Is Darrelle Revis ever going to feel like he’s making enough money? How many states does Antonio Cromartie really have pending child support cases in? And will Braylon Edwards stop punching LeBron James’ friends and start focusing on giving Mark Sanchez the receiver he was expecting to get?

The New York Jets have most recently been mentioned in sports banter for the questions surrounding some of their more, um… problematic personnel.

With a beloved leader that is not afraid to speak his mind, as seen in this photo on the right, this negative attention certainly isn’t doing Gang Green that much good. But it is clouding the rest of the NFL into forgetting that the Jets have the very real possibility of being one of the biggest shockers in the upcoming season… again.

While the Jets were certainly not the unanimous winner of this year’s draft, they are in a very respectable post-draft position. Yes, arguments could solidly be made for a few different teams – obviously Detroit for their snatching of Jahvid Best and the very superhuman Ndamukong Suh, maybe even Denver for their signing of Mr. Marketability himself, Tim Tebow. But in addition to already possessing the most complete (albeit difficult) cornerback in the NFL, the Jets built off of what has worked for them for so many years: defense.

Assuming Revis will be more than satisfied with the alleged $100 million he just secured after the blowing over of some very publicized contract turmoil, he will now be dancing into quarterbacks’ nightmares with two other recent acquisitions in Cromartie and newbie Kyle Wilson, who put up some amazing stats during his career at Boise State.

Granted, the Jets will be a little scarce in the wide receiver department with Santonio Holmes’ four-game suspension for violation of the substance abuse policy, but their reliance on their run game allows them to cope more proficiently than other teams lacking star receivers. And hopefully Braylon Edwards will feel a little humbled after listening to his dad publicly scorn him for dropping so many “simple route” catches and focus on getting his hands where Sanchez will need them.

The most valuable asset the Jets have working for them, though, is their unanticipated momentum from the end of last season. Even their scrappy go-getter of a coach, Rex Ryan, had already declared the Jets’ flatline when running back Shonn Greene surprised him with 128 yards against the Chargers, and Sanchez turned into only the fourth rookie quarterback in NFL history to win a playoff game.

Among the chaos that ensued after New Orleans won their first Super Bowl, talk of the Jets’ impressive finish was swept pretty far under the rug, but all the better: less attention means less pressure to duplicate.

Are key draft picks and a boatload of downplayed momentum enough to cement another season of underdog success among a little bit of controversy? Most likely.

If not, at least there’ll be plenty of entertaining Rex Ryan press conferences to look forward to.

Re-printed with permission of the author.

Becky Fritter is a freelance music/sports writer whose work has appeared in Sound the Sirens Magazine, Punk Planet Magazine, The Detroit Free Press, and author Chuck Palahniuk’s official website The Cult. She currently resides in Michigan.

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax, LLC

NEW YORK - The New York Jets fined their coach Rex Ryan $50,000 for making the obscene gesture that involves the middle finger while at a martial arts fight in South Florida over the weekend.

Nowadays everyone is walking around with a cell phone with photo and video capabilities. You would think these professional coaches and athletes would learn over time that they are always under the watchful eye of the public.

Ryan voiced what the rest of the world must have been thinking when he apologized the following day saying, his actions were “stupid and inappropriate.” General manager Mike Tannenbaum had said the organization was disappointed and would address the matter internally which he did today by levying the fine.

The coach also could be fined by the NFL under its personal conduct policy.

Ryan’s image drew loud boos from the crowd when a ringside Showtime interview was shown on the Bank Atlantic Center video scoreboard.

Of course in Ryan fashion, the coach also trash-talked even though his season is over saying “I want to just tell everybody in Miami, hey, we’re coming to beat you twice next year.”

Ryan has made headlines all season with his trash-talking and going way out there like when he cried at a team meeting in front of his players. His team went 9-7 during the season and went on to make the playoffs. His prediction about the Jets saying the team should be the favorite to win the Super Bowl was brushed off as just Ryan being Ryan.

Last weekend at the Pro Bowl in Miami, several of the Jets’ players supported their coach.

“He’s one of those guys who if you come at me, I’m coming at you. It was all in fun. They were probably yelling and talking stuff at him and it ticked him off. Fans can be like that,” defensive end Shaun Ellis told the New York Post.

Copyright © 2010 – Sports Climax

CINCINNATI, OH. – The New York Jets and Mark Sanchez are making believers out of the football world. Their 24-14 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals in Saturday’s AFC Wild Card game was their first playoff win since 2004 and extended their season at least for one more weekend.

The rookie Sanchez connected on 12-of-15 passes for 182 yards and no interceptions, becoming only the fourth rookie quarterback since 1950 to start and win a playoff game. Others in that group include Ben Roethlisberger who went on to win the Super Bowl, Shaun King and Joe Flacco.

You have to wonder what USC Coach Pete Carroll is thinking after blindsiding Sanchez with negative comments at the press conference when Sanchez decided to enter last year’s NFL Draft. Carroll insisted in front of the media that Sanchez was not ready or prepared to handle the NFL.

After leading the AFC in interceptions with 20, Sanchez knew the importance of not turning the ball over on the road against the Bengals and managed the game well. His passer rating was an astounding 139.4.

“He just kept getting better as the season went along,” Jet coach Rex Ryan said. “I told him this was his second season now. His first season is over. This is the playoffs.” The win was also the first playoff victory for Ryan who is in his first season as an NFL head coach.

The Bengals (10-7) got a team playoff-record 169 rushing yards from running back Cedric Benson but never got a flow going with their offense, being disrupted by constant blitzes and a variety of schemes by Ryan and the Jets defense.

In last week’s game between these same two teams, the Bengals managed a mere 72 total yards on offense. In that game Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer was 1-of-11 for 0 yards and Chad Ochocinco was shut out of the stat sheet literally with zero catches.

Saturday looked better on paper but that tandem was never able to get a flow going for their offense. Ochocinco finished with just two catches for 28 yards and Palmer was 18-of-36 for 146 yards, one touchdown and one INT.

Cincinnati added to their 19 year stretch without a playoff win.

Related Articles:

N.Y. Jets and Cincinnati Bengals Game Center - NFL.com

Cowboys Dominate Eagles for First Playoff Win Since 1996 - Sports Climax

USC Coach Carroll Shows Bitterness at Press Conference Towards Sanchez - Sports Climax

Copyright © 2010 – Sports Climax