The Miami Dolphins appear to be limping into the season finale against the New York Jets.

Anthony Fasano returns to practice, and the Dolphins will need him against the Jets.

Not only is Todd Bowles’ team going to be playing without Pro Bowl left tackle Jake Long on Sunday – which makes John Jerry the man responsible for stopping Calvin Pace – but the Dolphins have a number of starters nursing significant injuries.

Starting tailback Reggie Bush was held out of Wednesday’s practice because of a right knee injury he suffered late last week’s loss to the Patriots. Bush is walking fine, and says he’s fine.

So the hope is that the team’s featured tailback, who has rushed for 1,086 this season, will practice later this week and be cleared to play.

Starting right tackle Marc Colombo missed Wednesday’s practice because of an ankle injury, but this 10-year veteran has sat out a number of Wednesday practices this season, and played on Sunday.

Inside linebacker Karlos Dansby missed Wednesday’s practice, but his absence wasn’t injury related.

Receivers Brandon Marshall (left knee) and Clyde Gates (groin) were limited. Marshall has been battling knee soreness for a couple of weeks but played through the pain.

Gates apparently re-aggravated a groin strain that sidelined him a few weeks in November. His status will be monitored.

Tailback Daniel Thomas, who suffered a knee injury against the patriots, wasn’t even on the injury report.

Starting cornerback Vontae Davis participated fully despite the elbow injury he suffered in last Saturday’s game.

Davis’ status will be critical considering he’ll probably be responsible for covering Jets receiver Santonio Holmes. The Dolphins also don’t have much depth at cornerback these days, especially since rookie Jimmy Wilson missed practice with a hamstring injury.

On the positive side…. tight end Anthony Fasano passed his NFL mandatory baseline concussion test and has been cleared to return to practice. He’ll likely play on Sunday unless he suffers a setback.

Fasano, a four-year starter, sat out last weekend’s 27-24 loss to the New England Patriots because of the concussion he suffered the previous week.

Fasano’s presence is critical against the Jets because New York’s aggressive 3-4 scheme struggles defending tight ends, especially in the red zone.

Fasano has contributed 22 catches for 237 yards, scoring four touchdowns in the eight games he’s played against the Jets.

Fasano needs 89 receiving yards to establish a career high. He has 440 receiving yards. Last year, he logged 528.

G.G.A.T.G.

The Philadelphia Eagles have to stay alive by upsetting the New York Jets on Dec. 18. But Eagles fans like myself have to be discouraged, since they are catching the Jets in the middle of their latest late-season surge. What’s more, New York is already familiar with the NFC East and could clinch a postseason berth by having a perfect record in that division.

The Jets are 2-0 against NFC East competition and will now face the Eagles and New York Giants in consecutive weeks. If the Jets sweep the NFC East, they will be 10-5 and should pretty much be locked in for the sixth seed in the AFC playoffs. Given the state of this division, it would make sense if it went 0-4 against a second place AFC East squad that is probably a more ideal division champion than the Cowboys, Redskins and Eagles.

The Jets really got the ball rolling in making the NFC East pathetic in Week 1. If they had not rallied against the Cowboys on Sept. 11, perhaps Dallas would have rode the momentum and not blown so many more late leads the rest of the season. If that had happened, then the Cowboys would have likely won the division by now and would just be playing for a bye. But instead, New York let Dallas shoot itself like it has in half of the 13 weeks after that.

The Jets really needed that break, considering how tough things have gotten for them afterwards. Despite being 8-5, New York could easily be out of the playoff hunt altogether thanks to their inconsistency. That is why the Jets are fortunate to feed on the NFC East, as it did against the clutch-free Cowboys and against the flailing Washington Redskins on Dec. 4. Now if they can feed on the equally flailing Eagles this week and the even more inconsistent Giants on Dec. 24, it should all but secure another playoff berth.

Normally, sweeping the NFC East would be unlikely for anyone but an elite team. However, the Jets are still not elite quite yet and this division hasn’t been this far away from elite in a long time. The Cowboys, Giants, Eagles and Redskins have all forfeited chances to take control of the East this year – which probably makes the Jets all the sadder that they can’t transfer divisions. After all, they could probably win this East division in a walk and it would get them away from the New England Patriots at long last.

Of course, if the Jets slip up against the Eagles and/or Giants, it would speak to how they are as disappointing as their NFC East “brethren.” But eventually, some Eastern division team other than the Patriots is going to have to prove that they can be a real contender this season. Since the NFC East seems uninterested in filling that void, the Jets will just have to sweep that division, reach the playoffs and make another miracle postseason run themselves.

Robert Dougherty is a life-long Philadelphia resident who has followed the Eagles since he was eight years old.

Other stories by this contributor

Eagles reduced to rooting for Bucs over Cowboys

Rex Ryan flirting with becoming next Andy Reid

McCoy, Jones-Drew wasting away career seasons

Jets on cue to have another slump?

Reid not only NFC East coach fighting for his job

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By Pat Johnston

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Nov 22, 2011 – Former New York Jets running back Curtis Martin was a finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame on the first ballot in which he was eligible in 2011. After surviving the initial cut for modern-era players from 25 semifinalists to 15 finalists, he was again on the right side when the cut to 10 players was made. The Jets’ all-time leading rusher was not included when the list was pared down to just five names.

The list of the Class of 2012 Hall of Fame Semifinalists was released today (via Pro Football Hall of Fame). As expected, Martin is on it once again. When Martin was not inducted with the 2011 class, it set up the possibility that now exists: Martin could be inducted with his former coach Bill Parcells, who is also a 2012 semifinalist. Martin has said that he wants Parcells to be his presenter during the induction ceremony (via ESPN New York). Parcells was Martin’s coach with both the Jets and New England Patriots

Martin played for the Patriots from 1995-1997 and for the Jets from 1998-2005. With 14,101 rushing yards in 11 seasons, he is the fourth leading rusher in NFL history behind Emmitt Smith, Barry Sanders and Walter Peyton.

Parcells coached the New York Giants from 1983-1990, the Patriots from 1993-1996, and then moved to the Jets (1997-1999) before finishing his career with the Dallas Cowboys (2003-2006). Parcells won two Super Bowls with the Giants in 1986 and 1990 and the AFC Championship with the Patriots in 1996. He also took the Jets to the 1998 AFC Championship game.

The complete list of 26 modern-era semifinalists is as follows:

Steve Atwater, S – 1989-1998 Denver Broncos, 1999 New York Jets 
Jerome Bettis, RB – 1993-95 Los Angeles/St. Louis Rams, 1996-2005 Pittsburgh Steelers
Tim Brown, WR/KR – 1988-2003 Los Angeles/Oakland Raiders, 2004 Tampa Bay Buccaneers 
Cris Carter, WR – 1987-89 Philadelphia Eagles, 1990-2001 Minnesota Vikings, 2002 Miami Dolphins
Don Coryell, Coach – 1973-77 St. Louis Cardinals, 1978-1986 San Diego Chargers 
Roger Craig, RB – 1983-1990 San Francisco 49ers, 1991 Los Angeles Raiders, 1992-93 Minnesota Vikings
Terrell Davis, RB – 1995-2001 Denver Broncos
Dermontti Dawson, C – 1988-2000 Pittsburgh Steelers
Edward DeBartolo, Jr., Owner – 1979-2000 San Francisco 49ers
Chris Doleman, DE/LB – 1985-1993, 1999 Minnesota Vikings, 1994-95 Atlanta Falcons, 1996-98 San Francisco 49ers
Kevin Greene, LB/DE – 1985-1992 Los Angeles Rams, 1993-95 Pittsburgh Steelers, 1996, 1998-99 Carolina Panthers, 1997 San Francisco 49ers
Charles Haley, DE/LB – 1986-1991, 1999 San Francisco 49ers, 1992-96 Dallas Cowboys 
Cortez Kennedy, DT – 1990-2000 Seattle Seahawks 
Curtis Martin, RB – 1995-97 New England Patriots, 1998-2005 New York Jets
Clay Matthews, LB – 1978-1993 Cleveland Browns, 1994-96 Atlanta Falcons
Karl Mecklenburg, LB – 1983-1994 Denver Broncos
Bill Parcells, Coach – 1983-1990 New York Giants, 1993-96 New England Patriots, 1997-99 New York Jets, 2003-06 Dallas Cowboys
Andre Reed, WR – 1985-1999 Buffalo Bills, 2000 Washington Redskins 
Willie Roaf, T – 1993-2001 New Orleans Saints, 2002-05 Kansas City Chiefs
Donnie Shell, S – 1974-1987 Pittsburgh Steelers
Will Shields, G – 1993-2006 Kansas City Chiefs
Paul Tagliabue, Commissioner – 1989-2006 National Football League 
Steve Tasker, ST/WR – 1985-86 Houston Oilers, 1986-1997 Buffalo Bills
Aeneas Williams, CB/S – 1991-2000 Phoenix/Arizona Cardinals, 2001-04 St. Louis Rams 
Ron Wolf, Contributor – 1963-1974, 1978-1990 Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders, 1975-77 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 1990 New York Jets, 1991 -2001 Green Bay Packers
George Young, Contributor – 1968-1974 Baltimore Colts, 1975-78 Miami Dolphins, 1979-1997 New York Giants, 1998-2001 National Football LeagueThe list of 26 semifinalists will be reduced by mail ballot to 15 modern-era finalists. The results of the modern-era reduction vote to 15 finalists will be announced in early January, 2012.

The Class of 2012 will be determined at the Selection Committee’s annual meeting on Saturday, February 4, in Indianapolis, Indiana the day before Super Bowl XLVI. The election results will be announced during a one-hour NFL Network special, live from the Super Bowl media headquarters.

Read More: pro football hall of fame, Curtis Martin (RB – NYJ), New York Jets, New York Giants

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Tom Brady threw two touchdown passes
to Rob Gronkowski as the New England Patriots defeated the
Kansas City Chiefs 34-3 to extend their National Football League
division lead.

Gronkowski hauled in touchdown passes of 52 and 19 yards,
Julian Edelman scored on a 72-yard punt return and the Patriots’
defense had three interceptions last night at Gillette Stadium
in Foxborough, Massachusetts.

New England improved to 7-3 with its second straight win
and moved two games ahead of the New York Jets and Buffalo Bills
atop the American Football Conference’s East Division. The
Patriots trailed 3-0 after the first quarter before rebounding
with 34 unanswered points to send the Chiefs (4-6) to a third
consecutive loss.

“We got some turnovers on defense and got a big punt
return for a touchdown,” Brady, who finished with 234 yards
passing, said in a televised interview. “It’s frustrating when
you come out on offense and don’t play the way I think we’re
capable of, but we’ll try to get it corrected and move on.”

None of the Patriots’ final six regular-season opponents
has a winning record, with the Philadelphia Eagles (4-6) next on
the schedule on Nov. 27.

To contact the reporter on this story:
Erik Matuszewski in New York at
matuszewski@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Michael Sillup at
msillup@bloomberg.net

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Rex Ryan’s mouth really cost him this time.

The brash New York Jets coach was fined $75,000 by the NFL for using profanity while angrily responding to a fan at halftime of New York’s 37-16 loss to New England last Sunday.

A 49-second video shot by a fan at MetLife Stadium shows the Jets walking off the field and when Ryan appears, someone is heard yelling, “Hey, Rex, Belichick is better than you,” referring to Patriots coach Bill Belichick. Ryan looks up and tells the fan to “shut up” while also using an obscenity.

Ryan apologized a day later for what he called “a mistake,” saying he “was full of emotion and just popped off.” Moments earlier, the Jets had just allowed the Patriots to take a 13-9 lead into halftime. He added that he’s aware that he represents the franchise and the league, but isn’t “perfect by any stretch.”

“Sometimes,” he said, “my emotions get the best of me.”

It’s not the first time Ryan is in trouble because of his mouth, which likely contributed to the hefty punishment. He was fined $50,000 by the Jets in February 2010 after he was caught on a cellphone camera giving the middle finger to a fan during a mixed martial arts event in Florida.

The Jets will not further discipline Ryan for the latest incident, saying it was a game-related matter.

General manager Mike Tannenbaum said in a statement last week that he and Ryan discussed what happened and the coach “knows that his behavior was not acceptable.”

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

It’s a place where the first-place team has the NFL’s worst defense and the last-place team is the hottest in the division.

The two middle teams, well … let’s just say they personify the word “pretender.” Just three days after the New York Jets were upset by Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos, the Bills also were embarrassed in an ugly, 35-8 loss to the Miami Dolphins.

Week 11 exposed the AFC East as a mediocre division. It’s late November and only one team — the New England Patriots (6-3) — has a winning record. The Jets (5-5) and Bills (5-5) mathematically remain in the playoff hunt. But there’s nothing to suggest either team is playoff bound or good enough to make a sustainable run down the stretch.

The Jets lost two games in five days. The Bills are 2-5 in their last seven and on a three-game losing streak. Buffalo has been outscored 109-26 the past three weeks.

“We’re not a team that [should] go out and get beat 35-8 and 44-7 last week,” Bills tight end Scott Chandler said. “I don’t know if there’s any team in the league that loses like that week in and week out. We’ve been embarrassed the past three weeks.”

The game was ugly for Buffalo. It included three straight touchdown drives allowed to start the game, two interceptions on dropped passes and a blocked punt for a touchdown.

Like the Jets a few days ago, bewilderment seemed to be the overall theme with the Bills. There’s a lot of questions why this is happening and no one seems to have any answers.

“I wish I could give you an explanation,” Bills coach Chan Gailey said bluntly. “I cannot give you an explanation.”

Here is our explanation: The AFC East is not good this season.

It starts with the quarterbacks. The quarterbacking in this division has been awful in the past month and average overall this season. Buffalo’s Ryan Fitzpatrick and the Jets’ Mark Sanchez had good moments early. But both are crashing hard in this crucial time. The pair have combined for just four touchdowns and 12 interceptions in their past three games.

Tom Brady has been terrific, as usual, for New England. He’s the biggest reason the Patriots are primed to win the division. New England usually falls when Brady has a bad game. The Patriots are too flawed in other areas to survive poor quarterback play on most weeks.

Miami’s Matt Moore is playing like the second-best quarterback in the division, which is telling for the AFC East. He’s not making any mistakes and it’s led to Miami’s third straight victory. Moore threw for 160 yards and three touchdowns Sunday. These are numbers Fitzpatrick and Sanchez would love to have at this point.

Buffalo and New York also have inconsistent defenses. The Bills can’t stop anybody and New York, although stout, hasn’t performed up to the level of the previous two years. This combination has led to mediocrity for both teams.

The good news is the Bills and Jets play each other next week at Met Life Stadium. Some AFC East team has to win that game in what probably is a playoff eliminator for the loser.

“At this point every game is a must-win game,” Bills safety Bryan Scott said. “We’re moving to the last quarter of the season. We have to put together a string of wins in order to compete and get to where we want to be.”

Chandler agrees.

“If you look at the big picture here, there’s not too many teams that will get in with six losses,” he said. “So, yeah, I think they’re all must-wins from here on out.”

Can the Jets or Bills suddenly run off a string of wins to get into the postseason? It will take at least 10 victories to make the playoffs in the AFC. That means Buffalo or New York has to go 5-1 the rest of the way. Even with relatively easy strength of schedules, I don’t see it.

But the last-place team in the AFC East is actually playing the best football. The Dolphins (3-7) now have won three straight with victories over Buffalo, the Washington Redskins and Kansas City Chiefs. Miami looks like the team fighting for a playoff spot, not the Bills or Jets.

Is it time to rethink Miami’s plan in 2012? Is Moore the long-term solution at quarterback? Should coach Tony Sparano and general manager Jeff Ireland keep their jobs for another season? These are all questions for Miami — the AFC East’s bottom team — that will be resolved in time.

But we can draw one conclusion for the AFC East as a whole. It’s a division mired in mediocrity.

By Stephen F. Holder, Times Staff Writer

In Print: Thursday, November 17, 2011

[Last modified: Nov 16, 2011 10:47 PM]

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Patriots defensive end Andre Carter (93) sacks Mark Sanchez. (Staff photo by Keith Nordstrom)

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) – The New England Patriots are right where they always expect to be: in first place in the AFC East.

And, the New York Jets are looking up at them – as usual.

Tom Brady threw three touchdown passes, including two to Rob Gronkowski, and the Patriots took control of the division with a convincing 37-16 victory Sunday night.

After the Jets got within a score at 23-16 early in the fourth quarter, Brady coolly led the Patriots (6-3) down the field on an 84-yard drive that was capped by an 8-yard touchdown catch by Deion Branch.

New England linebacker Rob Ninkovich then sealed the victory – which snapped a two-game skid – on the Jets’ next possession with a 12-yard interception return for a touchdown midway through the final quarter.

The game was a showdown for the top spot in the division, but it was no contest as the Patriots took over sole possession by snapping the Jets’ three-game winning streak and sweeping the regular-season series.

Buffalo entered the day tied with New England and New York, but the Bills were blown out by the Dallas Cowboys 44-7 earlier in the day.

It was also the first home loss for the Jets (5-4) after opening 4-0, but they can’t dwell on it because they play again at Denver on Thursday night.

Jets coach Rex Ryan insisted his team was greatly improved since a 30-21 loss at New England on Oct. 9 and declared it a must-win if New York wanted to get some home playoff games. Turns out, the Jets still have plenty of work to do if they expect to dethrone the Patriots.

New England was coming off consecutive losses to Pittsburgh and the Giants, but said there was no concern in its locker room. It certainly showed as the Patriots avoided their first three-game losing streak since 2002.

Brady finished 26 of 39 for 329 yards, the 40th time he reached the 300-yard mark in a regular-season game, breaking a tie with Hall of Famer Joe Montana for eighth on the NFL’s list. He also joined New Orleans’ Drew Brees as the only players to throw for 3,000 yards in their team’s first nine games. Brees also accomplished the feat this season.

Gronkowski finished with eight catches for 113 yards and the two scores, and Stephen Gostkowski kicked three field goals. Andre Carter had 41/2 sacks as the Patriots’ defense – ranked last in the league coming in – harassed Mark Sanchez all night.

Sanchez was 20 of 39 for 306 yards and a touchdown, but was intercepted twice and sacked five times.

The Jets appeared to get back in it when Plaxico Burress caught a 7-yard fade pass over Antwaun Molden in the right corner of the end zone for a touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter, making it 23-16.

But Brady went right back to work, leading the Patriots on a typically efficient drive, going 84 yards on 13 plays using a no-huddle offense that kept the Jets’ defense off balance. Mixing in some solid runs by Danny Woodhead, Brady coolly spread the ball around to his receivers before connecting with Branch with 8:04 remaining.

The score sent many in the crowd at MetLife Stadium headed for the exits.

Many of those who remained didn’t stick around much longer once Ninkovich returned an errant pass by Sanchez 12 yards to make it 37-16 with 7:45 left.

Three Jets bobbled a muffed punt by Joe McKnight to set up Gostkowski’s short field goal for a 16-9 lead. Isaiah Trufant had two shots at recovering the loose ball and Donald Strickland one – it squirted out of his hands – before Niko Koutouvides came up with it at the Jets 13 early in the third quarter.

Gronkowski appeared to catch his second TD pass of the night, but video replay showed he stepped out of bounds. Gostkowski then booted his third field goal, from 27 yards.

But Gronkowski ended up getting into the end zone again a few minutes later after Ninkovich returned a twice-tipped interception as Sanchez’s throw went off the hands of running back Shonn Greene, then was deflected by linebacker Jerod Mayo to Ninkovich.

The Jets got on the scoreboard when they got some rare pressure on Brady. Jamaal Westerman got to the Patriots quarterback in the end zone, and Brady threw the ball away left-handed and was called for intentional grounding and a safety.

New York took the free kick and moved 65 yards on seven plays, including a 21-yard run by LaDainian Tomlinson and a 22-yard grab by Patrick Turner, his first catch of the season. Sanchez ran in from the 2 on a quarterback draw for a 9-6 lead.

But the Jets quarterback made a mistake on the play right before his score, calling a timeout with 1:24 left in the half. Ryan was so angry, he told NBC at halftime that the timeout was the “stupidest play in NFL history.”

Adding to the frustration was New York not opting to try a pooch kickoff following a 15-yard penalty on New England’s Vince Wilfork, and Nick Branch kicked the ball through the end zone. Brady hit five passes on an 80-yard drive, with Gronkowski getting open over the middle for the 18-yard score with 9 seconds left in the half that made it 13-9.

The Jets were impressive on their opening drive, getting down to the Patriots 6 but came up empty when Folk was wide left on a 24-yard field goal attempt.

New England took advantage by taking a 3-0 lead on Gostkowski’s 50-yard field goal that squeezed over the crossbar. The Patriots appeared to be on their way to an impressive drive after a 12-yard catch by a wide-open Chad Ochocinco – his first reception in more than a month, the last time these teams played on Oct. 9 – and he could’ve had more but stepped out of bounds.

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Jets QB Mark Sanchez (Getty Images file photo)

For the record: The Jets are 5-4 (tied for second place in the AFC East). The Broncos are 4-5 (tied for second place in the AFC West).

Who’s hot: The Jets were burned by the Tom Brady- led Patriots on Sunday night, but defense still is the Jets’ strength. The Jets are in the NFL’s top 10 in total defense and pass defense. The Jets have 13 interceptions and six fumble recoveries.

Who’s not: The Jets’ running game. They’re averaging only 98.1 yards rushing, ranking 24th in the 32-team league. Running backs Shonn Greene and LaDainian Tomlinson have combined for only three rushing touchdowns.

Key stat: The Broncos and Jets have allowed 23 sacks each this season. Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez was sacked five times Sunday by the Patriots. Denver’s defense ranks eighth in the league with 24 sacks.

FYI: This is the third meeting between the Broncos and Jets in four seasons. The Broncos won 34-17 at the Meadowlands in 2008. The Jets won 24-20 in Denver last year. The Broncos are 16-15-1 in regular- season games against the Jets.

Coachspeak: “We were wanting this game in the worst way. But you’re not going to beat New Eng- land, you’re not going to beat many teams, when you make the mistakes that we made.” — New York coach Rex Ryan, after the Jets committed three turnovers in their 37-16 loss to the Patriots

Lindsay H. Jones, The Denver Post

Life at the top is too heady for the New York Jets right
now.

Plagued by errors on offense, defense and special teams, the
Jets were routed by New England 37-16 Sunday night. While the
Patriots took command of the AFC East, the Jets not only fell one
game behind in the standings, they fell so flat on the field that
they were thoroughly outclassed.

“It hurts bad,” star cornerback Darrelle Revis said. “We knew
what position we could have been in if we won. We wanted this very
bad.”

But they played so badly, especially in the second half, that
they had little chance of slowing Tom Brady and the team that has
dominated the division for a decade.

“We made too many mistakes and it cost us,” Revis added. “You
can’t do that against an offense and against No. 12 (Brady).

Brady threw three touchdown passes, including two to Rob
Gronkowski, and the Patriots moved to 6-3. They also have swept the
Jets (5-4), who are tied for second place with Buffalo.

While New England pulled away in the second half, the game
turned late in the second quarter. Mark Sanchez took a timeout at
the wrong time _ coach Rex Ryan took responsibility for it, but
Sanchez admitted it was his goof. The Jets didn’t take advantage of
kicking off from the 50-yard line after going ahead 9-6. And they
couldn’t get any pressure on Brady, who picked them apart on a
quick 80-yard drive.

All part of a bad night for New York, which had won three in a
row.

Ryan was so angry, he told NBC at halftime that the timeout was
the “stupidest play in NFL history.”

“They (the coaches) were talking about taking a timeout and as
soon as I heard it, I walked over to the ref. As soon as I did it,
I saw Rex when I was walking off … It was a horrible mistake and
one you can’t make,” Sanchez said.

There also was a muffed punt by Joe McKnight that two other Jets
also mishandled before the Patriots recovered, leading to a field
goal. And two interceptions by linebacker Rob Ninkovich. And a
team-record 4 1-2 sacks by Andre Carter.

“We had some big mistakes that you just can’t overcome,” said
Plaxico Burress, who caught a TD pass from Sanchez. “We kept
putting our defense in tough situations against a quarterback like
that.”

That quarterback and his coach set an NFL mark with their 117th
victory, breaking a tie with Miami’s Dan Marino and Don Shula as
the winningest duo since 1966.

After the Jets got within a score at 23-16 early in the fourth
quarter, Brady coolly led the Patriots down the field on an 84-yard
drive that was capped by an 8-yard touchdown catch by Deion
Branch.

Ninkovich then sealed the victory _ which snapped a two-game
skid _ on the Jets’ next possession with a 12-yard interception
return for a touchdown midway through the final quarter.

It was also the first home loss for the Jets (5-4) after opening
4-0, but they can’t dwell on it because they play again at Denver
on Thursday night.

Ryan insisted his team was greatly improved since a 30-21 loss
at New England on Oct. 9 and declared it a must-win if New York
wanted to get some home playoff games. Turns out, the Jets still
have plenty of work to do if they expect to dethrone the
Patriots.

New England was coming off losses to Pittsburgh and the Giants,
but said there was no concern in its locker room. It certainly
showed as the Patriots avoided their first three-game losing streak
since 2002.

Brady finished 26 of 39 for 329 yards, the 40th time he reached
the 300-yard mark in a regular-season game, breaking a tie with
Hall of Famer Joe Montana for eighth on the NFL’s list. He also
joined New Orleans’ Drew Brees as the only players to throw for
3,000 yards in their team’s first nine games. Brees also
accomplished the feat this season.

Gronkowski finished with eight catches for 113 yards and the two
scores, and Stephen Gostkowski kicked three field goals. Carter had
all those sacks as the Patriots’ defense, ranked last in the league
coming in, harassed Sanchez all night.

Sanchez was 20 of 39 for 306 yards and a touchdown, but was
intercepted twice and sacked five times.

The Jets appeared to get back in it when Burress caught a 7-yard
fade pass over Antwaun Molden in the right corner of the end zone
on the first play of the fourth quarter, making it 23-16.

But Brady led the Patriots on a typically efficient drive, going
84 yards on 13 plays using a no-huddle offense that kept the Jets’
defense off balance. Brady coolly spread the ball around to his
receivers before connecting with Branch with 8:04 remaining.

“We got caught,” Jets safety Jim Leonhard said. “We do a lot of
things where we’re trying to match personnel, and every once in a
while they get in that hurry-up and it catches us.”

The score sent many in the crowd at MetLife Stadium heading for
the exits.

Earlier, Gronkowski appeared to catch his second TD pass of the
night, but video replay showed he stepped out of bounds. Gostkowski
then booted his third field goal, from 27 yards.

But Gronkowski got into the end zone again a few minutes later
after Ninkovich returned a twice-tipped interception as Sanchez’s
throw went off the hands of running back Shonn Greene, then was
deflected by linebacker Jerod Mayo.

The Jets got on the scoreboard when they got some rare pressure
on Brady. Jamaal Westerman got to him in the end zone, and Brady
threw the ball away left-handed. He was called for intentional
grounding and a safety.

New York took the free kick and moved 65 yards on seven plays,
including a 21-yard run by LaDainian Tomlinson and a 22-yard grab
by Patrick Turner, his first catch of the season. Sanchez ran in
from the 2 on a quarterback draw for a 9-6 lead.

Adding to the frustration was New York not opting to try a pooch
kickoff following a 15-yard penalty on New England’s Vince Wilfork,
and Nick Folk kicked the ball through the end zone. Brady hit five
passes on an 80-yard drive, with Gronkowski getting open over the
middle for the 18-yard score with 9 seconds left in the half that
made it 13-9.

Folk was wide left on a 24-yard field goal attempt at the end of
New York’s opening drive.

New England took advantage, taking a 3-0 lead on Gostkowski’s
50-yard field goal that squeezed over the crossbar.