Week 11 pits the 6-3 New York Jets traveling to Foxboro to play the 6-3 New England Patriots.  The winner of Thursday Night’ s game will take over sole possession of the AFC East division.  New England has already beaten the Jets once this season, and a win will go a long way to getting into the playoffs.

Here are a pair of Q&A’s  with Jets head coach Eric Mangini and defensive lineman Kris Jenkins:

JETS HEAD COACH ERIC MANGINI

Q: How do you think the two teams have changed since week two?

EM: I think the one thing that stayed consistent with both teams is that you see the same game plan specific approach game in and game out. The things that New England has shown against other teams are not necessarily going to be what we get. It is going to be what we get, it is going to be what’s given the best chance to win on that Sunday and we try to take that same approach here. I think that we have made some progress both offensively and defensively and I think New England has done the same thing. I really like the way that Matt [Cassel] is playing right now. You can see how comfortable he is in that role. One thing that hasn’t changed is the explosive playmakers they have, all their skill guys being able to generate things offensively, defensively how stout their front seven is and [how] disciplined they are and then you add in really, really good special teams - it is a challenge just like it was a challenge that week.

Q: How much more comfortable is Brett Favre in your system now than he was in week two?

EM: I think each week that he is able to work with the receivers and is able to work within the offense he gets a little more comfortable. But, it will continue to be a work in progress. The more reps that we all play together I think the more progress he’ll make.

Q: You have been able to force a lot of fumbles on sacks. Is that just a by-product of getting a lot of sacks or are you coaching your guys any certain way when it comes to that?

EM: We do a lot of work in that area and that is something that I learned when I was first with the Jets. We spent a lot of time on what’s called ball disruption. I know Pepper [Johnson] does it up there. We have focused on individual players and you look at different areas that you can exploit maybe the way they hold the ball, maybe if it is a quarterback where he holds the ball, scramble patterns, things like that and giving the guys the awareness of if you do get an opportunity to get a sack or if you are the second guy in a pile where you should pressure the ball, what would be the most vulnerable point.

Q: Ty Law mentioned to NFL Network that he expects to play in this game, is that realistic?

EM: I think we will have to see how it goes but I would say there is definitely a shot.

Q: As the first team to face Matt Cassel twice, what are some of the differences that you have seen now facing him than the first time you played him?

EM: I thought Matt did a really good job the first time we played him. I think he has done a really good job in all the games that he has played. He went from inactivity to transitioning to the biggest role he could possibly have. As he has gained reps and gained game experience I think his comfort level, his efficiency in running the offense have all improved.

Q: How much do you feel your defense has grown since that second game?

EM: There have been a lot of things that I have really liked about what we have been able to do defensively and I am really pleased with the overall execution of the game plan defenses that we have had in place. Now there are still a lot of things that we need to improve but that is a consistent point of emphasis for us. The amount of sacks that we have been able to generate that is just not a function of the defensive line, that is the coverage improving and the coordination of the blitzes when they do come or the three man, four man rushes, then also the ability to turn the ball over which is crucial because the turnover ratio is the biggest stat in football.

Q: What has Kris Jenkins meant for you and that defense?

EM: Kris has done an excellent job. He is a big man. He is physical. What has been outstanding is his commitment to playing the technique and never having any exposure to a 3-4 defense, whether it be in college or pro-football, sometimes that transition takes a little bit more time but he has worked at it. He has really tried to understand how the blocking schemes are going to work and I think he has done a good job with that. I think he also has very good finish for a guy his size and that is one of the things that stood out when I watched him on the tape when we were initially looking at him.

Q: Have you noticed anything from the Patriots defense in terms of them doing more this year with different packages on a week-to-week basis or has that been the norm for them in the time that you have game planned against them?

EM: It has been the norm for all the years that I worked with Bill [Belichick] whether it be here with the Jets for three years or New England for six years, it is game plan specific. It is identifying strengths and taking those away, it is identifying weaknesses and exploiting them and it is also playing to your team’s strengths, so it’s got to be sound and very specific rules on how to adjust it. They are not going to make very many mistakes.

Q: Have you been pleased with the play of your secondary thus far?

EM: I think that we have done a lot of good things in the secondary and it is it is a young group. Darrelle Revis is a second year player, Dwight Lowry is a rookie who is starting - Darrelle started last year and Dwight started this year. Kerry [Rhodes] even though he signed an extension is pretty young in his career. Abram Elam who is filling in for Eric Smith and even Eric Smith is a third year player. Abram got to start some games last year and started some games this year so there is quite a bit of youth in that secondary and that is balanced off with Hank [Poteat] who you are familiar with, David Barrett - players like that who bring more experience.

Q: You mentioned before about Ty Law having flexibility, is he a guy that can play safety at this stage in his career?

EM: I have seen that transition take place quite a few times and I have seen it with older guys. We did it with Artrelle Hawkins but I’ve also seen it with younger guys, a guy like Eugene [Wilson] who had never played safety and stepped right in on opening day [inaudible] that’s a possibility at all.

Q: Eric just a follow up about your secondary. Do you feel that unit and its tackling have improved from week two of the season to today?

EM: Tackling is another basic skill set that we try to continue to work on. You tend to put a lot of emphasis on that during training camp and it’s pretty easy to get away from it during the course of the season. We go back to it on a weekly basis and reemphasize it, do specific drills to improve it but it’s not just a drill for the secondary, it’s a drill for the whole defense. It also helps the offensive skill players because it forces them to work on their running with different angles of attack.

Q: How do you feel the secondary specifically has improved in that area?

EM: There haven’t been a significant amount of missed tackles over the course of the season. I think we’re better tackling this year then we were at this time last year and it’s been a conscious effort on everybody’s part to improve that. In terms of specifically that time period I don’t have the numbers of tackles versus missed tackles.

JETS DEFENSIVE LINEMAN KRIS JENKINS

Q: Can you talk about the anticipation of Thursday night’s game?

KJ: It’s a very big game. It’s going to be a big battle back and forth between both teams. I know both teams are ready to go. I’m looking forward to getting out there tomorrow and getting to Thursday and getting to it.

Q: How has the transition to the 3-4 defense been for you?

KJ: It’s been work. Honesty they’ve made me earn my keep around here and it’s been a big adjustment. I know a lot of people look at it and wonder how do you do it coming from a 4-3? It’s just taken time. It’s been a lot of time and it’s been a lot of hard work to catch up.

Q: Where do you feel you’re at in terms of your progress?

KJ: I don’t know. I guess I’m where I need to be right now. I’m going to always work to get better no matter how long I continue to play this position I’ll still have to constantly police myself to become a better player. That will never change, so I guess I’m doing ok.

Q: What was your reaction to the Ty Law signing?

KJ: I was actually surprised because I didn’t hear about it after practice when most people did. I had some extra work to do and after that when I got finished with that work everybody else was gone for the most part. I actually saw it on TV last night. I’ve known Ty [Law] for a minute and I think he’s definitely a good addition to this team.

Q: What surprised you that Ty came to New York or that the Jets where even interested in him?

KJ: You don’t hear about to many teams signing guys in the middle of the season so just that fact that they decided to sign somebody in the middle of the season was a surprise. That was it but it’s good for him to be here. He’s over in his locker now getting bombarded by media as we speak. I think that he’ll be fine here. I think that he’s definitely what we need as far as being in the defensive backfield. He’s a veteran and he has a lot of years of experience, he can help the young guys out.

Q: You guys are ranked high in the league in strip sack and overall sacks. Is that one of the goals or priorities for you, when you get to the quarterback try and strip that ball loose?

KJ: Honestly we try to do whatever we can. It’s getting to that point in the season that I think it’s going to be the type of game that it’s going to be on Thursday. We’re just going to have an open mind and do the best that we can and take what we get.

Q: Was there any trepidation on your part when you came here, having never played the nose [tackle] in a 3-4, that it was going to be too big of an adjustment?

KJ: This is my eighth year and I do understand what it means to be a professional. It was a lot of work ahead of me but I figured hey if you have a lot of guys out here that can play 3-4 nose and they can excellent at in then guess what I can as well. I didn’t think it was something that was impossible I just thought that it was going to take some time and some hard work and extra dedication.

Q: Vince Wilfork played an up field attacking style at Miami said that when he got here the toughest thing was to fight that urge to get up field, was that tough for you?

KJ: Yeah. I’ve had some times where I’ve had to deal with that as well. I can definitely relate to what Vince [Wilfork] is saying. Vince is a very good nose tackle. To be honest with you there have been some times when I’ve had to look at some of his film, in the offseason, to get a couple of pointers of things to do. That was one of the first challenges that I had was to sit back and be patient because when you are in a 4-3 you just want to take off and disrupt but you can’t do that anymore. It takes an adjustment.

Q: What did you learn from playing against Matt Cassel the first time and have you seen anything from him in the last couple of weeks that I guess you can make adjustments for this game?

KJ: I’m not going to tell y’all that. That’s a secret. We still have to go play, I can’t tell you everything.

transcript courtesy Patriots Media Relations