Jets Have Momentum Against Indianapolis Colts? Freeney Says No Way

NFL News - January 20th, 2010 - Written by John

When the Indianapolis Colts rested their starters against the New York Jets, therefore allowing the Jets to rally and win and eventually reach the playoffs, it meant two very important things. One, the Colts' perfect season evaporated, and two, New York was afforded a door to an improbable appearance in the NFL Playoffs.

What it didn't mean, however, was that the Jets have any extra momentum coming into the conference championship against those Colts.

So says defensive end Dwight Freeney, anyway.

"The score was pretty much an even score," Freeney told ProFootballTalk. "Obviously, the starters didn't finish the game, they ended up winning the game, and that was good for them. That helped them get into the playoffs, but this is a new game, the AFC Championship Game. So everything that happened in Week Sixteen is kind of irrelevant now."

What happened in Week 16, though, does have some bearing because New York was only trailing 15-10 when all of Indianapolis' starters were lifted. The Jets haven't allowed more than that point total in any game since Week 11, and are suddenly the hottest team in the postseason. On ESPN, 61-percent of voters picked New York as the team with the most momentum in the playoffs on a SportsNation poll.

But Freeney insisted there are no regrets.

"Collectively, as a group, we understood what the main goal is, to be healthy and get ready for the Super Bowl run," Freeney said. "There was a bigger goal."

He'll be quite right if the Colts end up winning the conference and make a trip to the Super Bowl, which was predicted by NFL Betting Lines. But if Sunday is the end of the line for Indianapolis, and New York makes it's first championship appearance since 1969, there will be a whole lot to think about in the off-season. And an important precedent might be sent for future teams who mull benching their starters against a wild card eligible team at the end of the year.

"Who knows what would have happened in that game?" Freeney said. "Week Sixteen was Week Sixteen. This is the AFC Championship now."

Indianapolis is favored by 7 1/2 on Sunday, according to BetUS.