defenders. He helped lead the Knicks' 3-point barrage, knocking down six of his own. His shooting overall has dipped quite a bit, and for some reason he just doesn't seem to like playing in Brooklyn.

5. J.R. Smith (Last: 7) - While his overall shooting numbers remain low, Smith moves up three spots in our rankings. Why? It's really not how much Smith scores, it's when he does. There's no better example of this than last Wednesday's buzzer-beater against the Charlotte Bobcats. Before that shot, Smith was 5-of-15 from the field. But with Anthony out at that point due to the finger injury, Smith stepped up and made the big shot. He appeared to suffer a back injury against the Nets but gutted it out, so that bears worth watching out for.

6. Steve Novak (Last: 6) - The Knicks don't beat the Nuggets on Sunday if not for Novak. Early in the fourth, the Knicks were down by eight points, but Novak totally changed the tenor of the game with two huge 3-pointers to get the Knicks back in it. He also had 19-points and was basically unconscious for a moment against the Heat. His contributions against Miami and Denver are good examples of why his deadly shooting is a huge asset, especially in the regular season.

7. Rasheed Wallace (Last: 9) - The 14 minutes that Wallace gave the Knicks on Tuesday against the Nets is the type of performance the Knicks need to get from him. He had 8 points, 5 rebounds, 2 blocks and attempted just seven shots total. Despite scoring 12 points in 14 minutes against the Heat, he needed 13 shots to do so and bricked all six of his threes. 'Sheed has an important role on this team, but just can't continue to keep shooting once per every minute played.

8. Ronnie Brewer (Last: 5) - Brewer has put up a goose egg in three of the Knicks' last five games, and even though most of the offense you get from him is a bonus, it'd still be nice to get SOME offense from him every night. Brewer's penchant for taking and making the corner-3 early in the year was a big reason the Knicks got out to sizable leads early in games. Hopefully he can find that range again, since he's always consistent on the defensive end.

9. Pablo Prigioni (Last: 8) - Prigioni continued his consistent, solid bench play. He basically gives you the same game every night, which is a coach's dream. You'd actually like to see him look for his shot a little more, even though that's not his job. He's 9-of-24 from behind the arc this season, which is serviceable.

10. Kurt Thomas (Last: 11) - I'm not sure why Thomas didn't play against the Nets. The Knicks could have definitely used some help defensively in the paint, but coach Woodson didn't go to him. In 11 minutes against Miami, Thomas had four points and seven rebounds.

11. James Whites (Last: 12) - Every so often, Woodson gives White a burn in some meaningful minutes and he's acquitted himself well when he's been given the chance. Called into duty against the Heat because of Anthony's absence, White hit all three of his field goal attempts, finishing with seven points in 17 minutes. He's also shown himself to be a pretty reliable defender as well.

12. Chris Copeland (Last: 10) - With the Knicks playing mostly close games, Copeland only registered two minutes in the past five games.

13. Marcus Camby (Last: 13) - Camby remains injured. Pretty amazing that when he gets healthy the Knicks will be able to bring one of the league's best rebounders, shot blockers and interior defenders off the bench for a few minutes each night.

Jets Vs. Jaguars analysis: The good, the bad, the ugly

2012-12-10T14:58:28Z

Thanks to a laughably mediocre AFC, the 6-7 New York Jets are actually relevant in the playoff picture. Yesterday's 17-10 victory over the now 2-11 Jacksonville Jaguars wasn't pretty but it was a win nonetheless. Just like last Sunday's win over the Arizona Cardinals, the Jets eked out a victory over a bad team with a defense-first, run heavy approach. The Jets have suddenly reverted back to the style of play that Rex Ryan implemented back in 2009 (and in 2010 but a little less so). With success - if you want to call two narrow victories against all-time bad offenses "success" - and a soft schedule the rest of the way, this is how the Jets are going to play for the remainder of the year. Buckle in!

The main difference between the win over Jacksonville and the one seven days prior over Arizona was that Mark Sanchez made it all the way through the game this time. That's not to say that he played well. He didn't. But the Jets didn't ask him to do much, and they never used backup Tim Tebow while last week's hero Greg McElroy was back in a baseball cap and holding a clipboard all day, inactive.

The Good

The Jets' defense had a second straight dominant performance, totally suffocating a bad offense. Muhammad Wilkerson was all over the field and anyone who watches him on a consistent basis knows he's one of the best defensive linemen in the league. If Wilkerson were on the Baltimore Ravens or Houston Texans, you'd probably hear a lot more about him.

Rookie Quinton Coples has steadily improved all season and played what was likely his best game as a pro, registering his third sack of the season. David Harris looked like pre-contract-extension David Harris maybe for the first time this season. I think Jets fans should keep cautious optimism because the team's last two opponents are among the worst offenses in the league. Still, credit goes to Rex Ryan for seemingly turning this thing around.

Shonn Greene and Bilal Powell ran amok in the second half behind an offensive line that played up to its potential. I'm not sure what CBS color commentator Solomon Wilcots was talking about when he mentioned that Shonn Greene has put together a really good year, because that's untrue on a staggering amount of levels. Regardless, Greene did his job on Sunday as did Powell, who looks like he could be in the mix as a second running back option next season.

Mark Sanchez's big third down completion to Jeff Cumberland on the Jets' final drive didn't totally ice the game as it should have, but it was a great clutch pitch-and-catch and deserves recognition. However, it was Sanchez's only meaningful throw of the day.

The Bad

Outside of the completion to Cumberland, Sanchez wasn't very good at all. He was inaccurate most of the day, and even when he did have time to throw and most NFL offenses would get a guy free down the field, Sanchez's receivers couldn't find any separation. Sanchez did turn the ball over once, getting strip-sacked by Jason Babin, but it didn't end up being a death knell. The turnover occurred inside Jags' territory but not in the red zone. You'd like to Sanchez stop fumbling, but that specific play was something that happens across the NFL every single week. It wasn't a turnover borne from a poor decision. It was a bad play by left tackle D'Brickashaw Ferguson and a good one by Babin.

Kyle Wilson might have continued wagging his finger and constantly celebrating, but he played his usual sub-par game. He was the sole reason Henne converted a 4th-and-15 with the game on the line.

The Ugly

This is strictly my opinion, so only take it for that. I don't profess to be right, and I certainly hope I'm wrong, but I don't think the Jets can win out playing this style of football, even with their soft schedule. Eventually you have to put up some points. The Jets' next three opponents all have better offenses than the ones they've faced the past two weeks. Next week on Monday Night, the Jets visit the Titans. New York's run defense still let fourth-string Montell Owens go for ~~over 100 yards~~ 91 yards yesterday. They face Chris Johnson on Monday. In two weeks, they'll have to deal with Ryan Mathews, Philip Rivers, Antonio Gates, and the San Diego Chargers, who just went in to Pittsburgh and laid the smackdown on the Steelers. They're not a great team by any stretch, but they are markedly better than the Jaguars and Cardinals, the Jets' latest victims. If the Jets go into Week 17 with a playoff spot on the line in Buffalo, the rival Bills will be up for the game trying to knock the Jets out.

The Jets are playing this brand of football by necessity, they think. They feel like they can't win unless they reign Sanchez in. Maybe they can't, but what does that say about the long-term health of the franchise? Why play Sanchez and put McElroy back on the bench if you're going to try to eke wins out against bad teams? The NFL in 2012 is a passing league, an offensive league. Don't you need to find out a little about whether Sanchez can carry to load? If you're admitting he can't, why is he playing? It's not that the Jets can't win a few games playing this conservative way - they have and they can. But the chance of this keeping up and sustaining any real success this season and beyond is probably very slim.

Knicks-Heat recap: Without Carmelo Anthony, Knicks blow out Heat in Miami

2012-12-07T04:32:49Z

Carmelo Anthony's absence meant the New York Knicks weren't supposed to win on Thursday night in Miami against the Heat. Miami was coming off a bad loss in Washington, so they'd be fired up, and they wanted revenge for the Knicks' win over them on opening night at Madison Square Garden. It wasn't supposed to be close. It was supposed to be a laugher, and it was. The final score was 112-92.

But the Knicks and their fans were the ones doing the chuckling. The Knicks played an incredible all around, team game and handed the Heat their second straight loss, improving their East-leading record to 14-4 without the services of their leading scorer and one of the league's early season MVP candidates. Raymond Felton stepped up for the Knicks, scoring 27 points (all in the first three quarters), hitting 6-of-10 from downtown with seven assists. Steve Novak had 18 off the bench and Jason Kidd returned to the starting lineup and logged 32 minutes, finishing an astounding plus-31.

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New York played a bit of "make everyone but LeBron James beat us" and it worked. James was the only Heat player to really do anything on the night, falling a single assist short of his second straight triple-double in finishing with 31 points, 10 rebounds and 9 assists. Dwyane Wade had just 13 points and was a minus-32, while Chris Bosh made just three field goals and finished with 13 points.

It was all hands on deck, and every Knick who saw the floor contributed in some way to the victory. Just 24-hours removed from hitting the game-winning shot in Charlotte, J.R. Smith shook off a rough first half to hit a couple big threes in the third and fourth quarters when the Knicks started pulling away. Tyson Chandler played his usual tough defense on the interior, as did Rasheed Wallace who missed all six of his 3-point attempts but still had 12 points. Even the seldom used James White gave the Knicks 17 solid minutes while the game was still within reach. Kurt Thomas started again and had seven rebounds in 11 minutes. Name a Knick, they all played a part.

Prior to this season, the Heat had lost just once by 20 or more points with James in the lineup. They now have two losses this season to the Knicks by 20 or more. While this doesn't mean the Knicks are better than the Heat, it does prove that the Knicks are just a darn good team and one deserving of the league's respect and attention. While many will be shocked by the final score and the fact that the Knicks are 14-4, the fact is that this is how the Knicks have played all season. While Anthony has been their leading scorer, they have shown their depth all year and have been efficient on offense and tough on defense. When a team is as deep, together and cohesive as the Knicks are right now, missing one player isn't going to make that big of a difference. Even if it's Carmelo Anthony.

So while it's too early to make any proclamations or worry about the postseason, the shorthanded Knicks' victory on Thursday proved the Knicks are indeed for real.