The first meetup of the season was great! We had around 10 die-hard fans and we took over a good part of John's Place. I wanted to quickly thank the guys at John's Place (Mario, Dave, and Larry) for accommodating our large group.

The win over the Texans on the road was the first test of the new Rex Ryan/Mark Sanchez era. Now we are looking forward to Week 2 against the Patriots at home.

We are meeting at Mario's for the 1:00 game. Please try to arrive sometime between 12:00 and 1:00. Look for us in the bar (John's Place). The game is also being locally broadcast on CBS, but if you want to come out for a beer and hang out with some fans, you know where we'll be.

To register for this event please log in, then choose "Jets vs Patriots". Click on "Sign Up".

See you there!

Mario's Pizza/John's Place
3016 Weddington Road, Suite 100
Matthews, NC 28105-7653
http://www.eatmariospizza.com/

Note: Game time has changed from 1:00PM to 8:20PM due to NFL's Flex Schedule rules.

Note: The location for this week's meetup has also changed:

Fairview Grill
5124 Park Road
Charlotte, NC 28209
(704) 527-8566

John's Place (the bar part of Mario's Pizza & Italian Restaurant)
3016 Weddington Road, Suite 100
Matthews, NC 28105-7653
http://www.eatmariospizza.com/

TBD

TBD

TBD

Mario's Pizza
3016 Weddington Road, Suite 100
Matthews, NC 28105
http://www.eatatmariospizza.com

Please arrive between 3:30 and 4:00.

By NICOLINO DIBENEDETTO, STATS Writer

A stifling defense spurred the New York Jets’ surprising 3-0 start, but the unit hasn’t looked nearly as effective in two subsequent defeats.

Coach Rex Ryan may have an ideal chance to change that against the punchless Buffalo Bills.

Ryan and the Jets will try to re-establish their brash, hard-hitting defensive play Sunday when they host the Bills, who are searching for an end to their three-game slide.

New York (3-2) won its first three games behind a superb defense that allowed averages of 11.0 points and 256.0 yards per game while forcing seven turnovers. Ryan’s revamped Jets exuded a brash and outspoken attitude that was a staple of his defense in Baltimore, where he spent the last 10 years.

The defense, however, hasn’t been very effective in consecutive losses. The unit allowed 343 yards in a 24-10 defeat at New Orleans on Oct. 4 and gave up season highs in passing yards (262) and total yardage (413) en route to a 31-27 defeat at Miami on Monday night.

“It absolutely was a humbling experience,” Ryan said after the Jets blew three second-half leads and struggled against the Dolphins’ wildcat offense. “This is a step back, but we can make a huge leap forward. We’ve just got to learn from this and we’ve got to practice better.

“As a coach, I’m not going to allow this to happen again. We’ve got to get back and sharpen up what we do defensively. I know we have the talent. We just have to play better.”

Despite the back-to-back losses, New York is tied with New England for first in the AFC East. However, the trash talking may be curbed after a poor fourth-quarter effort against the Dolphins saw New York give up three touchdowns, equaling the total the defense allowed over the previous four games.

“We were riding high,” safety Kerry Rhodes said. “We thought we were one of the best defenses in the league, and we are. But not on the field (Monday), so we have to get back to work and get it done.”

The Jets get a chance to get that defense back on track against the Bills (1-4), last in the division.

“This is a must-win for us, and I think we have to respond,” Ryan said. “I think playing at home in front of our fans is going to be huge for us, but from an organizational standpoint, our entire organization, this week has got to be huge.”

Buffalo will likely be in for a stiffer test against the Jets after losing its last two games to winless teams while totaling 494 yards of offense and turning the ball over six times.

The Bills coughed up the ball three times and committed 13 penalties in a 6-3 loss to Cleveland in Week 5. That defeat may have increased the pressure on coach Dick Jauron, who has guided his team to four wins in the last 17 games after a 4-0 start to 2008.

“Yeah, I understand that criticism,” Jauron said. “That’s the job. I’m in that position, and I clearly haven’t been able to reach (the players) to help them particularly in these last three games to get them over the hump to get us where we win.”

Bills owner Ralph Wilson, attending a fan luncheon Monday, told The Buffalo News that he’s not going to make any decisions during the “middle of the season right now.”

“Yesterday was so bad that it’s hard to make a decision right now,” Wilson was quoted as saying. He then assessed the team’s performance against the Browns by saying: “There’s not much I can say about (Sunday) except it was awful.”

Much of the criticism has fallen on the offense, as Buffalo has been outscored 71-20 during the three-game skid. The Bills have scored 77 points, ranking only better than Cleveland (55) and Oakland (49) in the AFC.

“Honestly, it’s little things,” quarterback Trent Edwards said. “The good teams don’t make those little mistakes, and we’re making the little mistakes which seems like way too often. And that’s what’s frustrating.”

Edwards hasn’t been able to open up a passing attack that features wide receivers Terrell Owens and Lee Evans. They each have 12 catches and a touchdown while combining for 361 yards.

The Jets’ offense is hoping Braylon Edwards can continue developing chemistry with rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez after the duo hooked up for a 3-yard TD on Monday, just days after the receiver was acquired in a trade from Cleveland.

“Braylon was lights out,” said Sanchez, who has five touchdowns and five interceptions. “I’ve never seen anybody catch the ball like that.”

New York took both meetings with the Bills last season for the first time since 2002.

Updated Oct 14, 3:24 pm EDT

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/preview?gid=20091018020

Mario's Pizza
3016 Weddington Road, Suite 100
Matthews, NC 28105
http://www.eatatmariospizza.com

Please arrive between 12:00 and 1:00.

New England coach Bill Belichick vs. N.Y. Jets coach Rex Ryan
The Patriots-Jets rivalry has been heated in recent years and this is a highly-anticipated coaching matchup. There will be more hype for this game for many reasons - not just because Ryan made a comment about not kissing Belichick's Super Bowl rings.

Both coaches come from defensive side of the ball. Ryan's defense is built on all-out effort and toughness. Belichick's defense is scheme-oriented. His defense is known for identifying the one opposing player that poses the greatest threat to beating them and taking that player out of the game (as they did Monday night against Buffalo with Terrell Owens). The big question for New England's defense will be the effect of an injury to linebacker Jerod Mayo.

In Week 13 of the 2007 season, Ryan -- as defensive coordinator for the Ravens -- gave the undefeated Patriots all they could handle, before the Pats won, 27-24.

Last meeting
New England WR Randy Moss caught a touchdown with 1 second remaining to force overtime, but Brett Favre drove the Jets down the field for the winning field goal as New York won 34-31 in Week 11 of last season.

Streaks
The Patriots have won four of the past five meetings, including the playoffs, to tie the overall series at 49-49-1.

Last week
Aided by a Buffalo fumble, the Patriots rallied in the final minutes for a 25-24 win over the Bills. ... In his NFL debut, rookie QB Mark Sanchez passed for 272 yards to lead the Jets past the Texans, 24-7.

Keep your eye on ...
The coaching chess match: New Jets coach Rex Ryan is renowned for developing exotic blitz schemes that harass opposing quarterbacks. He will have to come up with something special if New York hopes to stop Tom Brady and the Patriots' top-ranked passing offense.

New England's linebackers: The Bills were able to exploit the Patriots' young linebacker unit with a series of screens, draw plays and hitches. The Jets have the personnel with RBs Thomas Jones and Leon Washington along with TE Dustin Keller to do similar damage. This will provide Adalius Thomas (the only Pats linebacker with extensive starting experience) and Co. a stiff test.

Mark Sanchez's encore performance: In his first regular-season game, Sanchez was sensational against the Texans. The rival Patriots will present a tougher challenge, but Sanchez will have the advantage of playing before a home crowd that has taken to the former USC star.

Did you know?
The Patriots have won nine straight on the road against the Jets. ... Since 2007, New England WR Randy Moss leads the NFL with 34 TD receptions. ... Jets WR Jerricho Cotchery has at least five receptions in five of his last six games against the Patriots. ... New York hasn't started 2-0 since 2004.

http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/2009092005/2009/REG2/patriots@jets

Mario's Pizza
3016 Weddington Road, Suite 100
Matthews, NC 28105
http://www.eatatmariospizza.com

Please arrive between 12:00 and 1:00.

Rex Ryan’s brash and charismatic attitude is certainly making an instant impact on the New York Jets, especially the now-stifling defense.

The unbeaten Jets look for another dominating performance from the NFL’s top-rated defense Sunday when they host the winless Tennessee Titans.

New York (2-0) hired Ryan in January after he spent 10 years on Baltimore’s staff, helping create one of the most ferocious and mouthy defenses in the NFL. He’s brought that philosophy, including the boisterous charm, to the Jets and it’s paying off in a big way.

They have the stingiest defense in the league, allowing 482 yards while not giving up a touchdown from scrimmage in back-to-back games for the first time since doing it in three straight in 1993. The only TD New York has given up came on a fumble return in a 24-7 season-opening win at Houston.

Last season, the defense ranked 28th against the pass and gave up an average of 329.4 total yards to rank 16th overall.

The Jets proved they can back up their trash talk last Sunday, upsetting New England 16-9. The defense held the Patriots to 254 yards and totaled 23 hits and pressures on quarterback Tom Brady(notes). That impressive performance came after safety Kerry Rhodes(notes) claimed New York would “embarrass” its AFC East rival.

“Sometimes we talk a little bit,” Ryan said, “but only because we have confidence in our football team. What we’re trying to have here, to ‘play like a Jet,’ well, it’s going to mean something.”

The defense is performing without perhaps its best pass rusher in Calvin Pace(notes), suspended the first four games for violating the league’s performance-enhancing substance abuse policy.

“This is one of the more talented defenses I’ve played on, just across the board,” said cornerback Lito Sheppard(notes), who will sit out this week with a right quadriceps injury.

“It seems that everybody’s doing their job and doing it well. When plays are presented for guys to make, we’ve been making them right now. I think that’s the biggest change for me from any defense I’ve been on.”

New York is in position to open a season with three wins in a row for the first time since starting 5-0 in 2004, the last year it won a playoff game.

While the defense is getting much of the attention, quarterback Mark Sanchez(notes) has led an effective offense.

Sanchez, the fifth overall selection in April’s draft, has completed 60.4 percent of his passes for 435 yards with two touchdowns and one interception.

He’s been sacked just twice and now faces a Titans defense which had no sacks last week and is ranked last in the NFL against the pass, giving up 678 of the team’s 777 yards allowed.

Last year, the Jets followed a win over the Patriots with a 34-13 victory at Tennessee (0-2) on Nov. 23, ending the Titans’ season-opening 10-game winning streak and improving to 8-3 to garner Super Bowl talk. New York, however, faltered down the stretch with a banged-up Brett Favre(notes), losing four of its last five to miss the playoffs.

“This is a new beginning,” linebacker Bart Scott(notes) said. “I don’t pay attention to the past. The past is the past. It’s a new day. It’s a new team. It’s not the same old Jets people are used to.”

The Titans also are off to a surprising start, losing their first two games by three-point margins. They haven’t opened 0-3 since losing their first five of 2006.

Tennessee opened with an overtime loss at Pittsburgh before blowing a 14-point lead last Sunday and falling 34-31 to Houston on a field goal with 2:55 to play.

“I don’t think anybody expected us to be 0-2,” defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch(notes) said. “The perception was we were a good team, a veteran team, and we felt good about where we were at. But the reality is we are 0-2, and we’ve got to fight our way out of this thing.”

The Titans offense has generated 786 yards through two games with second-year running back Chris Johnson accounting for 352.

All three of his touchdowns last week - two rushing - went for more than 50 yards. He ran for a career-high 197 yards on 16 carries and caught nine passes for 87.

Quarterback Kerry Collins(notes) has completed 63.2 percent of his passes for 460 yards with three touchdowns, but he also has three turnovers after committing just eight all of last season.
Updated Sep 25, 4:10 pm EDT