It didn't take long, unfortunately, for Brooks Bollinger's honeymoon to be over. On Sunday afternoon the Carolina Panthers' defense intercepted Brooks four times , giving Jets' fans a clear indication that Bollinger was just not the answer to the Jets' problems at quarterback.
As the game began, the Jets attempted to mix it up on offense but it took just two possessions and two sacks to realize that the offensive line just wasn't capable of giving Bollinger enough time to throw. So, the Gang Green went back to good ole' Curtis Martin who had a pretty decent game, comparing to his mostly dreadful performances of this season, but just not good enough to carry the entire Jets' offense on his back. The Panthers, on the other hand, scored on their second possession and took a 7-0 lead.
At the start of the second quarter CB Ty Law intercepted Delhomme, stopping what surely looked like another scoring drive for Carolina. The Jets took over, easily moved the ball inside the Panthers' territory only to come out with 3 points, as Curtis Martin failed to convert a 3rd and 1 from Carolina's 4-yard line. The Panthers tried to respond with a score of their own but S Erik Coleman intercepted Delhomme deep in the Jets' territory. Unfortunately, three plays later Curtis Martin returned the favor by fumbling the ball on the Jets' 27-yard line, instantly putting Carolina in field goal range. The Jets defense held up and the first half ended 10-3.
The turning point of the game took place in the third quarter when Bollinger had a wide open WR Laveranues Coles in the end zone, but underthrew his pass and was picked off by Ken Lucas. The defense quickly made Carolina go 3 and out. But just four plays later Bollinger gave the ball right back to the Panthers, as his pass was intercepted on the Jets' 37-yard line. This time Carolina capitalized, extending their lead to 17-3.
If three turnovers weren't enough, CB Justin Miller added another one when he fumbled the ensuing kickoff, once again placing the Panthers in a perfect position to increase their lead - 20-3. The game quickly got out of reach and Bollinger just made it look even worse with his two interceptions in the 4th quarter, one of which was returned for a touchdown that made the final score 30-3 in favor of the Panthers.
QB Brooks Bolliner finished the game 11 of 21 for 98 yards, 4 INTs, 0 TD. RB Curtis Martin gained 75 yards on 19 carries. Rookie RB Cedric Houston finally got a decent amount of carries, mostly in garbage time late in the 4th quarter. He finished with 10 rushes for 53 yards. WR Laveranues Coles made the team-high 3 receptions for 30 yards.
On the defensive side LB Victor Hobson led the team with 7 tackles (6 solo). LB Jonathan Vilma and LB Mark Brown registered 6 tackles apiece.
The Jets are 2-7 and will face the Denver Broncos (7-2) next Sunday in Denver. The kickoff time is at 4:15 PM ET.