Bruno Boys Fantasy Football

The Divisional Round has come to a close here in the NFL. As per usual, with football being played, another batch of story lines have come to be examined. In Whooley’s Weekly Words, I, Bruno Boys Whooley, tackle just a few of the more interesting items to catch my eye from the weekend. This week, I’ll be discussing the success of the New York Jets, while also taking a look at Matt Leinart’s future.

With Identity Established, Jets Continue to Roll

A road match-up with the San Diego Chargers looked likely to bring the New York Jets impressive 2009 season to an end. After all, the Chargers’ were the hottest team in football going into the playoffs on the coat-tails of an 11-game winning streak marked by strong play on both sides of the football. But, what many failed to notice was that the Jets were playing some solid football of their own. After beginning the season 4-6 after ten games, the Jets caught fire, winning five of six to close out the year, earning them the final playoff spot among AFC teams.

Why the stark turnaround? Simple, New York discovered its identity. While rookie Mark Sanchez has shown he has the tools to be the franchise’s quarterback of the future, the Jets realized to win in the now, they would have to rely not on Sanchez’s arm, but on the legs of running backs, Thomas Jones and Shonn Greene, all the while letting their defense do the dirty work by holding opponents in check. No game exemplified this better than in Week 16 when the Jets handed the Indianapolis Colts their first loss of the regular season. Granted, many remember that contest for the decision of Colts’ head coach Jim Caldwell to rest his studs despite a chance at perfection, but in focusing on that side of the story, the play of the Jets went under the radar, perhaps a big reason they’ve been so undervalued here in the playoffs. Had we paid attention then, we may have foreseen the team’s current playoff run.

In securing a 29 to 15 win in that Week 16 contest, New York handed the ball off 44 times for a total of 202 yards, 105 gained by Jones and another 95 added by Greene. Sanchez, meanwhile, threw just 19 passes for 106 yards. Going up against Indy, a mere 106 passing yards wouldn’t seem like enough to get the job done, but when your defense holds the high-powered Colts, a unit that averaged 26 points per game this season, to just 14 points, you’re going to have a chance to win no matter what.

The Jets win over the Colts in Week 16 firmly entrenched their status as a smash mouth football team, an identity they have now ridden to four straight wins, including a shocking upset over the Chargers this past weekend. Going into Indy, can they make it five straight? A month ago it may have seemed unfathomable, but now it’s not such a stretch. Should the Jets take care of business yet again, Jim Caldwell may not regret giving up on the Colts’ chance at perfection, but he will curse not taking advantage of an opportunity to end the Jets’ season back in Week 16.

Leinart’s NFL Legacy - Party Boy / Bust

While former USC grad Mark Sanchez is preparing his team for a match-up with Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts for the AFC crown, things aren’t going quite so well for his fellow alum, Matt Leinart. When the Arizona Cardinals drafted Leinart prior to the 2006 season, many were sure that the team had their quarterback problem solved for years to come. I mean, Leinart did throw for 7,137 yards and 61 TDs while under center for the Trojans. However, after four seasons in the NFL, Leinart has completed just 340 passes for 3,893 yards, 14 TDs, and 20 INTs. Yes, Leinart’s stats are reflective of the fact that he has seen the field in only 29 games over the past four years as he has served as Kurt Warner’s back-up for the majority of his career, but Cardinals’ fans cannot take solace in that fact.

Truth be told, Leinart just doesn’t play the part of an NFL QB. Even while sitting on the sidelines behind Brett Favre, current Green Bay Packers’ quarterback, Aaron Rodgers, looked ready to take the field and do some good. Sure, no one expected him to be as good as he has been over his two years as the Packers’ starter, but the potential always seemed to be there. That’s not the case with Leinart. Don’t believe me? Well, just take a look at this past weekend’s Divisional Round action.

After Warner went down with a chest injury, prompting Leinart to take the snaps for Arizona, did any of us truly believe that Leinart would be able to lead the Cardinals back against the New Orleans Saints? The answer is no; in fact, I’m sure Cardinal fans all over the state of Arizona were praying for Warners’ return - prayers that were eventually answered, though it was too little too late.

While he’s no Ryan Leaf, Leinart’s legacy once he’s out of the league will be that of a party boy that never materialized into the QB many thought he could become. It’s for that reason that Cardinal fans once again need to get on their knees and pray, this time for Warner to return for at least one more season.

Championship Round Rankings:  QB  |  RB  |  WR  |  TE  |  K  | DEF  (click to read)

Championship Round Start & Sit:  START ‘EM  |  SIT ‘EM  (click to read)

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