By Brian Bohl
Even before Cincinnati’s Jonathan Joseph intercepted the hurried throw that clinched another Jets’ defeat Sunday, Chad Pennington was facing the prospect of hearing the fan-base clamor for backup Kellen Clemens to take his spot.
As Joseph cruised into the end zone at Paul Brown Stadium, he ensured the Jets lost for the fourth straight week. That matched the number of defeats they had in all of 2006 by dropping to 1-6 and out of serious contention in the AFC.
Pennington’s been a big reason why his team lost three of those recent games, though blaming him for the collapse against the Bengals would be like criticizing a sinking ship for its uncomfortable chairs. A complete second-half defensive breakdown, aided by undisciplined and reckless penalties, ensured a 38-31 loss that wasn’t as close as the final score indicated.
Demanding a quarterback switch might make sense if the purpose is to spark a lethargic team for this week’s contest against the resurgent Bills at Giants Stadium. But to blame Pennington for the recent loss would only serve to scapegoat one of the few productive players.
Want a switch to Clemens because of the idea that Pennington can’t make the long throw? Well, the latter completed a 57-yard strike to Laveranues Coles in the first quarter. In fact, Pennington finished 20-31 for 272 yards and three touchdowns-leading his team to a 23-10 lead early in the third quarter.
Then the Jets showed the hallmark inconsistency that has resulted in a subpar sophomore year from coach Eric Mangini. Outside of the season’s lone victory against the winless Dolphins, Mangini’s unit once again failed to produce a complete game, as the defense made the QB-running back tandem of Carson Palmer and Kenny Watson look like the Troy Aikman-Emmitt Smith Cowboys duo of the previous decade.
After Mike Nugent kicked a field goal to build the 13-point edge, the Bengals responded with a 14-play drive that took up over 7:30 of clock time. It also featured a devastating penalty on rookie corner Darrelle Revis, who was flagged for pass interference after Palmer threw an incomplete pass on third-and-11.
Instead of a key stop, Palmer swung back the momentum and the crowd support by hitting T.J. Houshmandzadeh for the touchdown that made it 23-17. Revis, a first-round draft pick, ensured Cincinnati went ahead for good with another pass interference infraction, facilitating Watson’s touchdown run that made it 24-23.
By the time Pennington threw his late fourth-quarter pick, the Bengals were up by eight with 46 seconds left and the ball deep in Jets territory. Joseph’s pick came off a desperate throw, though numerous breakdowns on the other side of the ball sealed the outcome.
“Quite frankly, I just don’t have a concern about whether or not I’m the starter,” Pennington said when asked about job security. “When my number is called – and this has been true ever since I became the starter in 2002 – I lay it on the line and I do everything I can to help us win. That’s all I can control.”
When the defense was showing signs of improving, the offense became almost a non-factor against Philadelphia two week s ago. The situation flipped in Ohio, prompting Mangini to utter the same rhetoric he offered after the season-opening loss to New England last month.
“It’s consistency. That’s the main thing,” Mangini said. “It’s consistency and the ability to play a complete football game. If it was just one area, then that would be something that you could address with complete certainty and change that or do whatever you need to do.”
Achieving that level of consistency seems to elude the Jets every week. Not even the prospect of facing a rookie quarterback can inspire hope, as the Bills Trent Edwards already defeated them this season and could lead a divisional rival to a season sweep this Sunday.
“We have to look at ourselves first,” Coles said. “When you watch the film, there are so many great and positive things that we do and then there are phases of the game where things turn south. We have to find a way to keep those plays from going bad. It is about all of us looking inside ourselves and trying to turn this thing around.”
Regardless of whether Mangini sticks with Pennington or makes the move to the second-year Clemens, the defensive line will need to generate more than the one sack they produced against Palmer. The Bills rank 31st out of 32 teams in total offense, and safety Kerry Rhodes suggested that securing a win would boost morale in a season not even halfway over.
“We have to get one win here just to stop it,” said Rhodes, who recorded a quiet three tackles last week. “This is four (losses) in a row now. It is not a good taste in your mouth. You want to go out and get a win and try to stop it. If we can, it will be great.”
Rhodes is part of a group that ranks 28th in total defense. The entire secondary has generated five interceptions, which is the same amount as Washington’s Sean Taylor. Consider that the line owns a collective seven sacks, or one less than the Giants’ Osi Umenyiora.
With numbers like those, it will be hard to beat any opponent, yet Rhodes insisted there is enough talent leftover from last season’s playoff team.
“It is frustrating because we know that we have good players in this locker room,” Rhodes said. “We say that all the time, but we really do. We are not getting it done as a team. That is all that it is.”
Cincinnati Bengals’ defensive end Justin Smith sacks Chad Pennington, in turn risking his future as a starter in the Meadowlands (sports.yahoo.com)