Jets' offense revived in win over Steelers

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. - The Jets went to Pittsburgh a month ago in a crisis. They had lost two in a row and hadn't scored an offensive touchdown in nine quarters, which reached 11 by halftime of that key game against the Steelers.

But still, even before coordinator Brian Schottenheimer let some tension out of the offense with a gutsy naked bootleg call for Mark Sanchez on fourth-and-1 that turned into a 7-yard touchdown to tie it at 17, the offense sensed something had changed.

"Schotty started calling a heck of a game with that day in Pittsburgh," Braylon Edwards told Newsday Thursday. "He started letting Mark ease into a rhythm, get him some easy throws, mix it in with some runs. We don't have to have the home run. We don't need the complex play right off the gate. Let's just ease into it. And we've had some success."

The Jets pulled out that crucial win over the Steelers, 22-17, and since then, the offense has been operating smoothly - definitely better, if not dominating. Sanchez had a rocky start in Indianapolis two weeks ago but finished strongly; he was nearly flawless in Foxboro on Sunday.

More to the point for Edwards, the big-name, big-talent weapons at Sanchez's disposal have pushed their pride aside in the quest for a Super Bowl.

"What happened was we just stopped trying to feed people's egos," Edwards said. "Not that people were asking for their egos to be fed. But we stopped thinking, 'OK, we gotta get LaDainian [Tomlinson] 15 touches. We gotta get Shonn Greene 15 touches. We gotta get Santonio [Holmes] seven catches a game, Braylon seven catches a game, [Dustin] Keller five a game, Jerricho [Cotchery] five a game.'

"We just have to start winning some games. And whatever play is there to win the game, take it. It's not about who has to get fed, it's about who's being doubled, who's open. We're doing that now and that's why we're having success."

Edwards, who had eight catches for 100 yards in Pittsburgh, has only six in two playoff games. Holmes has seven, the same as Cotchery. But there have been signature moments for each - Edwards' leaping, 18-yard grab against the Colts to set up Nick Folk's winning kick, and Holmes' 7-yard touchdown catch to beat back the Patriots' rally.

"The key is we knew we could all get better," Edwards said. "Everyone had been pressing, from the offensive coordinator on down. We had fumbles, drops, mistakes. We just needed to calm down and everyone get on the same page, do your job and don't worry about anyone else."