Smith's big plays lift Jets, 26-10

There was a point Thursday night when the Jets were looking as though they'd be stuffed and sliced and diced on Thanksgiving, carved up more than your average Butterball.

They appeared to be sleepwalking through the game's initial 30 minutes, allowing a team that had lost seven in a row to grab a four-point lead at the half. But the Jets don't get things started until the second half these days, and they did it again - thanks to Brad Smith.

The versatile wideout ran for a 53-yard touchdown and returned a kickoff 89 yards for a TD in the second half. His big plays, paired with Mark Sanchez's 13-yard touchdown toss to Santonio Holmes and a stifling second-half defensive effort, lifted the Jets to a 26-10 win over the Bengals at New Meadowlands Stadium.

"One of my goals is to be a catalyst, to be the spark, to be a guy that when things aren't going well or if things are going well to add to it, to just keep piling the wood on and light it on fire,'' Smith said. "I was just blessed to be able to do that today.''

The Jets (9-2) picked up their fourth straight win, holding Cincinnati to 34 net yards in the second half. That sets up their showdown with the Patriots (9-2) for first place in the AFC East a week from Monday.

"Our football team believes that we can beat anybody,'' coach Rex Ryan said, "and we're going to have to prove it. I think they've won 25 straight at home and we've won eight in a row on the road, so we plan on making it nine. I know it's going to be tough, but we are just the men for the job."

He added, "I'm not looking forward to going against Tom Brady and Bill Belichick, but we'll see. They clearly are the best team in football. That's what it looks like. That's what all the experts are saying. So we'll see.''

Smith's 53-yard touchdown run on an end-around a mere 47 seconds into the second half woke up the Jets. Smith, aided by a nice block from tight end Dustin Keller, took the handoff from Sanchez and then took off around left end, giving the Jets a 10-7 lead and shifting the momentum back in their favor essentially for the rest of the night.

It was the second-longest run of Smith's career, trailing the 57-yarder he posted in the Jets' regular-season finale against the Bengals a year ago.

That got the Jets going after a sluggish first half. "We made throws and made plays when we needed to on offense, but it just wasn't our sharpest night,'' said Sanchez, who completed 16 of 28 passes for 166 yards with one touchdown and one interception. "I guess that's the only frustrating thing. At the end of the day, keeping things in perspective, we're 9-2, had a great outing today from our defense and special teams, so I'm really happy.''

The Jets dodged a bullet later in the third quarter when the Bengals failed to capitalize on an interception and a questionable roughing-the- passer penalty on safety James Ihedigbo. It gave Cincinnati an automatic first down after the Jets stopped the Bengals on fourth-and-3 from the Jets' 30.

But Aaron Pettrey missed a 27-yard field-goal attempt, handing the ball back to the Jets, and the Bengals' special teams let them down again. Jets punter Steve Weatherford's 61-yarder apparently glanced off Andre Caldwell's helmet and Ihedigbo recovered the ball at the Cincinnati 14.

Two plays later, Sanchez hit Holmes on a simple in route for a 13-yard touchdown and a 17-7 cushion with 4:09 remaining in the third.

Cincinnati trimmed the Jets' lead to 17-10 on a 28-yard field goal with 12:33 left, but Smith returned the ensuing kickoff 89 yards for a touchdown - the last 50 without his left shoe on. Nick Folk's extra point hit the left upright and bounced in for a 24-10 bulge, giving the Jets their largest lead of the night. Trevor Pryce sacked Carson Palmer in the end zone for a safety that made it 26-10.

Said linebacker Calvin Pace, "This is the way you draw it up. Any time as a defense you can play with a lead, we were able to get on and off the field and keep the momentum in our favor and we didn't give up any big play . . . I felt like it was last year defensively with our enthusiasm, our energy. We've just got to keep it up.''

Said cornerback Darrelle Revis: "Coach has been on us about completing a game and finishing out strong. We started fast and I think we finished fast as well.''

The Jets held Cincinnati to 163 total yards and did a good job on wide receivers Chad Ochocinco and Terrell Owens, who were targeted 17 times but caught only seven passes for 58 yards between them. Palmer completed only 17 of 38 passes for 135 yards, with Ochocinco catching four for 41 and Owens three for 17.

The two chatty wideouts had called Revis and Antonio Cromartie "Ren and Stimpy" during their television show on Versus, and Owens had said Revis is "just an average corner." Joked Cromartie, who had an interception, "Ren and Stimpy did a pretty good job tonight.''

Cromartie added, "It was an A-plus night. We all communicated to make sure everyone knew where everybody was going to be. That helps out a lot. That makes things a lot easier.''