Mark Sanchez and the New York Jets got going in a hurry -- for a change -- and never stopped.
The Kansas City Chiefs? Well, this is one they'd like to quickly forget.
Sanchez
threw two touchdown passes and ran for two more scores as the Jets kept
pace in the AFC playoff race by cruising to a 37-10 victory over the
Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday.
The Jets, plagued by slow starts
all season, scored 28 points in the first half and were helped by an
inept Chiefs offense that managed just 4 total yards in the first two
quarters.
Sanchez was 13 of 21 for 181 yards before being pulled
for Mark Brunell with the game in hand, and was cheered warmly in
pregame introductions after being booed in the team's last home game two
weeks ago. Shonn Greene had a season-high 129 yards rushing and a
score, and Santonio Holmes and LaDainian Tomlinson each caught touchdown
passes for the Jets (8-5), who have won three straight and improved to
6-1 at home.
It might have been a costly win, though, as starting
safety Jim Leonhard was lost early with an injured right knee. There
was no immediate word on the severity.
Tyler Palko was sacked
five times by the Jets in a miserable outing by the penalty-plagued
Chiefs (5-8) a week after the quarterback earned his first victory as a
starter at Chicago. He was 3 for 8 for 11 yards in the half, sacked
three times, and the Chiefs had 4 total yards and one first down,
compared to the Jets' 16. Palko had a much better second half, finishing
16 of 32 for 195 yards and a touchdown and an interception.
Dwayne
Bowe dropped a would-be touchdown pass midway through the fourth
quarter, but things got ugly for the Chiefs way before that.
In
the most brutal stretch for Kansas City, the Chiefs were penalized five
times for 81 yards during the Jets' final touchdown drive. One of those
was an unsportsmanlike conduct call on coach Todd Haley, who let his
frustrations out on the officials. Kansas City finished with 11
penalties.
Sanchez's 1-yard run gave the Jets a score on their
first drive, as New York got off to the type of quick start it has been
lacking most of this season. But, it began ominously as Sanchez was
forced to call a timeout -- to loud boos from the fans at MetLife
Stadium -- before New York even ran a play because of some apparent
confusion about which personnel should've been on the field.
The
Jets rebounded nicely with an 11-play, 77-yard drive that was
jumpstarted by Greene's 31-yard rumble on the opening snap and helped by
Patrick Turner's 10-yard catch on third-and-4 from the Chiefs 40. On
third-and-goal from the 3, Sanchez threw incomplete into the end zone,
but Chiefs cornerback Javier Arenas was called for holding, giving the
Jets a new set of downs at the 1.
Sanchez took the snap, faked
the handoff to Greene and it appeared every Chiefs player bit as the
Jets quarterback rolled to his left and strolled into the end zone
untouched for his career-high fourth rushing touchdown of the season.
Ryan Succop's 53-yard field goal with 4:36 left in the opening quarter made it 7-3.
Palko,
starting again with newly signed Kyle Orton inactive with an injured
right index finger, made a poor throw intended for Steve Breaston that
Leonhard stepped in front of and picked off easily early in the second
quarter. But, Breaston grabbed Leonhard for a twisting tackle on which
the safety's right knee was injured. Leonhard was helped to the sideline
by two trainers, carted to the locker room and ruled out for the rest
of the game.
On the next play, Sanchez, facing heavy pressure,
dumped the ball off quickly to Greene, who zipped down the left sideline
36 yards before going out of bounds at the 2. After Tomlinson lost 2
yards on a run, Sanchez found Holmes in the middle of the end zone for a
4-yard touchdown and a 14-3 lead with 10:02 left in the half.
Greene's
7-yard touchdown run put New York ahead 21-3 with 3:56 remaining, after
a called fumble was challenged by coach Rex Ryan and overturned by
officials. Tomlinson had a 31-yard catch-and-run to get the Jets down to
the Chiefs 13. Greene then took the handoff on the next play, scooted 6
yards, Tamba Hali knocked the ball loose, but the running back was
ruled down. Greene rumbled up the middle on the next play and ran over a
Chiefs defender on his way into the end zone.
Tomlinson made it
28-3 with 1:15 left in the half when he took a screen pass from Sanchez,
made a few cutback moves and got a big block from center Nick Mangold
for a 19-yard touchdown. It marked the first time the Jets scored 28
points in an opening half since scoring 40 against St. Louis in 2008.
Things
started getting out of hand midway through the third quarter when the
Chiefs were called for three straight penalties, including an
unsportsmanlike conduct on an irate Haley, helping move the Jets all the
way from their own 3 to the 43. A few plays later, Brandon Flowers and
Kendrick Lewis were called for consecutive pass interference penalties,
bringing the ball to the 4.
On third-and-goal,
