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Pennington, Coles rip apart Vikings

Dec 17, 2006 - 11:33 PM MINNEAPOLIS (Ticker) -- Chad Pennington and Laveranues Coles executed a formula that looked all too familiar to the Minnesota Vikings.

Pennington and Coles burned the Vikings' secondary to lead the New York Jets to a 26-13 victory in an interconference contest.

Cedric Houston rushed for a touchdown and Mike Nugent kicked four field goals for the Jets (8-6), who remained in the thick of the AFC wild-card race.

The loss was a devastating one for the Vikings (6-8), who are fighting for an NFC wild-card spot.

"Mathematically, we are still in it. We have to get over this one a lot faster," Vikings first-year coach Brad Childress said.

Jets first-year coach Eric Mangini had the perfect game plan, opting to spread out the Vikings' defense. Minnesota is ranked first in the league against the run but just 27th against the pass.

"The way they give up the rushing yards is pretty impressive," Pennington said. "If you want to give yourself a chance to win, you have to be efficient in the passing game, not commit turnovers, and for the most part, we were able to do that."

On October 30, New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick employed a similar strategy and Tom Brady threw for 372 yards and four touchdowns in a 31-7 victory over the Vikings. Mangini was a defensive coordinator under Belichick last season.

Pennington enjoyed some of the same success as Brady did against the Vikings as he completed 29-of-39 passes for a season-high 339 yards, including a 21-yard touchdown to Coles in the second quarter which gave the Jets a 17-7 lead.

"The coaches said 'Look, the ball is going to be in your hands', so you do what you need to do to keep the chains moving," Pennington said. "It means a lot when the coaches have that confidence in you."

"I think Chad (Pennington) threw the ball well, and the offensive line gave him a chance to throw the ball as well as he did," Mangini said.

Coles found plenty of holes in the Vikings' defense to catch a season-high 12 passes for 144 yards.

"I didn't expect to see that much single coverage," Coles said. "Anytime I get that much, I'm excited."

Childress pulled veteran quarterback Brad Johnson with under a minute remaining in the third quarter in favor of rookie Tarvaris Jackson.

Jackson tried to rally the Vikings from a 26-7 deficit as he completed 14-of-23 passes for 177 yards and a touchdown with an interception. Johnson went just 10-of-17 for 96 yards.

"It feels good. At the same time, they (the fans) were calling for me because they didn't want Brad (Johnson) in," Jackson said. "Brad had helped me out so much, I hate to see it happen to him."

Things actually got off to a rough start for the Jets when Pennington lost a fumble on their second offensive play and linebacker E.J. Henderson recovered at the New York 34. Three plays later, Johnson found Travis Taylor over the middle for a 30-yard touchdown.

But the Jets rebounded from the early miscue to score on five of their next possessions to build a 23-7 halftime lead.

Pennington answered the score by Taylor by directing a 12-play, 67-yard drive. The march featured third-down completions to Coles and fullback B.J. Askew.

Houston, who carried 21 times for 53 yards, scored on six-yard run with 6:20 left in the first quarter to tie the game at 7-7.

Nugent's 25-yard field goal less than four minutes into the second quarter capped off a seven-play, 49-yard drive that put the Jets in front for good.

Pennington hooked up with Coles down the left side for a 21-yard TD with 6:12 left in the half, giving the Jets a 17-7 advantage.

"The strength of their defense is their front seven," Jets tight end Chris Baker said. "We needed to come out and spread them out and take the runs when they were there."

Nugent converted field goals of 52 and 45 yards in the final 2:48 of the half.

With 4:27 left in the third quarter, Nugent capped a 15-play, 84-yard drive with a 20-yard field goal, giving the Jets a 26-7 cushion.

Jackson threw a 35-yard TD pass to running back Mewelde Moore with 6:15 remaining in the fourth quarter to complete the scoring.

Vikings running back Chester Taylor, who missed last week's game at Detroit with injured ribs, rushed for 38 yards on 11 carries.