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Eye on the East
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Today's the day, even with the Patriots off, when the AFC East race can gain clarity, or become more jumbled than ever.
The 4-3 Jets host the 2-4 Dolphins here in Jersey, while the Bills (anyone notice that they're not in that bad shape, at 3-4?) host the Houston Texans. If Buffalo and Miami lose, things get simplified a bit. If those two win, things get real interesting.
Miami goes to New England next week. Two weeks after that, the Patriots come here to play the Jets. The weeks after that, Buffalo hosts Miami. And so on. Some things to keep an eye on in today's game:
* Rookie Brian Hartline has replaced Ted Ginn in the Miami starting lineup. Ginn had a couple of bad drops last week vs. New Orleans, and this week, coach Tony Sparano said he was throwing competition for playing time at the position wide open.
* The Dolphins rushed for 151 yards in their October win over New York, and that was before Kris Jenkins was lost for the season. I happen to think Jenkins' loss has been a little bit overlooked. Maybe the most impactful injury of the season in the NFL to this point. The Jets have had to change the way they play defense, to an extent.
* Another big game for QB Mark Sanchez. Not that he wasn't OK vs. Oakland last week -- he was, particularly given that he was sick going in. But this gives him the platform to put in a good performance against a solid team since September. And that's getting to be a while ago, now.
* One more thing that my buddy Fitz Ollison of the Dolphins PR staff pointed out: This is the second straight year Miami's started 2-4. Last year, they followed with four straight wins, and it was off to 11-5. Could this be a turning point for Miami in the same way? It almost has to be, if the Dolphins are gonna be what they were last year.
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