Mark Sanchez and the Jets were humiliated in a Week 15 Monday Night Football loss to the Titans last year.
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The Jets are returning to the scene of the crime on Sunday and while they’re not looking for revenge, they are looking like a different team.
About the only thing in common between the Jets’ Week 15 game at the Titans in 2012 and this year is the game’s location. That was a Jets team a season ago that despite winning the week before, was clearly on the decline. It had underachieved, battled injuries and consistently showed a blase attitude on the field. Fast forward a year and the Jets are 2-1, surprising many with their strong start.
They look nothing like the team that limped into Nashville, Tenn. last year and lost 14-10 to the Titans, with Mark Sanchez’s five interceptions representing the low point of the season. The locker room was despondent afterward, especially since the Jets were mathematically eliminated with the loss.
“The guys were feeling like trash. We threw it away — playoffs, wild card. We were very disappointed with the outcome of that game. This year is different circumstances, a different team. We’re just trying to keep it up,” safety Antonio Allen told Metro. “We can’t say 3-1 because we’re not there yet. We can’t get too high on ourselves. We still have to play and compete.”
What a difference a season makes.
This week’s game represents a chance for the Jets to finally put away that ugly chapter.
In the Jets locker room, however, the focus isn’t on last year. The best way to move on from last year’s debacle against the Titans, is to move up in the standings.
And with a win on Sunday, the Jets would be 3-1. For them, a strong start is the best way to provide distance from last year’s crushing loss.
“It’s not really about last year at all; it’s a new season,” linebacker Garrett McIntyre told Metro. “There’s no demons, it is a new year. We have to take every week like it is a new week for a new season. If you’re thinking about last year, you’re thinking about the wrong thing. That season is gone. We’ve moved on. What this game means isn’t anything about last year. It’s about this year. It’s about getting another win. It has nothing to do with that game last year.”
Follow Jets beat writer Kristian Dyer on Twitter @KristianRDyer.
