Jets chalk talk: Offense takes center stage

It's been happening more often that not, perhaps even sooner than many of them even hoped.

With the NFL's top-ranked defensive unit from a year ago returning mostly intact, paired with two new additions in the secondary in Antonio Cromartie and Brodney Pool, Rex Ryan's defense was supposed to be shutting down the opposition. Just get a couple of touchdowns from the offense, which was incorporating new weapons Santonio Holmes and LaDainian Tomlinson, throw in a field goal here and there and the Jets would be all right.

But six weeks in, as the Jets hit their bye week, look at who's leading the way for the team with the NFL's best record at 5-1. That would be the offense, the unit led by second-year quarterback Mark Sanchez.

Although the Jets' defense sits 14th in the NFL and technically ranks higher than their 17th-place offense, only two teams - Indianapolis (163) and Tennessee (162) - have posted more points than the Jets' 159. Their 26.5 points per game is fourth in the league behind the Patriots and the two aforementioned squads.

"It just gives the defense confidence in what we can do," said wide receiver Braylon Edwards, who's found the end zone in four of the last five games. "When you get both sides having confidence in one another and the defenses see us, and they say, 'You know what? Our offense is going to give us a chance, let's go out there and do the same for them,' it just shows confidence.

"And when you have confidence, you play relentless, you don't play with a chip on your shoulder, 'Aw, we have to go out here and they are not going to do their job' or vice versa. So that's what's going on right now."

The Jets have outscored opponents in every quarter except the second, trailing 48-43 in that frame. But their offense isn't just scoring points, it's doing it when it absolutely must, as in their victories over New England, Miami, Minnesota and Sunday over the Broncos.

They've been flat-out on point in the second half, whipping teams 96-53. That includes a stunning 48-26 advantage in the most important quarter of them all: the fourth.

"I mean, these guys have played great," linebacker Bart Scott said. "They are still trying to work Santonio in and make some adjustments there. They'll get that thing figured out. They've been playing great and they've carried us a lot of games this year."

Just look at the past two games as examples. When they've absolutely needed critical scores in the fourth quarter, they've put together 66- and 80-yard drives in their triumphs over the Vikings and Broncos.

"Two weeks in a row, two weeks in a row," Sanchez said. "We definitely couldn't have done this last year. I just know for a fact and this kind of stuff builds momentum . . . When you are in that situation to know, that, 'Hey, we've done this before,' where last year it's, 'Who knows? Is he gonna throw a pick again? Are we gonna be on a third down-and-long and he's going to try to go for it all instead of taking something underneath?' I know the situations now.

"I'm just playing a lot smarter when we need it and that's huge. For us to make plays in big situations, that's great for us."

In other words, the offense may start getting defensive if you say the Jets are all about the 'D.'

"I know the offense, we don't see this as just a defensive team. We take a lot of pride in what we're able to do," offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer said. "We have a lot of room to improve . . . I think the arrow is still pointing up for us."