Desperate? Well, 'pretty much,' Jets say
Jets coach Rex Ryan talks to his players during the fourth quarter against Detroit. (Nov. 7, 2010) Credit: AP
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. - Braylon Edwards hates the word, perhaps because it evokes an image of a wayward and frantic team, one that's lost its way.
The wide receiver stood his ground Friday, refusing to concede that the Jets are "desperate" for a win.
"I don't like the word 'desperation' when you're ," Edwards said. "I'm just not a big fan of that word."
But it took less than a second for reality to set in.
"At the same time," he added, "to get back on track, we definitely need a win, especially against a pretty good Pittsburgh team in Pittsburgh."
Rex Ryan no longer can sugarcoat the obvious, either. He and his players may not be in panic mode, but a loss to the Steelers (10-3) - and a potential loss to the Bears (9-4) in Chicago the following week - would put quite a bit of pressure on them in Week 17 against the Bills.
Are the Jets, once 9-2, desperate for a victory? "Pretty much," Ryan said Friday. "We need a win. There's no question about it. The odds don't look real good of us winning our division, clearly. Let's just get in the playoffs."
Working in the Jets' favor is the fact that Pittsburgh safety Troy Polamalu is doubtful for Sunday's game with an ankle injury.
"When he's out there, it's always a guess as to what he's doing," tight end Dustin Keller said.
Said Edwards: "Nobody else in the league has that freedom to just roam around, make plays, blitz when he wants to, so it changes a lot for them. But they could have five or six missing starters. If we don't execute . . . it doesn't matter if he plays or not."
The Jets, who haven't scored a touchdown in their past two games and don't have an offensive touchdown in their past nine quarters, mustered only 280 total yards last week against Miami. The reason for their inefficiency, Edwards said, is "the execution and attention to detail just wasn't there. And that's what we're lacking."
But he said the unit took a different approach this week by addressing their in-game mistakes - a tactic he believes will result in a better offensive showing Sunday.
Notes & quotes: Jets S Eric Smith (concussion), DE Trevor Pryce (hip) and RT Damien Woody (knee) have been ruled out. S James Ihedigbo (ankle, knee) is listed as probable and is expected to play, along with CB Darrelle Revis (hamstring), who's been limited in practice the past two days.
