LaDanian Tomlinson was the butt of many fantasy football jokes going into the season, but the former MVP has proven plenty of those make-believe managers wrong.
Don’t expect him to fool the Patriots coaching staff — they know what he, along with fellow Jets rusher Shonn Greene, is capable of.
Tomlinson ended the regular season with 1,282 all-purpose yards and six touchdowns. The other head of the running back beast, Greene, finished with 766 rushing yards and two touchdowns.
In fact, it’s been the Jets’ rushing attack that’s kept them in the game at times when Mark Sanchez forgets what color jersey he’s wearing.
“I think they have an excellent running game,” coach Bill Belichick said. “They have a good offensive line. They’ve got two backs that complement each other well that are both good backs, but have different running styles.”
In the Jets’ win over the Colts on Saturday, they found plenty of rushing success. They ran for seven of nine plays on their first touchdown drive and 11 of 15 plays on their second touchdown drive.
The familiarity between the backs and the offensive line is key.
“I think they’ve got a great offensive line that works well together. … It’s a very cohesive unit,” Patriots linebackers coach Matt Patricia said.
“I think any time that you have an offensive group like that — that runs the ball and can handle playing together for an entire season — I think you’ve got a big challenge.”
