Despite media hype, Favre and the Jets were merely average in week 1

The way the media is swooning over Brett Favre and his new team you'd think the final score yesterday was 66-10. It wasn't. Not even close. The Jets did win, beating the Dolphins 20-14. But with some ridiculous comments from people at ESPN you'd think they just made it to the Super Bowl. ESPNs Gene Wojciechowski says

At the exact moment Brady's knee buckled, Favre and the Jets became the team to beat in a division previously leased by the Patriots.

Well if that is true, based on yesterday's performances, where does that put Buffalo who destroyed Seattle 34-10. Or Miami? They were a play away from pulling the upset. With New York now the favorite, they more than likely would be favored to get to at least 11 wins. Based on the performance yesterday? Against a team that, entering the season, "experts" thought would struggle to win 3 games? Surely a meager 6-point win over a perceived "awful" team wouldn't make the Jets a favorite for anything.

And the praise for Brett Favre? Please. If the stat. line of 15 of 22 for 198 yards and 2 TDs was attached to anyone else it would be a nice, solid game. But not when it comes from Favre. Then it is a performance that just reeks of how amazing he is. That 2nd TD was a freak play and complete luck. Favre is another machination of the media hype machine that does more harm than good.

The Jets played good enough to win yesterday but to say that this team is a clear favorite in the AFC East is crap. I think E would agree with me. The Jets performance yesterday was average. Teams that should be reveling in praise after dominating wins yesterday - Dallas, Philadelphia, Buffalo, Pittsburgh, and perhaps Chicago - have to feel good. As good as you can feel after 1 week. If I were the Jets I would feel disappointed. You beat an inferior opponent by only 6 points and were on the cusp of a loss.

This isn't to say the Jets can't be good, or great for that matter. The potential is there. I can guarantee you that if the game played out the exact same way except Pennington was the Jets starter, no one would be considering the Jets the team to beat in the AFC East. GUARANTEE. And with Brady down the Patriots will stumble. But despite my hatred for them and their coach, they still have elite players at other positions. They will fall but not as far as many would like them to. They will still be in the hunt for the playoffs, like the rest of the teams in the AFC East.

Speaking of the Patriots, I don't want to see players get injured. I would never wish that on anyone. Not even Brady and the Patriots. But this just shows that karma works. Their cheating ways and sleazy play last year was sacked in the Super Bowl and an exclamation point was added in week 1. You angered the football gods last season. Payback is a bitch. This also shows the complete arrogance that Bill Belichick employs. Why in the world is Matt Cassel the backup to Brady? Despite his solid play in relief yesterday, the Patriots can't possibly believe he is the answer for the rest of the season. And they don't. They are bringing in free agents Tim Rattay and Chris Simms for workouts today. If you do this when your star goes down, why not have one of them as the back up already? Simms was cut in late August and Rattay wasn't even in a camp. Both of these players are more than likely an upgrade over Cassel. Why weren't they brought in and groomed as a backup in case this happened? Arrogance. That's all it is. Now Cassel will have to start for the next week or two until a free agent gets up to speed. Just more New England arrogance.