QB Jay Fiedler, who got to start this game because of QB Chad Pennington's shoulder injury, orchestrated a 98-yard touchdown drive in the second quarter, as the New York Jets defeated the Detroit Lions, 10-3.
Fielder looked pretty good in a totally new for him offense, finishing the game 7 out of 9 for 69 yards. He was, however, intercepted on the first Jets' possession when his pass was deflected. RB Curtis Martin ran for 20 yards on just four carries, which included an 11-yard run along the right sideline. Offseason acquisition RB Derrick Blaylock led the team with 21 yards on 6 carries. Rookie RB Cedric Houston added 21 yards on 6 carries as well, but also fumbled in the 3rd quarter.
FB Jerald Sowell made 3 receptions for 24 yards. WR Justin McCareins caught 2 passes for 16 yards. WR Laveranues Coles marked his return to the New York Jets with the longest reception of the night - 19 yards.
On the defensive side, LB Jonathan Vilma picked up right where he left it off last season, as he led the team with 5 tackles (4 solo). DE Trevor Johnson, who saw plenty of action this evening, also had 4 solo tackles and recorded 1 of the Jets' two sacks in this game. The other sack was attributed to DE Bryan Thomas, who started in place of holdout John Abraham. Rookie CB Justin Miller made a few mistakes in coverage, as the Lions' first team offense threw the ball almost exclusively in his direction. Miller also fumbled a punt late in the 2nd quarter. Another rookie defensive back, S Kerry Rhodes, looked rather impressive. Rhodes recorded two pass defenses and also intercepted one in the 2nd quarter. His other pass defense came on the last play of the game when the Lions had a chance to tie the game with just three seconds left on the clock.
PK Mike Nugent was 1 for 1 on field goals, as he easily made a 40-yard attempt in the 4th quarter. Australian punter Ben Graham also impressed with his 54.7-yard average on three attempts.
The win, unfortunately, was spoiled by the injury suffered by LB Darrell McClover. McClover broke his ankle on the first play in the third quarter and it appears that he's going to miss a significant amount of time, if not the entire season.