The New York Jets don’t just talk trash like some teams. No, for them, it’s done in such a bold and brash manner, it’s more like “brash-talking.”

And, when you do as much “brash-talking” as the New York Jets have done, it sometimes takes shocking the football world to back it up.

The Jets (13-5) did just that on Sunday, with the biggest turnaround (49 points) from the regular season to the postseason, against the same opponent, in the same year, in NFL history.

Making it much bigger?

The Jets’ redemption came in the their biggest game of the season, against their fiercest rival – the New England Patriots (14-3) – who were nine-point favorites at Gillette Stadium on Sunday, after crushing the Jets on Monday Night Football, 45-3, just six weeks prior.

After a week of spewing their usual bluster in the Patriots’ direction, the sixth-seeded, “brash-talking” Jets returned to the same site where they suffered their most lopsided loss in 24 years to eliminate the Super Bowl favorite, top-seeded Patriots in stunning fashion, 28-21, in an AFC divisional playoff showdown.

It was a huge departure from New York’s last trip to Foxborough, Massachusetts, when Jets’ head coach Rex Ryan said after his team was embarrassed by New England in a Week 13 Monday Night Football battle for first place in the AFC East, “It was the game of the year… and the NFL deserved a better game than that, but we weren’t up to the task.”

This time, the Jets were, and then some, with quarterback Mark Sanchez (16-25, 194 yards) throwing three touchdown passes, while New York avoided a turnover and closely blanketed the same New England receivers who torched the Jets in the teams’ last meeting.

Everything about New York’s game on Sunday was different since that night – even the Jets’ uniforms, which included green pants, for a little psychological ploy to help the Jets (who wore white pants their last time in New England) forget all the 42-point drubbing they took the last time they were on the same field.

New England head coach Bill Belichick tried his own mind trick by trying to immediately put pressure on the Jets’ second-year quarterback, when he deferred the opening kickoff despite the Patriots being the highest scoring team in the NFL with 518 points (79 more than the next highest scoring team) this season and the seventh highest scoring team of all-time.

While the Jets punted on their first possession, the move was the first of several for the New England that would fail to make sense.

New York meanwhile, which confounded the Patriots’ offense by showing mixed coverages and a lot more zone looks than the man-to-man defense the Jets played in Week 13, set the tone early, by forcing the game’s only turnover on New England’s opening possession.

The Patriots drove 53 yards to the Jets’ 31 yard-line, but linebacker Calvin Pace (3 tackles, one sack) pressured Patriots’ quarterback Tom Brady (29-45, 299 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT) into just his fifth interception of the season, as linebacker David Harris picked Brady’s pass and returned it 58 yards to the New England 12 yard-line.

The Jets failed to capitalize as kicker Nick Folk missed wide left on a 30-yard field goal attempt, but Brady was rattled enough to know that unlike six weeks earlier, the Jets had arrived in New England to compete on Sunday – especially since prior to the interception, the Patriots had set an NFL record with just ten turnovers during the regular season.

New England then moved 63 yards on 11 plays, in 5:44, taking a 3-0 lead in a 34-yards field goal by kicker Shayne Graham, with 1:12 left in the opening quarter.

The Patriots outgained the Jets 104-36 in the period, but only had a slim lead to show for it.

The teams then traded punts before the Jets took their first lead in the second quarter.

After failing to score despite being in New England territory on their first three possessions, the Jets finally broke through on their fourth.

On 3rd-and-6 from the Patriots’ 45 yard-line, Sanchez completed a 37-yard pass to wide receiver Braylon Edwards (2 catches, 52 yards) to the Patriots’ 8 yard-line on the third play of a five-play, 54-yard drive.

That set up a 7-yard touchdown pass to running back LaDainian Tomlinson (10 carries, 43 yards), who on the play, scored his first postseason touchdown of his ten-year career, to put the Jets ahead, 7-3, with 10:24 left in the first half.

Again, the teams traded punts before the usually very composed Belichick gambled and gave New York an absolute gift.

Still trailing just 7-3, with the first half winding down, Belichick opted for a direct snap to Patrick Chung on 4th-and-4 from the Patriots’ 38 yard-line.

Chung fumbled and recovered, but the Jets took over at New England’s 37 yard-line and quickly took advantage of the short field.

Tomlinson ran 16 yards, and then six, to the Patriots’ 15 yard-line. Two plays later, Sanchez completed a short pass to Edwards, who scored on a 15-yard touchdown reception to give the Jets a 14-3 lead with 33 seconds left in the half, causing New England to play catch-up for the remainder of the game.

A Patriots team that finished with NFL’s best record was booed off field at halftime, having failed to score a touchdown in first half for first time since Week 4, when New England trailed 7-6 at the break before using some big special teams plays to win, 41-14, in Miami.

Each team punted twice to begin the third quarter before the Patriots finally scored their first touchdown to get back in the game.

Embarking on the longest drive of the game, New England went 80 yards on eight plays, in 3:51, with Brady throwing a two-yard touchdown pass to tight end Algie Crumpler (3 catches, 39 yards, 1 TD), who dropped a pass in the end zone prior to the Patriots’ earlier field goal.

Fullback Sammy Morris then rushed to convert a two-point conversion to pull New England to within 14-11, with 13 seconds left in the third quarter.

But, the Jets quickly came right back on their longest drive the game, going 75 yards on five plays, in just 2:13, helped by a short pass over the middle that wide receiver Jerricho Cotchery (game highs of 5 catches and 96 yards) took up the right sideline for 58 yards to the Patriots’ 13 yard-line.

Three plays later, Sanchez lofted a ball to the far left side of the end zone, where wide receiver Santonio Holmes (3 catches, 20 yards, 1 TD) made a brilliant catch that was reminiscent of his tip-toeing end zone grab to win Super Bowl XLIII for the Pittsburgh Steelers – ironically the last AFC team in the Jets’ path toward reaching Super Bowl XLV.

Outstretched, Holmes got his right knee down before dragging his left toe in the end zone while falling of bounds, to give the Jets a 21-11 lead with 13 minutes left in the game.

Sanchez, who has taken New York to the AFC title game in each of his first two years in the league, showed remarkable poise and patience for a 24-year-old quarterback who had eight turnovers for a team that was outscored by a combined 76-17 in Sanchez’s previous two visits to New England.

“I needed to be smart and take what [New England] gave me,” Sanchez said. He also added, that he couldn’t worry about hearing that he couldn’t win at Gillette Stadium, saying “When someone says you can’t [accomplish something], you want to do everything you can to prove them wrong.”

New York’s defense felt the same way.

While Sanchez avoided a sack, the Jets’ tight coverage created five sacks of Brady, two by defensive end Shaun Ellis and one each by Pace, defensive tackle Sione Pouha, and cornerback Drew Coleman (who was doubtful earlier in the week).

Shutting New England down was something not many had done this season, although the Jets did beat the Patriots at home, 28-14, in Week 2.

During an eight-game winning streak which the Patriots rode into Sunday’s game, New England allowed just 1.5 sacks per game and scored 37.4 points per game, while scoring no fewer than 31 points during that span.

After Sanchez’s third touchdown pass, the Patriots moved into Jets territory, but puzzlingly took their time doing so with a methodical lack of urgency.

New England went 48 yards on 14 plays, but ran the ball eight times, chewing up 7:45, perhaps in part, in deference to the fact that Brady had trouble finding open receivers all game. The Patriots ended the drive by foregoing a long field goal and instead, failing to convert on a 4th-and-13 pass from the Jets’ 34 yard-line.

The Patriots forced a three-and-out though, and moved 26 yards on seven plays, in just 1:32, for a Graham 35-yard field goal that brought New England to within 21-14, with 1:57 left.

However, once again bad decision making hurt the Patriots at the end of that drive. With just two time outs left, New England needed to kick the field goal prior to the two-minute warning, so the Patriots could use the official time out as a third time out and kick the ball deep on the ensuing kickoff.

Instead, the Patriots completed for one yard, to the right, to wide receiver Wes Welker (7 catches, 57 yards) on third down, on a route that didn’t give Welker a chance to get out of bounds and stop the clock.

New England appeared confused and unorganized in trying to get the kicking team on the field and boot the field goal prior to the two-minute warning.

As a result, the Patriots were forced to try an onside kick, and they paid dearly for it.

Fittingly, Antonio Cromartie, who had some heated, profanity-laced words through the media for Brady and the Patriots earlier in the week, made the play that sealed New England’s fate, by picking up the onside kick and returning it 23 yards to the Patriots’ 25 yard-line.

Just two plays later, running back Shonn Greene (17 carries, game-high 76 yards, 1 TD) scored on a 16-yard run to give the Jets an insurmountable 28-14 advantage, with 1:41 remaining.

Brady quickly drove New England 59 yards n seven plays, in just 1:17, cutting New York’s lead in half, to 28-21, on a 13-yard touchdown throw to wide receiver Deion Branch, with 24 seconds left, but the New Eric Smith recovered the ensuing onside kick and Sanchez took a knee to finish off one the greatest upsets in Jets’ franchise history.

Just after the clock expired, Edwards, who was arrested on a Driving While Intoxicated charge in New York City prior to the Jets’ Week 3 win in Miami, did celebratory back flips on the field.

All that was left then, was for the Jets to do some more talking. But then, after upsetting the NFL’s best to advance to with a game of the Super Bowl, they earned that right.

With a sarcastic dig at those who still compare his team to the Jets of old, Ryan said “So, we’re moving on, same old Jets, moving on to the AFC championship game two years in a row. The only difference is, we plan on winning this one.”

Not that the Jets didn’t try to win when they lost last year’s AFC title game in Indianapolis.

“I’m proud of the way the team played,” Ryan added. “Outstanding effort… we believed… we worked too hard to get back here, and we came here for a reason. We thought we were the better team. Clearly, that Monday night game, they were clearly head and shoulders better than we were. But, I knew that if we applied ourselves and we played the way we were capable of playing, we could beat ‘em, and that’s exactly what happened.”

Ryan, who limped down the sideline to congratulate Greene on his game-icing touchdown run, later added, “We’re trying to win a Super Bowl… we’ve still got a long way to go… but, maybe I’m not always wrong on everything I say.”

Linebacker Bart Scott, who came to the Jets with Ryan from Baltimore last year, angrily said, “Anybody could be beat! We know we’re a much better team than we came up [to New England] and represented ourselves [as in Week 13] and we were pissed off… people gave us no chance… we’re a good football team!”

He added, that the Jets played with anger for “All [of the] non-believers [who] disrespect us… [but] we’re the third best defense in the league! All we hear about is [the Patriots’] defense, 25th in the league, can’t stop a nose bleed, and we get disrespected!”

Looking ahead, the Jets’ link to the second-seeded Steelers (13-4) this season is as ironic as Holmes’ connection to his former team.

New York won in Pittsburgh, 22-17, in a Week 15 game that came down to a Steeler incompletion in the end zone on the game’s final play. It was the Jets’ only win during a four-game stretch that began with the Jets’ aforementioned loss in New England.

Without that win in Pittsburgh, all other results being the same, the Jets would have missed the playoffs.

Now, they get to return to the Steel City with the AFC title on the line.

Holmes warns that the Jets shouldn’t be taken lightly again, saying about his team’s upset over the Patriots, “All week long, we heard, ‘The Jets are going to lose.’ Guess what? We’re moving on to the AFC championship. See you in Pittsburgh.”

Kickoff is scheduled for 6:30pm ET next Sunday, at Heinz Field.

Notes: The loss was the Patriots’ third straight in the postseason… New England became only the fourth team in NFL history to win at least 14 games and lose its first playoff game of the season… The Jets are trying to become the fourth team in NFL history to reach the Super Bowl with three straight playoff road wins in the same season… the last to do it was another New York team – the Giants, who ironically ended the Patriots’ attempt at a achieving a perfect 19-0 season three years ago… A bit more irony: the 2005 Steelers last accomplished the feat prior to the Giants, as a six seed (like the Jets are now)… if the Jets win Super Bowl XLV, they’ll have to beat history: the Steelers have won the most Super Bowls (6) of all time, while the NFC title game features the two teams with the most NFL titles in league history (Green Bay has 12, and Chicago 9).

In addition to writing for New York Sports Day, Jon Wagner contributes at Pro Football NYC (www.profootballnyc.com) and Giants Football Blog (www.giantsfootballblog.com).

It was billed as this season’s NFL  game of the year.

The New York Jets and the New England Patriots.

A pair of 9-2 divisional rivals with a history of hating each other. Each well-rested after ten days off. An AFC East showdown of epic proportions. First place in the division, and the lead for home field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs at stake.

It was all on the line, before a national television audience, on ESPN’s Monday Night Football.

There was just one problem… only the home team showed up.

Avenging a 28-14 road loss to the Jets in Week 2, New England thoroughly dominated New York, 45-3, at Gillette Stadium, in Foxborough, Massachusetts.

It was the type of game that Jet fans and their brash, outspoken, and unapologetic head coach Rex Ryan had pointed to since the summer, when he repeatedly told anyone within shouting distance of his loud voice that the Jets would play in Super Bowl XLV.

A potential statement game for the Jets to make their mark on their hated rival, on their division, and on the National Football League as a whole.

But, what we all might have learned is that the Jets’ 9-2, albeit with an early season victory over the Patriots, wasn’t nearly on par with the Patriots’ 9-2.

Perhaps, the Jets’ 9-2 record might have been as over-inflated as their egos, with four of their nine wins coming by virtue of last-minute, Harry Houdini-like escapes, all against teams with losing records.

Sensational at what he does (as one of best broadcasters around) notwithstanding, Jets’ radio play-by-play voice Bob Wichusen, moments before kickoff, echoed the sentiments of many Jets fans and even, much of the New York media for days, leading up to Monday night’s contest. Wichusen said that the Jets might have been on the verge taking the mantle from the Patriots as the new team to beat in the AFC East, if they could beat New England on its home field and force the Patriots into second place in the division.

But, what Monday night’s mismatch might have ultimately proved is that although the Jets are a good team, and still one of the better ones in the NFL, they’re not the Patriots, who adapted and improved far more than the Jets since the teams’ Week 2 meeting.

The Jets are not yet an elite team, and not yet ready to accomplish what many overconfident, and even cocky Jet fans believed, after buying into and following Ryan’s arrogant cue.

If you talk like the Jets, you had better also walk the walk.

Yet, the team that talked, and talked… and… talked… since August, as if it was a collective birthright to play in this year’s Super Bowl, was ironically silenced. And, embarrassed.

For all we heard about how great the Jets would be in games like Monday night on their HBO “Hard Knocks” special, it was the Jets who took the hard knocks themselves, repeatedly, from the Patriots, until New England knocked all of the swagger and bluster right out of the Jets, sending them back to New Jersey with nary a whimper.

“I thought we were going to play a great game, I really did,” Ryan said, after what he also called “the biggest butt-whooping” he’s ever taken during his coaching career.

Instead, the moment appeared much too big for the Jets to handle, as they suffered their worst loss since November 24th, 1986, when New York lost by the same score to the Miami Dolphins, also on Monday Night Football (those two games are tied with others for worst losses in MNF history).

The team that told everyone how great it was all preseason, and which reminded us of their “invincibility” as it barely got by, time after time, during the regular season this year, appeared overwhelmed in one of the biggest games in its franchise’s history.

As a result, the Jets allowed their biggest rival to shine far brighter with a white-hot spotlight glaring on one of the most anticipated Jets-Patriots games ever.

New England jumped to a 17-0 lead after the first quarter, and scored the first four times they touched the ball en route to a 24-3 halftime lead. And, it only got worse from there for the Jets, as the Patriots scored on their first three possessions of the second half.

Quarterback Tom Brady played a near-flawless game, going 21 of 29 for 326 yards, 4 touchdowns, no turnovers, and a 148.9 quarterback rating, while winning his 26th consecutive regular season game at home, to extend the longest such streak in NFL history, as the Jets lost for the first time in nine regular season road games.

In stark contrast, Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez often looked lost, completing just 17 of 33 passes for 164 yards and a 27.8 quarterback rating, while throwing three costly interceptions, off of which the Patriots scored a touchdown each time.

The first pick was the only one that really mattered. The Jets still had a chance to get back in the game, down 24-3, early in the third quarter, when Sanchez forced a ball that he shouldn’t have thrown for the Jets’ first red zone turnover of the season.

The last two interceptions merely allowed the game to go from a sound beating to humiliation.

Give Ryan credit at least, for not making excuses. Second-string safety Eric Smith, who was pressed into action due to a broken leg suffered by starting safety Jim Leonhard, committed a key 36-yard pass interference penalty, when he mugged rookie tight end Rob Gronkowski in the end zone, setting up the Patriots’ first touchdown of the game.

Leonhard’s loss was felt all game, yet Ryan insisted, “We’ve got a lot of good players and they needed to step up. Jim Leonhard wasn’t going to make a 45-point difference [defensively].”

Very true, especially when the Jets allowed more passing yards (304) than the total yards they gained (301).

If you read between the lines a little bit, Brady seemed to have taken some satisfaction in the Patriots’ far different style under New England head coach Bill Belichick’s dramatically different, stoic, business-like approach quieting the over-confident Jets.

“We take after our coach,” Brady said. “He always says, when you win, say little, and when you lose, say less.”

One could almost infer from that comment that Brady is indirectly telling the Jets they need to finally keep quiet for a while after losing a battle for first place in the conference by 42 points.

Rubbing salt into the Jets’ wounds, was undrafted, 5-foot-9, all-heart running back Danny Woodhead, whom the Jets cast off after one game this season. Woodhead hurt New York with a career-high 104 receiving yards and a career-high-tying 115 total yards, including a 50-yard catch and run that set up New England’s fifth touchdown.

The Jets also failed to spoil what became a special night for the Patriots on two accounts.

The win was the 107th in the Brady-Belichick era, which ties the duo with Terry Bradshaw and Chuck Knoll for second place, just nine behind Dan Marino and Don Shula, for most NFL victories for a quarterback-head coach combination.

New England’s win also came on Teddy Bruschi night, as the Patriots honored one of the best linebackers in their history, at halftime.

“It was fun to be a New England Patriot on Teddy Bruschi Night, I’ll tell you that,” Brady said with a wide smile. “He’s someone I’ve always looked up to and admired… he’s just a great person… No one had a bigger [heart] than Teddy.”

Belichick added, “That was the best sixty minutes of football we played all year. I’m glad it could be on Teddy Bruschi Night. He was a big part of a lot [of games] like this. I think we got some inspiration from that.”

As humiliating as Monday night’s loss was, Ryan reminded everyone that his team shouldn’t be written off just yet. “You talk about the resiliency of this team, we’ve got the history to back it up,” he said.

That’s the one thing about Ryan’s Jets. They may not have been good enough to cash the huge checks written by Ryan’s mouth on Monday night, but as Belichick said of the Jets, “I’m sure we haven’t heard the last from them.”

They’re both right. Just when we think we won’t hear from them again, we do (see last year’s 3-0 start, followed by a 4-7 slump to a 7-7 record, when Ryan subsequently declared his team out of the playoffs, before the Jets rebounded to come within about 28 minutes of reaching Super Bowl XLIV).

On that note, the Jets will try to pick up the pieces and regroup against the same franchise that last beat New York as bad as it lost on Monday night. The Miami Dolphins (6-6) come to the New Meadowlands stadium to face the Jets on Sunday, at 4:15 pm EST.

In addition to writing for New York Sports Day, Jon Wagner contributes at Pro Football NYC (www.profootballnyc.com) and Giants Football Blog (www.giantsfootballblog.com)

New York Jet fans had this game circled on the calendar ever since ex-Jet Brett Favre’s latest “unretirement” this past summer.

Although they waited a little longer, through a weather delay at the start, and then through some tenuous moments in the fourth quarter, Jet fans finally got what they waited for – a victory over their former quarterback and his Minnesota Vikings (1-3), and a fourth straight win for the Jets (4-1), by a score of 29-20, on Monday Night Football at the New Meadowlands Stadium.

For more than 2½ quarters, in a driving rain, it appeared that Favre and the Vikings would go very quietly and do very little, with Jets’ kicker Nick Folk accounting for all of the scoring on four consecutive field goals to give the Jets a 12-0 lead.

Given the way the Jets’ defense contained Favre and the Minnesota offense to that point, Jet fans were more than happy to wait 45 minutes for the opening kickoff due to lightning being spotted in the area, and to see running back LaDanian Tomlinson (20 carries for a game-high 94 yards) single-handedly gain more yards (50) on the ground than the Vikings amassed in total (40) in the opening quarter.

Tomlinson would slightly edge Vikings’ star running back Adrian Peterson (18 rushes for 88 yards) for the game, to help the Jets to 155-96 rushing advantage, as Minnesota allowed its most rushing yards since December, 2006.

By halftime, the Jets held a dominant 206-51 advantage in total yards, along with a 9-0 lead, while holding Favre to only 31 yards passing on just 3 completions in 7 attempts. Favre also mishandled a snap with 4 minutes left in the half, leading to Folk’s third field goal. The miscue was the 162nd of Favre’s 20-year career, tying him with Warren Moon for the most NFL fumbles ever.

Favre then broke that record on the Vikings’ first possession of the third quarter, when he fumbled again, a turnover than led to Folk’s fourth field goal in as many attempts, with 8:49 left in the period.

By then, the Minnesota offense was doing so little (starting the game with six punts, Favre’s two fumbles, and a total of 58 yards on the Vikings’ first eight possessions), it didn’t matter that the Jets’ offense settled for nothing but fields goals despite already starting three possessions in Minnesota territory, and running 35 of the first 37 plays of the game to occur in an opponents’ end of the field.

But, when the rain stopped and passing conditions improved, Favre and the Vikings’ offense finally made the necessary adjustments to the Jets’ relentless blitz packages, and quickly got back in the game.

Favre rebounded from his miserable first half to throw for 233 yards and three touchdowns, despite a going an inaccurate 11-for-27 in the second half.

He also achieved two milestones while trying to rally the Vikings during the second half. On Minnesota’s ninth possession, Favre became the first player in NFL history to surpass 70,000 passing yards, and later on the same drive, he became the first NFL player to throw 500 touchdown passes, capping a 10-play, 72-yard possession with a 37-yard strike up the right sideline to wide receiver Randy Moss (4 catches, 81 yards, 1 TD), who made some history of his own.

Moss became the first NFL player to play on Monday Night Football in consecutive weeks, after rejoining the team that drafted him in the first round in 1998, after helping New England to a MNF win in Miami last week.

Simply having a fellow future hall of fame weapon like Moss, whom Favre coveted since Moss’ days in Minnesota, meant more to Favre than the milestones he reached. On those, Favre said after the game, “It’s all about the wins,” regretting the loss to the Jets and the Vikings underachieving 1-3 start more than relishing his landmark accomplishments. But, on the touchdown to Moss, Favre admitted, “I’ve been thinking about that for 8 to 10 years.”

Kick returner Brad Smith immediately got the Jets back in business after Moss’ touchdown, with an 86-yard kickoff return to the Minnesota 19 yard-line. But, all that led to was the Jets starting a fourth possession in Viking territory without a touchdown, as New York settled for Folk’s fifth field goal, which put the Jets ahead, 15-7, heading into the final quarter.

Starting a 5-play, 65-yard drive in the final minute of the third quarter, the Vikings closed to within 15-13 with 12:47 left in the game, on a 34-yard touchdown pass from Favre to wide receiver Percy Harvin (5 catches, game-high 97 yards, 2 TD).

Minnesota didn’t need to go for a two-point conversion at that point, and things might have worked out better for the Vikings later on, had they opted to kick the extra point, instead. After lining up for the PAT, Minnesota called a timeout, then went for two, and failed.

That became significant, because after the teams traded punts, the Jets drove 66 yards on 6 plays, to lead 22-13 on a 23-yard touchdown burst by running back Shonn Greene (10 rushes, 57 yards, 1 TD), with 4:30 left.

Favre would again answer, taking the Vikings 54 yards on 5 plays in just 1:11, finding Harvin for an 11-yard score with 3:09 remaining. Had the Vikings kicked the PAT after they previous touchdown, they could have gone for two, to tie the game at 22-22, but having failed on the earlier two-point attempt, Minnesota could only kick the PAT to pull to within 22-20.

The Jets then had their own brain lock with time management. With a chance to wait for the two-minute warning and then run one more play afterwards, to leave Favre and the Vikings less time, New York snapped the ball too soon. Quarterback Mark Sanchez (21 of 44, 191 yards, 0 TD, 0 INT) threw too high and incomplete on 3rd-and-11, and after a fourth-down punt, the Vikings had plenty of time left with 1:48 on the clock, needing just a field goal to win, starting from their own 16 yard-line.

However, two plays later, Favre would make two misguided throws that would seal the Vikings’ Fate.

On 2nd-and-10, Favre rolled away from pressure, to his right, and had Harvin wide open at the Minnesota 24 yard-line. Harvin had plenty of room, possibly enough to score, or at least to get well into Jets’ territory. But, what should have been an easy dump-off pass, sailed well high of Harvin and incomplete.

One play later, cornerback Dwight Lowery stepped in front of a ball that Favre tried to force to tight end Visanthe Shiancoe, and raced untouched, 26 yards, into the end zone, to ice the game for the Jets, with 1:30 left.

Favre’s only interception extended another NFL record – one he didn’t want – his 324th career interception.

In contrast to Favre’s three turnovers, the Jets, who sacked Favre four times, tied an NFL record by playing their fourth straight game without committing a turnover.

Favre (14 of 34, 264 yards) was impressed with the Jets’ play, saying “We played what I feel like is the best team in the AFC.”

The first-place Jets will be seeking their fifth straight win next Sunday in Denver, at 4:05 EST, against the Broncos (2-3), who have alternated losses and wins each week since the start of the season. That trend would indicate a Denver win in that case, with the Broncos coming off a loss in Baltimore on Sunday. However, Denver will be banged up, having already ruled out five players (who were hurt in Baltimore) next Sunday.

The New York Jets were trailing the Baltimore Ravens by just a point with no time outs left and time running down. Facing a 4th-down-and-10 from their own 31 yard-line, the Jets desperately needed to keep their final drive going and get into field goal range for a potential game-winning kick.

That’s when quarterback Mark Sanchez found tight end Dustin Keller wide open on a short pass in the right flat.

Keller made the catch and alertly hustled out of bounds to try to save the Jets some precious seconds on the clock.

There was just one problem.

Although Keller was all alone and could have easily turned up field for an extra yard or two before heading for the sidelines, he brain locked, and stepped out one yard short of the first down marker with 36 seconds left in the game.

It was a very fitting end to a frustratingly inept night for New York’s offense during a 10-9 loss in the Jets’ New Meadowlands Stadium opener before 78,127 in attendance and a Monday Night Football national television audience.

As unbelievable as Keller’s inattention to detail at the most crucial of moments was, consider some of what took place for the Jets’ offense over the course of the entire game:

• The Jets tied their franchise low for first downs (6) and two of those came in the final 6:13 of the game.

• The Ravens ran more plays (75) than the number of yards passed for (74) by Sanchez (who was 10 of 21 with neither a pick nor a touchdown).

• New York amassed just 60 net passing yards (their fewest since 2006) and ran just 44 plays (their fewest since 2005), while controlling the clock for only 21:28 to Baltimore’s 38:32.

• No Jet caught more than two passes, and wide receiver Jerricho Cotchery’s 13-yard catch at the end of the third quarter was the Jets’ lone pass play that went for double digit yardage.

• Although the Jets outrushed the Ravens 116-49, they gained just 176 total yards while negating much of that with 14 penalties for a total of 125 yards (their most penalty yards since 1988). Ten of those penalties, for 100 yards, came in the first half.

• While Baltimore converted 11 of 19 third downs, the Jets failed to convert on their first nine, going 1-for-11 on third downs and converting their first third down attempt with just 1:03 left in the game.

• The Jets failed to score a touchdown and couldn’t reach double digits in points despite the Ravens committing three of the game’s four turnovers and the Jets starting inside Baltimore’s 40 yard-line four different times.

Of course, Jets fans should have seen all of this coming very early, after Gang Green’s defense gave the Jets’ offense a golden opportunity on the Ravens’ first play from scrimmage.

After Ravens’ quarterback Joe Flacco (20-38, 248 yards, 0 TD, 1 INT) found himself crunched in a Shaun Ellis and Bryan Thomas sandwich, nose tackle Sione Pouha recovered the first of his two fumbles in the opening quarter.

So, what did the Jets do, starting their second possession from the Ravens’ 11-yard line?

They gained a whole six yards on three plays and settled for a 3-0 lead 4:06 into the game on a 23-yard field goal from kicker Nick Folk.

Holding the ball for 9:11, Baltimore then drove 48 yards on 14 plays, but came away with nothing when running back Willis McGahee was stripped and Pouha came away with his second fumble recovery.

Following that, each team traded punts until the Jets got a 32-yard punt return from Jim Leonhard to the Ravens’ 37 yard-line. Once again though, the Jets stalled after getting as far as the Baltimore 10-yard line, and a Folk field goal from 28 yards out gave the Jets a 6-0 lead with 8:16 left in the half.

The Ravens then drove to the Jets’ 20-yard line, but Flacco was intercepted near the Jets’ end zone along the left sideline by newcomer Antonio Cromartie, who recorded his first pick as a Jet and returned the ball 66 yards to the Baltimore 31 yard-line.

Two plays later though, running back Shonn Greene fumbled to spoil another great chance for the Jets.

Baltimore took advantage of that mistake, going 76 yards on 11 plays in 4:09, to take its first lead, 7-6, on a one-yard touchdown plunge by McGahee with six seconds left in the opening half.

The drive was kept alive twice by Jet mistakes. First, Braylon Edwards ran into kicker Billy Cundiff on a field goal attempt, and three plays later, rookie cornerback Kyle Wilson was flagged for pass interference in the end zone on a 3rd-and-10 play from the Jets’ 22 yard-line.

Again, the teams traded punts at the start of the third quarter before the Ravens embarked on the game’s longest drive, travelling 85 yards in 9 plays from their own 8-yard line in 4:30, extending their lead to 10-6 on a Cundiff 25-yard field goal with 7:07 remaining in the third quarter.

Two key plays on the drive were completions of 38 and 27 yards, each from Flacco to wide receiver Anquan Boldin, who had a great debut as a Raven after spending seven seasons in Arizona.

Though the Jets’ defense performed well overall (limiting the Ravens to 282 total yards), it was torched by Boldin, who had game highs of seven receptions and 110 yards.

The way the Jets’ offense and the Ravens’ defense were playing, the slim margin the Ravens held with still over 22 minutes left in the game, proved to be insurmountable for New York.

After Leonard again set the Jets up nicely with a 22-yard punt return to the Ravens’ 35-yard line, the New York could only muster five yards on three plays, settling for a 48-yard field goal by Folk that hooked inside the right upright with 11:59 left in the game, to trim the Ravens’ lead to what eventually became the final score of 10-9.

It’s of course just one game, and as we saw last season, a team can see a lot of peaks and valleys between its season opener and Week 17. Remember, last year’s Jets began 3-0 and then went 4-7, before winning four straight to position themselves two quarters from the Super Bowl in Indianapolis.

However, when you do as much talking and boasting as Jets’ head coach Rex Ryan does, you don’t want to be humbled during your first ever game in your new stadium with an undisciplined, mistake-filled performance that was far from making Jets’ fans believe in Ryan’s earlier words that the Jets “expect to win every week.”

In that regard, the Jets will get a quick chance to redeem themselves in front of their home crowd and possibly win their first game at the New Meadowlands, when they host New England (1-0), on Sunday, at 4:15pm EST.

However, for openers, the Jets were supposed to back up all of their talk from HBO’s “Hard Knocks series. Instead, Jet Nation saw a version of different HBO show, as in the Ravens’ curbing the Jets’ enthusiasm.

The New York Jets were trailing the Baltimore Ravens by just a point with no time outs left and time running down. Facing a 4th-down-and-10 from their own 31 yard-line, the Jets desperately needed to keep their final drive going and get into field goal range for a potential game-winning kick.

That’s when quarterback Mark Sanchez found tight end Dustin Keller wide open on a short pass in the right flat.

Keller made the catch and alertly hustled out of bounds to try to save the Jets some precious seconds on the clock.

There was just one problem.

Although Keller was all alone and could have easily turned up field for an extra yard or two before heading for the sidelines, he brain locked, and stepped out one yard short of the first down marker with 36 seconds left in the game.

It was a very fitting end to a frustratingly inept night for New York’s offense during a 10-9 loss in the Jets’ New Meadowlands Stadium opener before 78,127 in attendance and a Monday Night Football national television audience.

As unbelievable as Keller’s inattention to detail at the most crucial of moments was, consider some of what took place for the Jets’ offense over the course of the entire game:

• The Jets tied their franchise low for first downs (6) and two of those came in the final 6:13 of the game.

• The Ravens ran more plays (75) than the number of yards passed for (74) by Sanchez (who was 10 of 21 with neither a pick nor a touchdown).

• New York amassed just 60 net passing yards (their fewest since 2006) and ran just 44 plays (their fewest since 2005), while controlling the clock for only 21:28 to Baltimore’s 38:32.

• No Jet caught more than two passes, and wide receiver Jerricho Cotchery’s 13-yard catch at the end of the third quarter was the Jets’ lone pass play that went for double digit yardage.

• Although the Jets outrushed the Ravens 116-49, they gained just 176 total yards while negating much of that with 14 penalties for a total of 125 yards (their most penalty yards since 1988). Ten of those penalties, for 100 yards, came in the first half.

• While Baltimore converted 11 of 19 third downs, the Jets failed to convert on their first nine, going 1-for-11 on third downs and converting their first third down attempt with just 1:03 left in the game.

• The Jets failed to score a touchdown and couldn’t reach double digits in points despite the Ravens committing three of the game’s four turnovers and the Jets starting inside Baltimore’s 40 yard-line four different times.

Of course, Jets fans should have seen all of this coming very early, after Gang Green’s defense gave the Jets’ offense a golden opportunity on the Ravens’ first play from scrimmage.

After Ravens’ quarterback Joe Flacco (20-38, 248 yards, 0 TD, 1 INT) found himself crunched in a Shaun Ellis and Bryan Thomas sandwich, nose tackle Sione Pouha recovered the first of his two fumbles in the opening quarter.

So, what did the Jets do, starting their second possession from the Ravens’ 11-yard line?

They gained a whole six yards on three plays and settled for a 3-0 lead 4:06 into the game on a 23-yard field goal from kicker Nick Folk.

Holding the ball for 9:11, Baltimore then drove 48 yards on 14 plays, but came away with nothing when running back Willis McGahee was stripped and Pouha came away with his second fumble recovery.

Following that, each team traded punts until the Jets got a 32-yard punt return from Jim Leonhard to the Ravens’ 37 yard-line. Once again though, the Jets stalled after getting as far as the Baltimore 10-yard line, and a Folk field goal from 28 yards out gave the Jets a 6-0 lead with 8:16 left in the half.

The Ravens then drove to the Jets’ 20-yard line, but Flacco was intercepted near the Jets’ end zone along the left sideline by newcomer Antonio Cromartie, who recorded his first pick as a Jet and returned the ball 66 yards to the Baltimore 31 yard-line.

Two plays later though, running back Shonn Greene fumbled to spoil another great chance for the Jets.

Baltimore took advantage of that mistake, going 76 yards on 11 plays in 4:09, to take its first lead, 7-6, on a one-yard touchdown plunge by McGahee with six seconds left in the opening half.

The drive was kept alive twice by Jet mistakes. First, Braylon Edwards ran into kicker Billy Cundiff on a field goal attempt, and three plays later, rookie cornerback Kyle Wilson was flagged for pass interference in the end zone on a 3rd-and-10 play from the Jets’ 22 yard-line.

Again, the teams traded punts at the start of the third quarter before the Ravens embarked on the game’s longest drive, travelling 85 yards in 9 plays from their own 8-yard line in 4:30, extending their lead to 10-6 on a Cundiff 25-yard field goal with 7:07 remaining in the third quarter.

Two key plays on the drive were completions of 38 and 27 yards, each from Flacco to wide receiver Anquan Boldin, who had a great debut as a Raven after spending seven seasons in Arizona.

Though the Jets’ defense performed well overall (limiting the Ravens to 282 total yards), it was torched by Boldin, who had game highs of seven receptions and 110 yards.

The way the Jets’ offense and the Ravens’ defense were playing, the slim margin the Ravens held with still over 22 minutes left in the game, proved to be insurmountable for New York.

After Leonard again set the Jets up nicely with a 22-yard punt return to the Ravens’ 35-yard line, the New York could only muster five yards on three plays, settling for a 48-yard field goal by Folk that hooked inside the right upright with 11:59 left in the game, to trim the Ravens’ lead to what eventually became the final score of 10-9.

It’s of course just one game, and as we saw last season, a team can see a lot of peaks and valleys between its season opener and Week 17. Remember, last year’s Jets began 3-0 and then went 4-7, before winning four straight to position themselves two quarters from the Super Bowl in Indianapolis.

However, when you do as much talking and boasting as Jets’ head coach Rex Ryan does, you don’t want to be humbled during your first ever game in your new stadium with an undisciplined, mistake-filled performance that was far from making Jets’ fans believe in Ryan’s earlier words that the Jets “expect to win every week.”

In that regard, the Jets will get a quick chance to redeem themselves in front of their home crowd and possibly win their first game at the New Meadowlands, when they host New England (1-0), on Sunday, at 4:15pm EST.

However, for openers, the Jets were supposed to back up all of their talk from HBO’s “Hard Knocks series. Instead, Jet Nation saw a version of different HBO show, as in the Ravens’ curbing the Jets’ enthusiasm.

Who would’ve though a week ago that as the final Sunday of the NFL’s regular season approached, the Jets would be playing for the rights to make the playoffs, not the Giants. So many things had to fall right for Gang Green to regain control of their destiny. Those things DID fall right for one of the NFL’s habitually cursed franchises. Now all of a sudden the Jets take on a Cincinnati Bengals team that has little to play for with a home playoff game already coming the following week. Thus making the final game one with little to play for besides momentum and alot to lose in the way of injuries. The Bengal scenario is  much like  one the then undefeated Colts  faced. Indy’s unpopular decision to rest Peyton Manning and other key starters up just 15-10 with 5:38 left in the third quarter helped pave the way for the Jets to take back to the keys to the car.

Now it’s up to Gang Green to close the deal once and for all and earn the right to most likely face the same Bengal team a week later in Cincy.

The Giants got blown out last week in their farewell to a stadium that has been kind to them in it’s 33 year history. Three Giant Super Bowl teams were borne out of the purported hallowed burial ground of Jimmy Hoffa in this time. For the Jets, the Meadowlands has been home to so many crash landing endings that many Jet fans will be happy to see the team move next door in 2010. A chance at a fresh start with the opportunity to put their own stamp on things, will come shortly.

For now, the Jets hope to give themselves and their die hard fans one great memory in a stadium that has housed at least a few over the years.

The Monday night Miracle in 2000 with Jumbo Elliot’s TD catch capped off the greatest Monday night football comeback in history. Beating the Brett Favre led Packers on the last day of 2002 propelled the upstart Herman Edwards Jets into the playoffs. Their 41-0 dismantling of the Colts in the Wildcard was arguably the loudest Jets fans ever got in the Red and Blue seated stadium.

Of course there were nightmares. Too many to count. The bigger ones that come to mind are the day Dennis Byrd was partially paralyzed against the Chiefs in 1992. Who can forget the Dan Marino fake spike play in 1994 that left the then 6-5 Jets shocked? The wild loss sent them into a “same old Jets” Jet  tailspin, ending Pete Caroll’s tenure as head coach after just one season. This ushered in the Rick Kotite years of 1995 and 1996. Enough said.

Sunday night is about a lifetime of redemption for the franchise that, aside from Super Bowl III, seems to struggle most when the spotlight is the brightest. Although the Jets have fared well in “win or in ” games over the past decade, the stigma associated with monumental collapses contain ghosts that float close to the surface. Apparitions that seem ready to bring bad karma to Gang Green at any time.

This week has had its share of pre-game drama already. Chad Ochocinco and CB Darelle Revis have been going at it in a friendly fun way on twitter. Ochocinco has been boasting that Revis won’t be able to cover him. Don’t bet on it. Revis has covered all of the top receivers this year and has shut them all down. WR Braylon Edwards pulled a “Broadway” Joe guaranteeing the win saying that team is too focused and wants it too badly to lose.

Then there’s the issue of motivation. The Bengals can’t improve their playoff situation with a win. in fact they can only hurt it by adding any top player to the injury list in a game that has no ability to make their path to the Super Bowl any easier. Will coach Marvin Lewis let QB Carson Palmer and the oft injured RB Cedric Benson play for the duration? Backup QB  JT O Sullivan is a former starter with the 49ers, and should fare alot better than Curtis Painter did for the Colts last week, should the Bengals choose to keep Palmer on the sidelines. One or more of the AFC teams on the bubble between Miami, Houston and Pittsburgh will be watching Sunday night praying that the Bengals  go out and be competitive. The jury’s out as to how Lewis will play it.

If the Pats, who publicly claim Tom Brady and co. will be on the field (if you choose to believe Bill Belichick), beat the Texans at 1pm, the Bengals would own the 4th seed. This would be regardless of the outcome against the Jets. A Pats loss and the Bengals would move to No. 3 with a win but beating the Jets could force Cincy into facing division rival Baltimore or Pittsburgh in the opening round.

Many wonder if Cincy will tank just to win the right to take on rookie Mark Sanchez and his 26 interceptions, back to their place instead.

The stage is set. A stadium farewell. A win or else scenario. A national tv audience.

What a dramatic way to end what has been a roller coaster first season for coach Rex Ryan and the rookie Sanchez. 60 minutes away from the playoffs, the question is, can the Jets put it all together? It’s up to Gang Green now. They control their destiny. They are the owners of the chance to give Giants stadium one last glorious ride before it fades into the sunset. Before the Jets 2009 season fades into the sunset as well.

KEYS TO THE BENGALS:

Defense, It’s Time To Peak  For the Jets to keep the season going past Sunday and to make any sort of serious run in January , it’s going to have to be on the defense. The Defense , ranked 1st in the NFL in yards given up, must now grow into a turnover and sack machine. The foundation is there. The pressure has been solid all year. The interceptions have risen in the past five weeks. Now can the Jets D elevate into a unit that creates short fields and scores points. Sunday the Jets will need some help from the D as once again Sanchez will be asked to manage the offense, not carry it.

Shonn Greene: Can Greene develop here on the stretch drive as well? The fumble prone rookie has proven that he can be a big time aid to a run game already churning with RB Thomas Jones as long as he holds onto the rock. If Greene can come into his own, the template may be set for the rest of 2009. Jones, Greene, a few throws mixed in, and a stifling D.

Night Time is the Right Time: The nutty Jet fan base combined with the final game in Giants stadium,and a “Win and in” game” has to prove to be an energy force all its own. Fireman Ed, get your game face on, this one’s big. As big of a game as Gang Green has ever played in a stadium short on memories for the Jets. Alcohol sales have been banned for the game. The Meadowlands knows better than to lend Jet nation more fuel to a fire that may help carry the Jets over the edge and into the postseason.