 "Photo: photo courtesy of insidesocal.com")
Sanchez shines in debut!
Fifth overall draft pick in this year’s draft, Mark Sanchez, picked up his first career NFL win and helped the New York Jets get off to a fast start to begin the season, by defeating the Houston Texans 24-7. Sanchez threw for 272 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
On attendance was Hall of Famer and Jets legend Joe Namath. After the game Namath said that it did not surprise him that Sanchez performed well.
"No, I was hopeful and I'm satisfied more than I thought I'd be," Namath said. "His offensive line did a hell of a job, but he did a great job of finding time with his feet, just to move subtly ... I don't doubt even a little bit that he doesn't have poise at this stage."
Rookie coach Rex Ryan showed why he is a defensive genius. The Jets defense intercepted Matt Schaub twice and recovered one fumble.
“I believe in this football team, I believe in the coaches we have, I believe in the players we have and I believe in the support staff,” Ryan told reporters in the Reliant Stadium visitors' interview room. “I’ve been saying it all along. It's just nobody wanted to listen.”
Running backs Thomas Jones rushed for 107 yards and Leon Washington added 60 yards to keep the Texans defense off balance.
Up next for the Jets will be the New England Patriots who come into the Meadowlands 1-0 as well.
Coach Ryan stirred up the fire with the Patriots in the pre-season by saying, "I never came here to kiss Bill Belichick's rings," Ryan said. "I came to win, let's put it that way. So we'll see what happens. I'm certainly not intimidated by New England or anybody else."
Giants defeat division rival!
Coach Tom Coughlin and the defending NFC East champions New York Giants defeated the Washington Redskins by the score of 23-17. The Giants did not find a replacement for wide receiver Plaxico Burress, but they did get their captain back on defense, Osi Umenyiora.
Umenyiora recovered a fumble on a sack and returned it for a touchdown in the 2nd quarter.
"It was unbelievable and now all that is in the past," Umenyiora said after his first meaningful game since the Super Bowl in February 2008. "I can't even explain it to you, when something like that is taken away from you. Last year I missed it. I was happy I was able to come back in there."
Fellow teammate Justin Tuck was honored as NFC Defensive Player of the Week. Tuck recorded five tackles, 1.5 sacks, two tackles for losses and three QB hits.
Quarterback Eli Manning threw for 256 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Manning connected with Mario Manningham on a 30 yard touchdown pass to give the Giants a 10-0 lead.
Kicker Lawrence Tynes was three for three on field goal attempts.
"They [Redskins] are never easy," said Coach Tom Coughlin, "Every game that we have with them seems to be right down to the wire."
Up next for the Giants are the Dallas Cowboys who defeated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 34-21. The Key for the Giants is to have a balanced attack. If the Giants can’t get their running attack going it could mean trouble with no true number one receiver on the roster.
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