8:17AM
Newsday: Jets' defense nasty from start and never lets up
8:17 AM
By Art Spander
Special to Newsday
OAKLAND, Calif. -- It started early for the Jets' defense, the first play from scrimmage, and it never ended until the game did.
The Jets took willingly -- four turnovers -- and gave grudgingly in a 38-0 rout Sunday, the most lopsided home loss in the Raiders' 50 seasons.
This without nose tackle Kris Jenkins, done for the season with a torn ACL. But this with his replacement, Sione Pouha, along with Marques Douglas, Calvin Pace, Shaun Ellis and the rest of the Jets' defenders.
"When a guy goes down,'' linebacker Bryan Thomas said, "there's not going to be any sympathy cards. The next guy has to step up. It was good to see Mike DeVito and [Howard] Green and [Ropati] Pitoitua step up and contribute.''
Pace sacked troubled Raiders quarterback JaMarcus Russell on the first scrimmage play, with Russell fumbling and Douglas recovering at the Oakland 4. Four plays later, the Jets were in front 7-0.
Jets coach Rex Ryan said defensive coordinator Mike Pettine "wanted to give Calvin the opportunity to pass rush, so he flipped the responsibilities for Calvin and Bryan Thomas, and it paid off for us. Calvin did a great job, not only with sacks [three] but in stripping the ball.''
Before the half was history, Russell was. After the fumble, Russell threw two interceptions, and with about six minutes left in the second quarter he was benched, the No. 1 pick in the 2007 draft replaced by Bruce Gradkowski.
Apropos of nothing, it was a bad day for Bay Area quarterbacks, with Shaun Hill of the 49ers being replaced by Alex Smith in the loss at Houston.
Ryan didn't care about who was playing for the Raiders, just that his defense was effective against one and all.
Oakland had the ball at the Jets' 2 with a couple of minutes left but couldn't score. "Our guys never flinched,'' said Ryan, who conceded the Raiders could have kicked a field goal just to get points. "We wanted to keep them out of the end zone. It was a great sign.''
He said the defense's primary goal was to halt the Raiders' running game. The Jets allowed 119 harmless yards on the ground.
"We just have to be physical up front,'' he said. "We miss Kris. That's a big loss. But we want to win a championship, so we can't stop.''
In Oakland, interest in the Raiders virtually has stopped.
Announced attendance at a game blacked out regionally was 39,354, smallest since the team moved back to Oakland from Los Angeles in 1995.
A bad sign was the way the fans, few as they might have been, booed Russell. By game's end, the only cheers were for the Jets, probably from New York expatriates.
New York teams have pummeled the Raiders of late. Three weeks ago, the Giants beat them, 44-7, at the Meadowlands. Now comes 38-0 from the Jets.
"Our guys stepped up,'' Ryan said. And stepped all over the Raiders.
- - - - - -
http://www.newsday.com/sports/football/jets/jets-defense-nasty-from-start-and-never-lets-up-1.1548378
Copyright © 2009 Newsday. All rights reserved.
Special to Newsday
OAKLAND, Calif. -- It started early for the Jets' defense, the first play from scrimmage, and it never ended until the game did.
The Jets took willingly -- four turnovers -- and gave grudgingly in a 38-0 rout Sunday, the most lopsided home loss in the Raiders' 50 seasons.
This without nose tackle Kris Jenkins, done for the season with a torn ACL. But this with his replacement, Sione Pouha, along with Marques Douglas, Calvin Pace, Shaun Ellis and the rest of the Jets' defenders.
"When a guy goes down,'' linebacker Bryan Thomas said, "there's not going to be any sympathy cards. The next guy has to step up. It was good to see Mike DeVito and [Howard] Green and [Ropati] Pitoitua step up and contribute.''
Pace sacked troubled Raiders quarterback JaMarcus Russell on the first scrimmage play, with Russell fumbling and Douglas recovering at the Oakland 4. Four plays later, the Jets were in front 7-0.
Jets coach Rex Ryan said defensive coordinator Mike Pettine "wanted to give Calvin the opportunity to pass rush, so he flipped the responsibilities for Calvin and Bryan Thomas, and it paid off for us. Calvin did a great job, not only with sacks [three] but in stripping the ball.''
Before the half was history, Russell was. After the fumble, Russell threw two interceptions, and with about six minutes left in the second quarter he was benched, the No. 1 pick in the 2007 draft replaced by Bruce Gradkowski.
Apropos of nothing, it was a bad day for Bay Area quarterbacks, with Shaun Hill of the 49ers being replaced by Alex Smith in the loss at Houston.
Ryan didn't care about who was playing for the Raiders, just that his defense was effective against one and all.
Oakland had the ball at the Jets' 2 with a couple of minutes left but couldn't score. "Our guys never flinched,'' said Ryan, who conceded the Raiders could have kicked a field goal just to get points. "We wanted to keep them out of the end zone. It was a great sign.''
He said the defense's primary goal was to halt the Raiders' running game. The Jets allowed 119 harmless yards on the ground.
"We just have to be physical up front,'' he said. "We miss Kris. That's a big loss. But we want to win a championship, so we can't stop.''
In Oakland, interest in the Raiders virtually has stopped.
Announced attendance at a game blacked out regionally was 39,354, smallest since the team moved back to Oakland from Los Angeles in 1995.
A bad sign was the way the fans, few as they might have been, booed Russell. By game's end, the only cheers were for the Jets, probably from New York expatriates.
New York teams have pummeled the Raiders of late. Three weeks ago, the Giants beat them, 44-7, at the Meadowlands. Now comes 38-0 from the Jets.
"Our guys stepped up,'' Ryan said. And stepped all over the Raiders.
- - - - - -
http://www.newsday.com/sports/football/jets/jets-defense-nasty-from-start-and-never-lets-up-1.1548378
Copyright © 2009 Newsday. All rights reserved.
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