A week of bluster and smacktalk -- some blunt, some hidden -- will finally end Sunday when the Jets visit the Patriots in an AFC Divisional Playoff. Rex Ryan got the ball rolling by pitting the game as a matchup between him and Patriots counterpart Bill Belichick. Then Antonio Cromartie got in the act by calling Tom Brady a few expletives -- the Pats quarterback said he's "heard worse" and Wes Welker responded by weaving in several foot references to his news conference on Thursday. more ›

Things are really personal for Jets coach Rex Ryan. First those ihaveprettyfeet videos were a personal matter, then last Saturday's game against the Colts was personal between Ryan and Colt's QB Peyton Manning, and now this Sunday's game against the hated Patriots is also personal. As they say in the news, three's a trend! more ›

Reports that Patriots quarterback Tom Brady suffered a torn ACL suggest that he may be out for the season. Brady went down on the 16th play in the Patriots' home opener against the Kansas City Chiefs yesterday-- he screamed in pain when Chiefs safety Bernard Pollard hit his left leg. Pats receiver Randy Moss said the team is ready to embrace backup Matt Cassel, who led the team to a win, but Moss added that Brady's injury "kind of hurts to be honest with you." Next up for the Patriots: Meeting the Jets at Gang Green's home opener this coming Sunday. Remember, the Pats coach Bill Belichick was assistant coach at the Jets under Parcells; when Parcells left, he was supposed to take over as coach, but went to New England instead. more ›

The game is still a week away, but the verbal sparring has begun. Plaxico Burress fired the first shot this week when he said about the Giants’ wide receivers that, "We have guys that can go out and do things just as well or maybe better than some of those guys.” The Patriots have refused to take the bait with Rodney Harrison simply talking about seeing what happens on the field while Ellis Hobbs noted that Plaxico has “really long arms.” more ›

Last week, Brett Favre was on the cover of Sports Illustrated. This week, Eli Manning graces the cover of the magazine. If you believe the S.I. cover curse/jinx, then the Giants may be in trouble. In the magazine, Peter King gives the Giants-Packers game the cover story treatment, while Dr. Z decides to pick the Giants to make up for picking against the Jets in Super Bowl III. more ›

Is he hurt or isn’t he? That is the question after Tom Brady was spotted walking without a boot on his foot a day after being seen with one. Sources say that Brady is suffering from a mild high ankle sprain and will not have any problem playing in the Super Bowl. It should be noted that Plaxico Burress has had the same injury all season and has managed to play through it. more ›

The Patriots and Jets didn't have the worst weather in the league Sunday, but they still had plenty to complain about. Rain and wind didn't stay the Patriots from improving to 14-0 with a 20-10 win over the Jets in Foxborough, Mass.. It did help the Jets keep the game close and easily cover the record 27-point spread, for those who care about those things. more ›

The spread opened at 27 points. It's recently settled at 24 1/2 points, which, if held, would be the largest ever for an NFL game. More went into that spread than a terrible team playing an unbeaten one on the road. The Patriots have been running up the score on opponents all year, and everyone thinks they're doing it to teach the league a lesson after it was exposed -- on the word of jets Coach Eric Mangini -- that New England was recording the Jets' defensive signals during a Week 1 win in the Meadowlands. more ›

With the Jets 3-10, the best thing that can be said about them is that they're still playing hard. They seemed insulted that people thought the Dolphins could beat them last week, and, despite playing in front of empty seats in a heavy rain Sunday, the Jets fought back before losing to the Browns, 24-18. Kellen Clemens scored the Jets' only touchdown with his quarterback sneak in the fourth quarter, but his inconsistent play and... more ›

As the Jets look ahed to their game Sunday against the Cleveland Browns, they may be hoping that's where they are in a season or two. Cleveland, like the Jets, is coached by a former defensive protege of Patriots Coach Bill Belichick. Romeo Crennell had a rough go of it during the first few seasons, but he now has an offense filled with playmakers like Braylon Edwards and Kellen Winslow and run by an unheralded... more ›

After not smiling on the Jets for the first two weeks of the season, the schedule gods dealt an easier hand for Weeks 3 and 4. First came the Dolphins at home, and the Jets cashed in for their first win of the season. Next is a game at Buffalo against the 0-3 Bills. If there is an adjective to describe this game stronger than "winnable" in NFL jargon, it should be applied. "Gimme" works. more ›

If you're following football, you may have heard that the New England Patriots were caught cheating during Sunday's game against the Jets. They're accused of videotaping Jets coaches as they sent plays into their defense using hand signals. Maybe that's one reason the Jets got trounced, 38-14 to open the season. The use of video is against NFL league rules, and a league spokesman told ESPN, "The rule is that no video recording devices of any kind are permitted to be in use in the coaches' booth, on the field, or in the locker room during the game." Clubs have also been reminded that videotaping of offensive or defensive signals is prohibited. more ›

Johnny Damon had a great game, going 3-for-5 and making an outstanding catch. Jason Giambi woke his slumbering bat with a grand slam and Jorge Posada added two hits and a home run. Phil Hughes did just enough and was helped by some great defensive plays as he allowed six baserunners, but only one run over six innings. more ›

Not only has New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick won the Super Bowl three times, he's also smart enough to invest in some Park Slope real estate. The "Mad Genius" (okay, only when he's playing against Jets coach Eric "Man Genius" Mangini) bought a $2.2 million townhouse on Sixth Street and is allegedly renting it out to his mistress. And by rent, we mean, Sharon Shenocca says she's renting it, but it's unclear whether he's charging her anything at all. more ›

Few teams can shrug off a playoff loss to a bitter rival and immediately accept their season as a success. The Jets may not be able to do that in the wake of their 37-16 loss to the Patriots in an AFC wild-card playoff Sunday, but they have no reason to hang their heads. New York entered this game knowing as an overmatched squad, but it still made New England sweat before being buried in the fourth quarter. more ›

Beneath the tired storyline of the alleged feud between coaches Eric Mangini and Bill Belichick will be a strategic matchup that will decide the Patriots-Jets wild-card playoff on Sunday. The media cannot get enough of the abbreviated handshake -- some would call it a blow by -- shared by the two men when the Jets downed the Patriots, 17-14, on Nov. 12. The Patriots won the season's first meeting when they held off the Jets in a 24-17 win at the Meadowlands on Sept. 17. more ›

Patriots head coach and former Jets defensive coordinator Bill Belichick's resume has few black marks, but his five-year tenure as head coach of the Cleveland Browns is -- fair or not -- the largest one. He had only one winning season there (1994) and was let go a year later. He won't be directly involved in Sunday's game between the Jets and the Browns, but his imprint on the teams' head coaches is large. more ›

After the Jets' surprising Week 1 win over the Titans, they return home to face the rival Patriots. Only a lack of mutual success has kept this rivalry from blossoming more over the years. Each franchise has poached a coach from the other (Bill Parcells taken by the Jets; Bill Belichick taken by the Patriots), the teams are from New York and Boston, the current Jets coach, Eric Mangini, was a longtime Patriots assistant, and, most recently, the Patriots accused the Jets of tampering. more ›

The short answer is: not much. With a new coaching staff and an oft-injured quarterback, the Jets will keep the pain in growing pains. Their offense includes more holes than the defense, so if improvement comes under first-year head coach Eric Mangini, it will come on that side of the ball. But in a division including two playoff-caliber teams in New England and Miami, the Jets may find it hard to show progress this season. more ›

The youth movement with the Jets continued yesterday as they named the 36 year-old Mike Tannenbaum as their general manager. With head coach Eric Mangini, 35, the two will form the youngest coach/GM combination in the NFL. The Redskins and Chargers could have 10 year olds as their GMs and still be older than the Jets pair. Tannenbaum, who was the senior vice president for football operations and assistant general manager, takes over for Terry Bradway, who remains with the team as a "consultant for player personnel" as he has two years left on his contract. more ›

It's the dawn of a new era as the Jets are expected to announce the hiring of New England defensive coordinator Eric Mangini as the 15th head coach in franchise history, ESPN.com first reported last night. The first three things that standout about Mangini are: his age, (now the youngest coach in the NFL, turning 35 on Thursday), his prior tenure with the Jets (1997-99 as a defensive assistant under Bill Belichick and Bill Parcells) and his being a protege of Belichick, the Pats coach who actually helmed the Jets for a single day in 1999 and is thought to be among the game's all-time greatest defensive minds. more ›

With Herman Edwards having left for Kansas City (and a substantial raise) and the Jets saying they allowed him to go, Gang Green is left looking for a new head coach. more ›

When the NFL first released its 2005 schedule, someone somewhere was happy at the prospect of seeing the defending champion New England Patriots have to play the upstart Jets twice in the season's final month - both Sunday in Foxboro, Mass. (4:15, TV: WCBS - 2, Radio: 1050 AM ESPN), and in a Dec. 26 Monday night matchup in East Rutherford. more ›

Our Valentine's Day gift to you is not candy or flowers, but two new blogs. Welcome Bostonist and Seattlest! more ›

With their third championship in four years, pundits are tossing around terms like "dynasty," "best coach in NFL history," "first ballot hall of famer" around, but we digress. If Bill Belichick had his offensive coordinator and defensive coordinator returning, it's possible that the Pats would be a virtual shoe-in for their fourth win in five years. But with Belichick's mastery of the salary cap and stellar personnel decisions, it's possible he will be in Super Bowl XL as well. more ›