At 5-1 and on top of the NFL's heap after six weeks, the Jets were on a roll but had a Week 7 bye to rest up, relax and heal. In particular, cornerback Darrelle Revis and linebacker Calvin Pace each had an opportunity to get back into better physical health.
Both reported after today's back-to-work practice that they would be better than good to go for Sunday's Halloween matchup against the Green Bay Packers. Revis, the All-Pro cornerback who missed games against the Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills, spent a lot of time at the Atlantic Health Jets Practice Center in Florham Park, N.J., in the past week.
"I feel great. I practiced today and felt great today," Revis said. "I was here all week just trying to get back and get this hamstring right.
"I'm ready to go. I'll be there Sunday. We did everything we could."
Revis described himself as "100 percent." Pace, meanwhile, said he was "in the 90s." Pace missed the first four games of the season due to a broken foot, played the last two, and spent the majority of his week off resting, watching football and even taking his daughter to a show in New York City.
Most of all, he tried to rest his sore wheel knowing he'll be chasing Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers in less than a week.
"It's good, the time away, just to get off of it, and it was also good to get back on it," Pace said. "I'm just trying to work it out a little bit. I'm ready to go, man. It's a situation where it's probably not going to be 100 percent throughout the season and I understand that, but the better that I feel, the more practice time I can get."
Tight end Dustin Keller also spent time in The City That Never Sleeps, going to a few shows and eating at some nice restaurants. After living the city life for about a week and experiencing all that the Big Apple provides, Keller kicked back on Sunday and watched a lot of football, especially the Sunday night matchup between Green Bay and Minnesota. During the game, he was able to get a little pre-scouting in on the Packers, favored by many to win the NFC at the beginning of the season.
"Their linebacking corps looks really good," Keller said. "They have some guys that can rush the quarterback pretty well. You definitely have to account for them and they have Charles Woodson in the secondary so I don't know what our plan is going to be for him, but I think we match up well against them."
Keller mentioned that despite the top-notch amenities that the Jets practice facility provides, it was a nice shakeup to get away for a little while. That was something that rookie fullback John Conner was able to do during his very first bye week in the NFL. "The Terminator" was able to get over a minor shoulder issue and also catch a little collegiate and professional football throughout the weekend as the Kentucky product returned for his homecoming weekend.
"It went really well," Conner said. "I went home and spent some time with the family and I was able to go back to Lexington in Kentucky and spend some time with my old teammates and go to the game."
Veteran linebacker Bart Scott was able to get away for a nice vacation. Scott spent his time in Miami lying on the beach and soaking in the last rays of hot sun that he'll likely get to see for the rest of the season. Considering the Meadowlands' typical wintry weather and the fact that all of the Jets' remaining road games are in northern cities, Scott was glad to get a chance to reflect on the season thus far in the South Florida sunshine.
"It's always good," Scott said. "When you get a bye week it gives you an opportunity to sit back and assess why you really play this game, why you put your body through what you put it through. It also makes you hungry to play again."
