Jets Q&A: What's with the quick timeout?

Why did the Jets call a timeout before the game's very first play from scrimmage?

For some strange reason, the Jets were confused with their personnel, and fullback John Conner didn't run onto the field until about six seconds remained on the 35-second play clock. Not wanting to get hit with a 5-yard delay-of-game penalty, the Jets burned a timeout only six seconds into the game.

"That wasn't great," Rex Ryan said. "That's not going to go on my coaching resume. It was just a miscommunication on personnel. Somebody heard one thing, somebody heard something else. We only had 10 out there. By the time we got the guy in there, we didn't have any time."

What did Mark Sanchez think about calling a timeout so soon?

"That's something we've got to get cleaned up," the quarterback said. "If we don't get the right guys in the huddle and we're not getting the play until late, then we're fighting the clock . . . That's one of the things that needs to be cleaned up. That's very important."

Was Shonn Greene, who had a season-high 129 rushing yards, confident that the ruling that he had fumbled near the end zone would be overturned?

"I wasn't quite sure," he said. "I thought my butt hit, but any way it goes, you can't let go in that situation."

SEE PHOTOSLong Island in the pros: NFL edition

Given that he ran so hard on the ensuing play for a 7-yard touchdown, did that near-fumble tick Greene off?

"I was kind of angry," he said, "so I wanted to get into the end zone."

What did the offense think about Ryan deciding not to defer to the second half for only the fourth time in three seasons after winning the coin toss?

"We want the ball," LaDainian Tomlinson said. "We want to score first. With our defense, that will be tough on people. That shows us Rex does have confidence that we can go down and score. I was one of the captains. Westhoff told me, 'We're taking the ball if we win the toss.' My thought was, 'OK. All right, Rex.' That's a good feeling. When the guys hear that, they say, 'All right. We're taking the ball. Let's go score.' "

Did Ryan explain why Sanchez dropped back to pass on fourth-and-4 from the KC 32 with the Jets ahead 35-10 and 11:35 left?

"That was my call," Ryan said of a play in which Sanchez was sacked for a 9-yard loss and lost a fumble. "I thought if we could get the first down, we could basically run out the clock and get the game over. I thought we had a chance to convert on it. Obviously, you go back on it and wish you would have just punted it or tried a long field goal . . . Their kid [Tamba Hali] made a nice play, stripped the ball."

Any thoughts from Sanchez on getting cheered during pregame introductions after being booed when he was introduced two weeks ago?

"We're just trying to win a game," he said, "trying to play hard, play for these guys, the coaches. And this was another great game plan. Like I said before, that's the last thing on my mind."

Did Thomas Jones say what it was like to square off against his buddies?

"It was weird having to play against old teammates," said Jones, who gained only 12 yards on five carries for the Chiefs. "I had mixed emotions, obviously. Jets fans showed me a lot of love, of which I appreciated. We didn't win the game and that's what we came up here for. That's the tough part. Regardless of whether it's the Jets or any other team, a loss is a loss.''

Why was Chiefs coach Todd Haley penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct in the third quarter?

"I'm not getting into the penalties," Haley said. "Like I've said, the officials have a very difficult job. The one thing we can't do is lose our composure over a call. That's on me, 100 percent."