Why Is It Always Snakes?

There's a moment in "Raiders of the Lost Ark" when Indy says, "Snakes… Why is it always… snakes."

That's how I feel about Jets games.

The game started with Brady playing on one leg, Gronk coming back from a pneumothorax (or something), Martellus Bennett with a bad ankle, Edelman with a bad foot and Chris Hogan with a bad back and it ended with Gronk leaving with a back injury, Bennett having his ankle rolled up on and we'll probably have to wait till Wednesday's injury report to know even vaguely more than we know right now.

In between, it was a typical Jets game. More defense than offense. Long field goals, missed field goals, blocked field goals. The underdog playing so well their fans wonder where these guys have been all season. Complaints about the officiating from both sides which is really the best we can all hope for at this point, isn't it?

Division games, on the road, are a pigskin punch to the gut even when your team flies home with the W. There are no style points in division games. They're generally messy affairs. Bad blood (only there never was mad love). Memories, some bitter, some sweet. Only the bitter ones matter, of course.

As ugly as things started for the Patriots, they made enough plays in the 4th quarter to take the win, a division win, on the road. Never underestimate the degree of difficulty in these border war games. This was the Super Bowl for the woebegotten Jets and they played well and they played hard. 22-17 is a big, big win for the Patriots.

A few other thoughts before I go…

200 wins for Brady. Tom Terrific. The Icy Commander. Young Odin. TB12. "It means I’ve been a part of a lot of really great teams with great coaches and great teammates."

A lot of teams that were great because they had Tom Brady at quarterback!

I think we got another glimpse at a budding star in Malcolm Mitchell, who snagged two more TD passes and could've had a third. With Mitchell emerging and Dion Lewis returning, assuming the return to relative health for Brady, Gronk, Bennett, Jules and Hogan and the continued good health of James White and LeGarrette Blount, the Patriots offense is an embarrassment of riches. They will put up 30+ points a game when Brady can practice more than once a week.

The defense came up in the clutch and I think it's also worth mentioning they gave up just 64 yards rushing to the Jets. This was a classic Bill Belichick game plan. Take away the Jets running game and you take their soul. Of course, you're rolling the dice on Ryan Fitzpatrick and just to make things interesting Fitzpatrick played well. (Seriously, who saw that coming?) Lesser known receivers on the Jets depth chart made big plays. Brandon Marshall scored a TD but it felt like more than 6 catches and 67 yards performance by Marshall.  Fitzpatrick didn't throw an interception; zero turnovers until the fateful strip sack by Chris Long that - along with a nice run by LG - sealed the deal.

It also appears that if you're going to beat the Patriots, you need to hold them to under 17 points.

Then again, the 22 points New England scored in the swamps of Jersey are their fewest since Brady returned and they probably left 10 points on the table. I'll be looking for a 34-13 win by the Patriots in the rematch.

Oh, wait. Jets.

I should be so lucky.