Baltimore's blowout win today in Foxborough means the Jets will not get their second trip to Indianapolis in four weeks. Gang Green will head out to San Diego instead for a date with the Chargers.
I can't say playing a team with an 11 game winning streak will be easy, but I am of the school of thought that avoiding Peyton Manning whenever possible is a good thing.
We'll have plenty to come this week on the matchup, but my initial reaction is the Jets have a much better chance than a lot of people think. The Chargers are pretty one-dimensional on offense. Their offensive success is pretty much all due to the pass. As we know, the Jets have a great pass defense. San Diego also struggles on defense against the run. We'll see how it plays out.
Here's what we do know. The Patriots may hang a banner as AFC East Champions, but the last team standing in the 2009 season from the division is the New York Jets. Perhaps we'll look back in the future and remember this day as the one the torch was passed.